Give Up
Sub Pop
2003
Rating: 7.5 prison sleepers out of 10
Most of the time, super groups don’t work (remember Contraband?) - Postal Service is the odd exception, and it works quite well. Primarily made up of Jimmy Tamborello (Strictly Ballroom, Dntel, sometimes helps out with Beachwood Sparks) and Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie, All-Time Quarterback), The Postal Service got their name from the way the band assembled their songs, by sending bits and pieces to each other through the mail and having the other add their part to the music. Back and forth it went, until a song popped out (or possibly they couldn’t afford any more stamps, whichever came first, but this second part is just a guess). These boys also got a little help in the additional vocals department from Jenny Lewis (Rilo Kiley) and Jen Wood, to help sweeten out the sound. Like I said, the result is magnificent, a beautiful mesh of electronic beats and bumps, synthesized bits that sound like they were taken from the original Nintendo, and an occasional flash of organic instruments such as the guitar all add up to the first really great indie-pop masterpiece of the year, and it’s certain to make it onto my year-end best of list.
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