Editing Give Up

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{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2021}}
{{Infobox album
| name       = Give Up
| type       = studio
| artist     = [[the Postal Service]]
| cover      = PostalService_cover300dpi.jpg
| caption    = Cover art by [[Al Columbia]]
| released   = February 18, 2003
| recorded   = December 2001 and 2002
| venue      =
| studio     = {{ubl|Dying Songs (Los Angeles)|Computerworld ([[Seattle]])}}
| genre      = {{hlist|[[Indietronica]]|[[indie pop]]|[[synth-pop]]}} 
| length     = 45:00
| label      = [[Sub Pop]]
| producer   = {{hlist|[[The Postal Service]]|}}
| prev_title =
| prev_year  =
| next_title =
| next_year  =
| misc       = {{Singles
 | name        = Give Up
 | type        = studio
 | single1     = [[Such Great Heights]]
 | single1date = 2003
 | single2     = [[The District Sleeps Alone Tonight]]
 | single2date = July 8, 2003
 | single3     = [[We Will Become Silhouettes]]
 | single3date = February 8, 2005
}}
}}
'''''Give Up''''' is the only studio album by American electronic duo [[the Postal Service]], released on February 18, 2003, by [[Sub Pop|Sub Pop Records]]. The Postal Service was a collaboration between singer-songwriter [[Ben Gibbard]], best-known for his work with indie rock band [[Death Cab for Cutie]], and musician Jimmy Tamborello, who also records under the name [[Dntel]]. Gibbard rose to prominence in the early 2000s as frontman of Death Cab, while Tamborello gained a [[cult following]] as a pioneer of contemporary [[glitch music]] and [[electronica]]. The two first collaborated with the song "(This Is) The Dream of Evan and Chan", for Dntel's debut LP, ''[[Life Is Full of Possibilities]]'' (2001).

The album is a long-distance collaboration between Gibbard, who lived in [[Seattle]], Washington, and Tamborello, who resided in Los Angeles, California. The duo named the project for their working method: the pair would send demos on burned [[CD-R]]'s through the mail, adding elements until songs were complete. The LP's sound contrasts manipulated [[Sampling (music)|samples]] and keyboards with live guitar and drums—a sound some have described as "[[indietronica]]". Tamborello was responsible for the programming, while Gibbard wrote lyrics, provided vocals, and contributed additional instrumentation. ''Give Up'' also features guest appearances from vocalists [[Jen Wood]] and [[Jenny Lewis]], as well as musician [[Chris Walla]].

''Give Up'' was released with little promotion—its creators embarked on a brief tour, but otherwise returned to their main projects. Despite this, the album grew in popularity steadily in the ensuing years, bolstered by the singles "[[Such Great Heights]]" and "[[We Will Become Silhouettes]]". By the end of its first decade, it had sold 1.2&nbsp;million copies in the U.S., making it Sub Pop's second-biggest selling album in its history. It also courted a trademark battle with the [[United States Postal Service]] and a dispute with [[Apple Inc.|Apple]]. Despite its popularity, ''Give Up'' stands as the duo's only studio album. In 2013, the group briefly reunited for an anniversary tour and reissue of the album. In 2023, the band embarked on a 20th anniversary tour.

==Background==
[[File:PostalService bw300dpi by Brian Tamborello.jpg|thumb|left|A promotional photo of Gibbard and Tamborello, shot by Brian Tamborello.]]
The Postal Service is a collaboration between singer-songwriter Ben Gibbard and electronic musician [[Dntel]] (Jimmy Tamborello). Gibbard rose to prominence in the early 2000s as frontman of the indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, while Tamborello gained a cult following as a pioneer of contemporary [[Glitch (music)|glitch music]] and [[electronica]]. In 2001, Tamborello released his first album under the Dntel moniker, titled ''[[Life Is Full of Possibilities]]'', which features several guest vocalists. The LP featured the duo's first collaboration, with the song "(This Is) The Dream of Evan and Chan". The pair had met through Tamborello's roommate, Pedro Benito, who was in the indie rock group [[the Jealous Sound]],<ref name="og-bio">{{cite web|url=http://www.subpop.com/bands/postalservice/bio.php|title=The Postal Service – Bio|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030329114241/http://www.subpop.com/bands/postalservice/bio.php|first=Marc|last=Hawthorne|date=November 1, 2002|archive-date=March 29, 2003}}</ref> a band that had toured with Death Cab. When Gibbard stayed at their apartment for several days, Tamborello recruited him to contribute to the album.

Gibbard and Tamborello came from distinctly different musical backgrounds, and did not know each other well. Tamborello—then based outside Los Angeles—came up as a member of the [[electropop]] band [[Figurine (band)|Figurine]], with whom he'd released two albums. Gibbard, meanwhile, had released three albums with his indie rock outfit Death Cab, who were based in Seattle, Washington. The band nearly disbanded after an argument on tour in October 2001; after returning home, the group decided to take a brief hiatus, setting the stage for a side-project. Though the pair did not initially connect on a personal level in a strong sense—with Gibbard more sociable and Tamborello often reserved—they continued to collaborate.<ref name="ew13">{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/2013/04/19/postal-service-give-up-oral-history/|title=The Postal Service's 'Give Up': An oral history of the indie side project that became an aughties touchstone – and a platinum seller|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|first=Kyle|last=Anderson|date=April 19, 2013|access-date=October 19, 2019}}</ref> Gibbard suggested the two release an [[extended play]] (EP) of their work.

Tamborello had contacts at famed Seattle-based record label [[Sub Pop]], best-known for releasing albums by [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana]] and [[Sleater-Kinney]]. Tony Kiewel, who had gone to college with Tamborello, had recently began working for Sub Pop in their [[Artists and repertoire|A&R]] division. He proposed that they release a full-length album as opposed to an EP, noting that the former received more attention than the latter. "If you're going to do it, do a full album," he told the duo. "People will review it, and you can sell it for three times as much." The duo signed a joint record deal with Sub Pop,<ref name="bbc03">{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/collective/A1031112|title=BBC – Collective – Postal Service, ''Give Up''|date=April 25, 2003|first= Alexia|last=Loundras|website=[[Collective (BBC)|Collective]]. [[bbc.co.uk]]|publisher=[[BBC]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030618182711/http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/collective/A1031112|archive-date=June 18, 2003}}</ref> and work on what became ''Give Up'' began in earnest in December 2001.<ref name="og-bio"/>

==Recording and production==
[[File:CD-R.jpg|thumb|right|The pair sent one another burned [[CD-R]]s through the mail to create the album.]]
The production process behind ''Give Up'' involved Tamborello, based in the L.A. community of [[Silver Lake, Los Angeles|Silver Lake]],<ref name="og-bio"/> sending Gibbard, living north in Seattle, pieces of [[instrumental music]] on burned CD-Rs. Gibbard would pick up the disc from Sub Pop's corporate office and return to his home in the [[Capitol Hill, Seattle|Capitol Hill district]]. He would insert the CD into his portable [[Discman]] player and walk around his neighborhood, humming melodies to the music. He also carried a notebook to compile his ideas, which he would use when home to write lyrics.<ref name="sif">{{cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MoSP7lNJTqk |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/MoSP7lNJTqk| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|title=The Postal Service: Some Idealistic Future|people=Mitchell, Justin (director); Gibbard, Ben (interview); Tamborello, Jimmy (interview); Lewis, Jenny (interview)|date=July 25, 2013|access-date=March 26, 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Gibbard would then manipulate the recordings on his laptop, augmenting the beats with additional guitar, keyboards, and live drums.<ref name="og-bio"/> He dubbed his home studio "Computerworld". Gibbard, who had always found composing music to be more difficult than writing lyrics, found the arrangement particularly appealing. "It was really great to get a little package every month or two – 'Two new songs!'" he noted in 2002. "Sometimes I'd say, 'I want to move that part and this part,' and it was really fun to have such autonomy in the writing; I could pretty much do whatever I wanted."<ref name="og-bio"/>

Tamborello, operating from his L.A. home studio he called Dying Songs, contributed more-or-less finished bed tracks. The first two songs he sent developed into "Brand New Colony" and "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight", which were completed over the course of a week. The pair worked at a pace of two or three songs per month.<ref name="ew13"/> As Gibbard did not know Tamborello very well, he was nervous he would not respond to his contributions positively. "I really thought he was gonna be like, 'How dare you do this to my songs?'" he said.<ref name="mtv03"/> Initially, Tamborello was challenged by Gibbard's vocal suggestions. "When you're just writing the music, you come up with your own vocal melodies. But Ben's ideas were totally different," he told the [[BBC]].<ref name="bbc03"/> The two were relative strangers from distinctly different musical backgrounds; "It was like having to work on the album and make friends at the same time," he admitted.<ref name="og-bio"/> Tamborello admitted he expected the album to be more experimental than it turned out to be.<ref name="songexploder"/>
[[File:Jenny Lewis, March 2006 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|''Give Up'' includes guest vocals from singer-songwriter [[Jenny Lewis]], who sings on half of its tracks.]]
The album has several guest musicians, including [[Jen Wood]], a solo artist formerly of the band [[Tattle Tale]], and [[Jenny Lewis]], then known for her work with [[Rilo Kiley]]. Wood had previously toured with Death Cab, and she and Gibbard were longtime friends. He invited her to contribute via e-mail, and the resulting session took only two hours.<ref name="ew13"/> Wood provides backing vocals on "Such Great Heights" and "Nothing Better". Next, Gibbard phoned Lewis to gauge her interest, who was at that time recording with Rilo Kiley in [[Omaha, Nebraska]]. She excitedly agreed to join the project, and the two met for the first time when she picked Gibbard up from the [[Burbank, California|Burbank]] airport.<ref name="sif"/> She recorded her contributions over a period of several days; on the final LP, over half of the album's track listing features her backing vocals, which were recorded in Tamborello's bedroom. Additional recording on the LP took place at [[Reciprocal Recording|the Hall of Justice]], a studio in Seattle's [[Ballard, Seattle|Ballard]] neighborhood, during the spring of 2002. [[Chris Walla]], a member of Death Cab, had purchased the studio two years prior. Walla recorded the live accompaniment, and guested on piano on "Nothing Better".

Though the initial press release for the album states that it was completed in ten months,<ref name="og-bio"/> other sources claim it was completed in half that time.<ref name="nyt04"/> Gibbard flew to Los Angeles only twice during the production of the album. The first was to oversee Lewis's contribution, and also record additional vocals. The duo came to feel that Gibbard's original demo vocals were better, and they discarded much of the new vocal takes.<ref name="ew13"/> The second trip was to be involved in the [[audio mixing|mixing]] process. Both musicians mixed the album in Tamborello's bedroom; he noted that it was simply too involved a process to conduct via the mail. Ironically, despite the final name they chose for the project, they did not use the United States Postal Service as a [[express mail|courier]]; the CDs were sent through either [[FedEx]] or [[United Parcel Service|UPS]].<ref name="ew13"/> Kiewel remarked in a 2013 interview that ''Give Up'' was one of the "cheapest records Sub Pop ever made." Though he withheld the final number, he revealed the project had a very small budget, and that when combined, the five LPs the label distributed that year cost less than $50,000.<ref name="ew13"/>

==Composition==
[[File:Dntel.jpg|thumb|right|Tamborello, seen here in 2006, composed the beats using a [[Kurzweil K2000|K2000RS]] sampler connected to a [[Macintosh Quadra]] and [[PowerBook G4]].]]
''Give Up'' is considered a combination of indie rock and electronic music—dubbed by some "indietronica". [[MTV]]'s Brian Wallace described the sound of the album as a collision between "moody indie rock with the manipulated samples, keyboards and beats of [[Intelligent dance music|IDM]] electronica."<ref name="mtv03">{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1471035/death-cab-singer-goes-postal-with-electronic-side-project/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160404103636/http://www.mtv.com/news/1471035/death-cab-singer-goes-postal-with-electronic-side-project/|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 4, 2016|title=Death Cab Singer Goes Postal With Electronic Side Project|website=MTV.com|date=April 4, 2003|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> Programmed elements are accentuated with acoustic guitars and live drums.<ref name="bb03">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/70651/breaking-entering|title=Breaking & Entering: Going Postal|magazine=Billboard|date=June 11, 2003|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> Critics compared it to the eighties [[synthpop]] and [[New wave music|new wave]] genres.<ref name="popmatters" /><ref name="rollingstone" /> [[Pitchfork Media]]'s Matt LeMay and [[AllMusic]]'s Heather Phares both commented on the contrasts between the "cool, clean synths" and Gibbard's vocal melodies.<ref name="pitchfork" /> Nearly every synthesized element on the album uses the [[Kurzweil K2000|Kurzweil K2000RS]], a sampler.<ref name="sif"/> The device came with bass and synthesizer presets, though Tamborello would significantly alter each preset to make it more original.<ref name="songexploder">{{cite AV media |people=Hirway, Hrishikesh (interviewer); Tamborello, Jimmy (interviewee) |date=January 1, 2014 |title=Episode 1: The Postal Service – The District Sleeps Alone Tonight|url=http://songexploder.net/the-postal-service |medium=Podcast |publisher=Song Exploder |access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> His computer at the time was a [[Macintosh Quadra]], which was not sufficiently powerful enough to record audio with. Tamborello used it as a sequencer, controlling the K2000RS with [[MIDI]]. He would program the drum patterns in the computer.<ref name="songexploder"/> He also used an Apple [[PowerBook G4]], a small laptop computer, to record the album.<ref name="tv13">{{cite news|url=https://www.theverge.com/2013/7/25/4557656/the-postal-service-talks-about-resurrecting-a-band-from-the-dead|title=The Postal Service talks about resurrecting a band from the dead after 10 long years|first= Nathan|last=Ingraham|website=The Verge|date=July 25, 2013|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref>

Lyrically, the album touches on themes of love, as well as fame, history, and friendship.<ref name="popmatters" /> On both ''Give Up'' and ''Transatlanticism'', the Death Cab for Cutie album released the same year, Gibbard lyrically explores distance and "the ability of relationships to survive [separation]."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.mlive.com/citpat-pluggedin/2009/05/albums_of_the_aughts_no_20_tra.html|title=Albums of the Aughts No. 20: "Transatlanticism" by Death Cab for Cutie (with two-for-the-price-of-one bonus, "Give Up" by The Postal Service)|date=May 17, 2009|first=Bill|last=Chapin|work=Jackson Citizen Patriot|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> Gibbard noted that "District", "Brand New Colony", and "This Place is a Prison" were the only strictly autobiographical songs: "Everything else is just kind of daydreaming and coming up with ideas for songs that aren't necessarily based in reality, and I think that was a lot more fun for me to do because I'd never really done that before," he said in 2002.<ref name="og-bio"/> Alexia Loundras of the BBC observed that the album offers a melancholy but hopeful sentiment.<ref name="bbc03"/> Portions of ''Give Up'' were inspired by the break-up of what Gibbard called his "first real adult relationship."<ref>{{cite news|title=The Lonesome Lyrics of Ben Gibbard|first=Jim|last=Fusilli|work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|page=D13|date=January 21, 2004}}</ref> The split occurred because of how much time Gibbard devoted to music. Afterwards, his former partner relocated to Washington, D.C., which inspired "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://exclaim.ca/music/article/ben_gibbard_talks_death_cabs_almost_break-up_obvious_advice_he_should_have_taken|title=Ben Gibbard Talks Death Cab's Almost Breakup and the "Obvious" Advice He Should Have Taken|date=November 6, 2012|first= Stephen|last=Carlick|work=Exclaim!|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref>

"The District Sleeps Alone Tonight" opens with a series of moody, deep-sounding chords designed to emulate the sound of an organ—an edited version of a K2000RS preset called NeoProfit.<ref name="sif"/> The first half of the song's drum programming was inspired by the [[Björk]] album ''[[Homogenic]]'' (1997), while the second half, with its [[Four on the floor (music)|four on the floor]] pattern, was inspired by the work of [[Lali Puna]] and the German record label Morr Music.<ref name="songexploder"/> Gibbard wrote "Such Great Heights" as a love song for a girl he was interested in at the time. He noted that the relationship ended rather quickly, rendering the song's meaning rather pointless.<ref name="mtv03"/> The song came together late in the recording process, and was one of the last songs the duo completed in June 2002.<ref name="itow"/> Its genesis came together "incredibly quickly," according to Gibbard, who felt it "seemingly came out of nowhere. It did feel that there was some sort of spiritual transcendence happening and the song being beamed down to me."<ref name="medium15">{{cite web|url=https://medium.com/cuepoint/death-cab-for-cutie-s-ben-gibbard-deconstructs-the-science-of-songwriting-bbd085a06a2a|title=Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard Deconstructs the Science of Songwriting|first=Kelly|last=McCartney|website=Medium. Cuepoint.|date=April 19, 2015|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> For Gibbard, the song was a thematic departure from his more melancholy subject matter: "I think 'Such Great Heights' is the first time I've ever written a positive love song," he told ''[[Rolling Stone]]'', "where it's a song about being in love and how it's rad, rather than having your heart broken."<ref name="rs15">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/such-great-heights-55508/|title=Such Great Heights|first=Jonah|last=Flicker|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=May 7, 2012|access-date=October 19, 2019}}</ref>

"Sleeping In" alludes to [[Lee Harvey Oswald]], the man responsible for [[Assassination of John F. Kennedy|assassinating]] U.S. President [[John F. Kennedy]] in 1963.<ref name="bb13"/> "Nothing Better" is a duet with Wood, and functions as a conversation between the two. The track was directly inspired by [[the Human League]]'s "[[Don't You Want Me]]".<ref name="og-bio"/> In "Clark Gable", named after the famed [[Clark Gable|twentieth-century actor]], Gibbard sings of making [[home movies]] with a former lover.<ref name="bb13"/><ref name="rollingstone" /> "We Will Become Silhouettes" centers on an impending apocalypse. It was inspired by a [[survivalism|survivalist]] phase Gibbard went through after the [[September 11 attacks]], where he felt convinced the world was soon to end.<ref name="mtv03"/>

==Commercial performance==
''Give Up'' has been considered a [[sleeper hit]]—its reaction was initially muted, but grew steadily via [[word-of-mouth]] in the following years. The LP arrived with virtually no promotion; besides the ensuing tour, there was "little mainstream press, and [[airplay]] [was] confined to [[Campus radio|college stations]] and [[public radio]]."<ref name="bb03"/> In its first four months of release, it moved between 2,000 and 3,000 units per week. During the week of Christmas in 2003, the LP had its overall best sales, selling 9,000 copies in a week. Through their relationship with the [[Alternative Distribution Alliance]], Sub Pop began to carry the album at larger retailers, such as [[Tower Records]], [[Virgin Megastore]], and [[Best Buy]]. Megan Jasper, then the general manager at the label, estimated that Best Buy moved the most product of the three.<ref name="bb04-1">{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KhAEAAAAMBAJ|title=Sub Pop's Commercial Resurgence|first=Chris|last=Morris|pages=11–12|magazine=Billboard|date=April 10, 2004|volume=117|issue=34|issn=0006-2510|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.}}</ref> ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]''{{'s}} Michael Paolettta broke down that sixty percent of its sales at that time came from retail chains, thirty percent through independent record shops, and the remaining ten percent from "mass merchants and nontraditional sellers."<ref name="bb04">{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5BIEAAAAMBAJ|title=Postal Service Delivers ''Give Up''|first=Michael|last=Paoletta|page=34|magazine=Billboard|date=August 7, 2004|volume=116|issue=32|issn=0006-2510|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.}}</ref>

"Such Great Heights" was the album's first single, released as a physical, four-track CD single in January 2003. The duo both jokingly referred to it as "the hit" of the album when writing it.<ref name="itow">{{cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5XtyYUTDBU |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/O5XtyYUTDBU| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|title=The Postal Service: In Their Own Words|people=[[Tom Scharpling|Scharpling, Tom]] (director); Gibbard, Ben (interview); Tamborello, Jimmy (interview)|date=April 9, 2013|access-date=March 26, 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The disc charted on ''Billboard''{{'s}} [[Hot 100|Hot 100 Singles Sales]] chart, a ranking that only measured in-store purchases.<ref name="bb03-1">{{cite magazine|url=https://americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2003/BB-2003-02-15.pdf|title=Hot 100 Singles Sales|page=56|magazine=Billboard|date=February 15, 2003|volume=115|issue=6|issn=0006-2510|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.}}</ref> Sub Pop offered a free download of the song on their official website, which had been downloaded over nine million times by August 2005;<ref name="bb05">{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5RIEAAAAMBAJ|title=Q&A: Jonathan Poneman|first=Todd|last=Martens|page=18|magazine=Billboard|date=August 20, 2005|volume=117|issue=34|issn=0006-2510|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.}}</ref> over four million users downloaded the song from the label's [[MySpace]] page.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://badgerherald.com/artsetc/2005/09/21/aging-album-maintain/|title=Aging album maintains high sales|first=Alec|last=Luhn|date=September 21, 2005|work=The Badger Herald|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> In January 2004, influential L.A. radio station [[KROQ-FM]] began playing "Such Great Heights",<ref name="kroq">{{cite web|url=https://www.subpop.com/news/2006/08/08/postal_service_added_on_kroq|title=POSTAL SERVICE ADDED on KROQ!|date=January 13, 2004|website=[[Sub Pop Records|SubPop.com]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040414210156/http://subpop.com/scripts/main/news.php?table=news&display_type=news_full&id=214|archive-date=April 14, 2004}}</ref> which bolstered the album's popularity. An acoustic rendition of the tune by [[Iron & Wine]] aided in boosting its profile; both were simultaneously popular, with Iron & Wine's version used in the film and soundtrack for ''[[Garden State (film)|Garden State]]'', as well as in television advertisements for [[M&M's|M&M]]'s. The original version was licensed for commercials for [[Target Corporation|Target]], [[Ask.com]], UPS,<ref name="bb13"/> [[Telstra]], and [[Kaiser Permanente]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://diffuser.fm/postal-services-such-great-heights/|title=The Postal Service's Single Pushes Them to 'Such Great Heights'|website=Diffuser.fm|first=Bryan|last=Wawzenek|date=January 19, 2018}}</ref> The song was the original [[theme song]] to medical drama ''[[Grey's Anatomy]]'', and appears on its [[Grey's Anatomy (soundtrack)|first soundtrack]]. Within two years of its debut, "Such Great Heights" was certified gold for sales of over 500,000 copies by the [[Recording Industry Association of America]] (RIAA).<ref name="RIAA">{{cite web | url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=the+postal+service | title=Gold & Platinum – RIAA | publisher=[[Recording Industry Association of America]] | access-date=April 19, 2018}}</ref> "[[The District Sleeps Alone Tonight]]", the album's second single, peaked at number 3 on the [[Hot Dance Singles Sales]] chart.

The LP did not debut on ''Billboard''{{'s}} all-genre [[Billboard 200|Top 200 Albums]] chart until thirteen months after its release,<ref name="bb04-4">{{cite magazine|url=https://americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2004/BB-2004-03-27.pdf|title=Over the Counter|first=Michael|last=Paoletta|page=64|magazine=Billboard|date=March 27, 2004|volume=116|issue=13|issn=0006-2510|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.}}</ref> which was credited to its slow-building online buzz and licensing in TV commercials.<ref name="mtv05">{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1497025/game-knocked-down-by-guys-from-mississippi/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191020123440/http://www.mtv.com/news/1497025/game-knocked-down-by-guys-from-mississippi/|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 20, 2019|title=Game Knocked Down by Guys from Mississippi|first=James|last=Montgomery|website=MTV.com|date=February 16, 2005|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> During its initial release, the album peaked at number 114. It spent 111 weeks altogether on the [[Independent Albums]] chart, peaking at number three,<ref name="bb13"/> and also peaked at number four on its [[Top Heatseekers]] chart. ''Give Up'' spent nineteen non-consecutive weeks at the top of the publication's [[Top Electronic Albums]] chart;<ref name="bb05-1">{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XBQEAAAAMBAJ|title=Top Electronic Albums|page=28|magazine=Billboard|date=February 5, 2005|volume=117|issue=6|issn=0006-2510|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.}}</ref> in total, it logged over 90 weeks on the chart.<ref name="bb05-3">{{cite magazine|url=https://americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2005/BB-2005-05-07.pdf|title=Postal Service Puts Stamp on Charts with Debut|first=Michael|last=Paoletta|page=34|magazine=Billboard|date=May 7, 2005|volume=117|issue=19|issn=0006-2510|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.}}</ref> It was number two album for that chart's year-end ranking for 2004, with ''Billboard''{{'s}} Paoletta characterizing it as "[[The Little Engine That Could|the little album that could]]."<ref name="bb04-2">{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1BMEAAAAMBAJ|title=Postal Service Puts Stamp on Charts with Debut|first=Michael|last=Paoletta|page=YE-56–YE-78|magazine=Billboard|date=December 25, 2004|volume=116|issue=52|issn=0006-2510|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.}}</ref> Sales of the album and singles on the nascent [[iTunes Music Store]] were high, with ''Give Up'' also routinely topping the platform's Top Electronic Albums chart.<ref name="bb04"/>
[[File:Ipod 5th Generation white bijgewerkt.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Sales of the album on the emerging [[iTunes Store]] were high. ''Pictured'': an [[iPod]] in 2006.]]
By this time, the project's principal members had moved on to other projects, and their newfound mainstream success came as a surprise.<ref name="sif"/> For the music industry, its success was also unexpected; Paoletta viewed it one of "2004's biggest surprises."<ref name="bb04-2"/> Kiewel was initially convinced the album could sell between 10–20,000 copies, though Tamborello "scoffed" at the idea.<ref name="itow"/> It became Sub Pop's second biggest-selling album in their history, second only to Nirvana's ''[[Bleach (Nirvana album)|Bleach]]'', which was released in 1989.<ref name="bb13"/> The RIAA certified ''Give Up'' gold in February 2005; that month, the band released a third and final single from the LP, "[[We Will Become Silhouettes]]", backed with a new song, "Be Still My Heart".<ref name="bb04-2"/> The single charted best in Canada, where as a [[A-side and B-side#Double A-side|double A-side]] single the songs reached number seven on the national charts.<ref name="Allmusic charts">{{cite web | url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-postal-service-mn0000894962/awards | title=The Postal Service – Awards (Billboard Singles)| work=[[AllMusic]] | access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> Domestically, it was a mild [[crossover hit]], peaking at number 82 on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] in early 2005. Sub Pop tapped ''[[Napoleon Dynamite]]'' director [[Jared Hess]] to helm the song's music video.<ref name="mtv04"/> Both clips for ''Give Up'' attracted rotation on the [[Fuse (TV channel)|Fuse]] network and [[MTV2]]'s ''Subterranean''.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.subpop.com/scripts/main/news.php?table=news&display_type=news_full&id=400 | title = Postal Service's Give Up Goes Gold, iTunes Exclusive, And More! | access-date = March 26, 2020 | date = February 18, 2005 | publisher = [[Sub Pop]] | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20050226200351/http://www.subpop.com/scripts/main/news.php?table=news&display_type=news_full&id=400 | archive-date = February 26, 2005}}</ref>

Over a decade past its release, the RIAA certified the album platinum in the U.S., indicating over one million copies sold.<ref name="spin12">{{cite news|url=https://www.spin.com/2012/11/postal-service-give-up-platinum/|first=Chris|last=Martins|title=Such Great Heights: The Postal Service's 'Give Up' Goes Platinum|work=Spin|date=November 1, 2012|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> Chris Payne of ''Billboard'' considered "a testament to its ongoing popularity and influence."<ref name="bb13">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/review/1549318/the-postal-service-give-up-classic-track-by-track-review|first=Chris|last=Payne|title=The Postal Service, 'Give Up': Classic Track-By-Track Review|magazine=Billboard|date=February 19, 2013|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> The tenth anniversary reissue of the album reached a new peak of number 45 on the ''Billboard'' 200 in April 2013. As of that year, ''Give Up'' had sold over 1.1&nbsp;million units in the United States.

==Critical reception==
{{Music ratings
| MC = 79/100<ref name="Metacritic">{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/give-up/the-postal-service |title=Give Up by The Postal Service Reviews and Tracks |website=[[Metacritic]] |access-date=February 27, 2021}}</ref>
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]] 
| rev1score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/give-up-mw0000020333 |title=Give Up – The Postal Service |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=February 1, 2021 |last=Phares |first=Heather}}</ref>
| rev2 = ''[[Alternative Press (magazine)|Alternative Press]]''
| rev2score = 4/5<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The Postal Service: Give Up |magazine=[[Alternative Press (magazine)|Alternative Press]] |issue=176 |date=March 2003 |page=100}}</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]''
| rev3score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/review/1549318/the-postal-service-give-up-classic-track-by-track-review |title=The Postal Service, 'Give Up': Classic Track-By-Track Review |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=February 19, 2013 |access-date=June 15, 2015 |last=Payne |first=Chris}}</ref>
| rev4 = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''
| rev4score = A−<ref name="EW">{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/article/2003/03/14/give-2/ |title=Give Up |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |date=March 14, 2003 |access-date=February 1, 2021 |last=Hermes |first=Will |author-link=Will Hermes |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930211553/https://ew.com/article/2003/03/14/give-2/ |archive-date=September 30, 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev5 = ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]'' 
| rev5score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The Postal Service: Give Up |magazine=[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]] |issue=114 |date=May 2003 |page=98}}</ref>
| rev6 = ''[[NME]]'' 
| rev6score = 8/10<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The Postal Service: Give Up |magazine=[[NME]] |date=May 3, 2003}}</ref>
| rev7 = ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]''
| rev7score = 8.0/10<ref name="pitchfork">{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/6432-give-up/ |title=The Postal Service: Give Up |website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |date=February 9, 2003 |access-date=February 14, 2013 |last=LeMay |first=Matt}}</ref>
| rev8 = ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]'' 
| rev8score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The Postal Service: Give Up |magazine=[[Q (magazine)|Q]] |issue=202 |date=May 2003 |page=112}}</ref>
| rev9 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
| rev9score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="rollingstone">{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/give-up-246131/ |title=Give Up |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=March 25, 2003 |access-date=February 1, 2021 |last=Matos |first=Michaelangelo}}</ref>
| rev10 = ''[[The Village Voice]]''
| rev10score = A−<ref name="villagevoice">{{cite news |url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv304-04.php |title=Consumer Guide: Edges of the Groove |newspaper=[[The Village Voice]] |date=March 23, 2004 |access-date=June 15, 2015 |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau}}</ref>
}}

''Give Up'' was generally well received by music critics. It holds a score of 79 out of 100 on review aggregate site [[Metacritic]], indicating "generally favorable reviews".<ref name="Metacritic"/> [[Will Hermes]] of ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' wrote that "Ben Gibbard radiates claustrophobia, so the shut-in synth-pop of this side project fits him like a leotard", calling ''Give Up'' "the near-perfect pop record that's eluded his main group."<ref name="EW"/> ''[[The Village Voice]]''{{'}}s [[Robert Christgau]] praised the album's "staying power" and felt that "Gibbard's delicate voice matches the subtle electro arrangements far more precisely than it does the folky guitars of his real group".<ref name="villagevoice"/>

Reviewing ''Give Up'' for AllMusic, Heather Phares opined that while the album does not measure up to either Gibbard or Tamborello's main projects, it is nonetheless "far more consistent and enjoyable than might be expected."<ref name="allmusic"/> Michaelangelo Matos of ''Rolling Stone'' described the album as "a cuddly little new wave reverie" and wrote that "Tamborello's delightful pings and whistles fit Gibbard's whimsy perfectly."<ref name="rollingstone"/> Devon Powers of ''[[PopMatters]]'' remarked that "like any worthy match, the coming together gives each aspect assets that they'd be wont to find otherwise", concluding that the album "integrates the human and the humanoid to give soundtrack to the disconnected, yet earnest escapades of contemporary emotional life."<ref name="popmatters">{{cite web |url=https://www.popmatters.com/postalservice-give-2496037110.html |title=The Postal Service: Give Up |website=[[PopMatters]] |date=April 3, 2003 |access-date=February 1, 2021 |last=Powers |first=Devon}}</ref> Matt LeMay of ''Pitchfork'' called the album "a pretty damned strong record, and one with enough transcendent moments to forgive it its few substandard tracks and ungodly lyrical blunders".<ref name="pitchfork"/>

''Pitchfork'' placed ''Give Up'' at number 104 on its list of the 200 best albums of the 2000s.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/7710-the-top-200-albums-of-the-2000s-20-1/?page=5 |title=The 200 Best Albums of the 2000s |website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |date=October 2, 2009 |access-date=February 1, 2021 |page=5}}</ref> ''Rolling Stone'' ranked ''Give Up'' as the decade's 86th best album.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/100-best-albums-of-the-2000s-153375/the-postal-service-give-up-183136/ |title=100 Best Albums of the 2000s |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=July 18, 2011 |access-date=February 1, 2021}}</ref>

==Controversies==
[[File:42nd St 6th Av td 15.jpg|thumb|right|The project attracted the ire of the [[United States Postal Service]], who threatened legal action.]]
In August 2003, the [[United States Postal Service]] (USPS) served the band with a [[cease and desist]] letter citing tarnishing and dilution of their trademark.<ref name="nyt04">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/06/arts/music/postal-service-tale-indie-rock-snail-mail-and-trademark-law.html|title=Postal Service Tale: Indie Rock, Snail Mail and Trademark Law|first=Ben|last=Sisario|work=The New York Times|date=November 6, 2004 |access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> The band initially considered renaming themselves.<ref name="directmag">{{cite web|url=http://directmag.com/opinions-columnists/loosecannon/loose-cannon-postal-service-letter-law/|title=Loose Cannon: The Postal Service and the Letter of the Law|access-date=April 12, 2008|author=Richard H. Levey|publisher=DirectMag.com|archive-date=February 7, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207003146/http://directmag.com/opinions-columnists/loosecannon/loose-cannon-postal-service-letter-law/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Gibbard traveled to Los Angeles and met with representatives for the agency to come to a consensus. In the end, the duo inked a licensing agreement with the agency; the deal specified the duo could continue to use the name if it agreed to promote the actual U.S. Postal Service. The album was then sold on the USPS's official website,<ref>{{cite web | title=Give Up: Postal Service Band CD | website=shop.usps.com | date=2005-02-08 | url=http://shop.usps.com/cgi-bin/vsbv/postal_store_non_ssl/display_products/productDetail.jsp?OID=4849208 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051112180244/http://shop.usps.com/cgi-bin/vsbv/postal_store_non_ssl/display_products/productDetail.jsp?OID=4849208 | archive-date=2005-11-12 | url-status=unfit}}</ref> and its music used in advertisements.<ref name="bb04-2"/> The two also performed at the annual USPS convention in Washington, D.C. in November 2004.<ref name="mtv04">{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1491012/postal-service-album-keeps-on-delivering/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219123732/http://www.mtv.com/news/1491012/postal-service-album-keeps-on-delivering/|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 19, 2019|title=Postal Service Album Keeps on Delivering|first=Rodrigo|last=Perez|website=MTV.com|date=September 16, 2004|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> Tamborello, in an interview with [[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]], said the affair seemed "depressing" at first, but ended up "kind of fun". They performed only two songs, and briefly met with the [[United States Postmaster General|Postmaster General]]. He noted that "Everyone was sort-of in on the joke."<ref name="jiminterview">{{cite web|url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/37977-interview-jimmy-tamborello |title=Interview: Jimmy Tamborello |author=Dave Maher |publisher=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork Media]] |access-date=April 12, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080406004647/http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/37977-interview-jimmy-tamborello |archive-date=April 6, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 2006, the duo courted further publicity when they shared their discomfort with an [[Apple Inc.|Apple]] commercial, advertising a partnership with [[Intel]], that shared similarities with the "Such Great Heights" music video. The two both share imagery of "[[space suit|space-suited]] scientists working in a sterile, futuristic laboratory." Both the TV spot and music video were helmed by the directorial team of Josh Melnick and Xander Charity, who were approached by Apple to re-create the video. All parties failed to inform Gibbard and Tamborello, or Sub Pop, until one day before it began airing. Gibbard shared a statement on the duo's official site, calling it a "shot-for-shot re-creation" and claiming disappointment that it "was executed without our consultation or consent." Apple later promoted the "Such Great Heights" clip on the main page of the iTunes Music Store, prompting it to become the most-downloaded video on the site for a time, ahead of videos by [[Eminem]], [[Jessica Simpson]] and [[Black Eyed Peas|The Black Eyed Peas]].<ref name="mtv06">{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1521418/such-great-lows-postal-service-upset-over-apple-tv-spot/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140914020606/http://www.mtv.com/news/1521418/such-great-lows-postal-service-upset-over-apple-tv-spot/|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 14, 2014|title=Such Great Lows: Postal Service Upset over TV Spot|first=James|last=Montgomery|website=MTV.com|date=January 23, 2006|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref>

==Touring==
The Postal Service—consisting of Gibbard, Tamborello, and Lewis—promoted the 2003 release of ''Give Up'' by touring that year. Nick Harmer, bassist of Death Cab for Cutie, joined the trio on the trek, managing the group and the visual accompaniment that was projected behind their performance. Rjyan Claybrook Kidwell, touring under the stage name [[Cex (musician)|Cex]], was the opening act on the inaugural tour. All five musicians, plus their merchandise manager, toured in one van and slept in one motel room together. Gibbard looked back with humor on touring in such close quarters with people who were largely strangers to him. He acknowledged that with typical bands, touring could sometimes grow tiresome. Instead, he equated the band's initial tour to a [[New relationship energy|honeymoon phase]], noting that the six were largely having fun and drinking heavily.

Initially, their [[Talent agent|booking agent]] had trouble explaining the project to promoters; Gibbard noted that the only selling points were that it featured members of Death Cab and Rilo Kiley.<ref name="itow"/> Despite this, The Postal Service sold out half of the venues they first performed at. As the album grew in popularity, some venues had to be switched to larger rooms to accommodate more fans—the final Los Angeles date of the trek switched from a 300-seat room to a 1500-capacity.<ref name="itow"/> "You could really see physical proof of the album getting popular as we went across the country," Tamborello recalled. The Postal Service toured for five weeks in the U.S. throughout April–May 2003,<ref name="mtv03"/> and two overseas in Europe that June.<ref name="bb03"/> "It was a really fun tour, and then we all went back to our day jobs. Things kind of got crazy after that," Gibbard recalled.

===Tenth anniversary tour===
[[File:The Postal Service3.jpg|thumb|right|Laura Burhenn, Lewis, Tamborello, and Gibbard at [[Lollapalooza]] 2013.]]
In 2013, The Postal Service reunited in celebration of the album's tenth anniversary, performing to larger crowds at much bigger venues than a decade prior. Lewis joined the band for all of the dates, which also added Laura Burhenn from [[the Mynabirds]] on vocals and keyboards. The tour ran between April and August 2013 worldwide, upgrading from club capacity to arenas, such as New York's [[Barclays Center]].<ref name="nyt13"/> The group also performed at several festivals, including [[Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival|Coachella]]<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-postal-service-set-first-headline-tour-in-10-years-176051/|title=The Postal Service Set First Headline Tour in 10 Years|date=February 3, 2013|access-date=March 26, 2020|magazine=Rolling Stone}}</ref> and Sasquatch! stateside, and [[Primavera Sound]] in Spain.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.spin.com/2013/02/postal-service-2013-tour-dates/|title=The Postal Service Deliver Full Summer Tour Schedule|first= Kyle|last=McGovern|date=February 19, 2013|access-date=March 26, 2020|work=Spin}}</ref> Tamborello noted in an interview that the original laptop he had employed in the album's making had over time failed, and he had to piece together the original stems from various external hard drive backups.<ref name="tv13"/> The tour ended with an appearance at [[Lollapalooza]] in Chicago.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://consequence.net/2013/04/the-postal-service-adds-u-s-tour-dates/|title=The Postal Service adds U.S. tour dates|first= Alex|last=Young|date=February 19, 2013|access-date=March 26, 2020|website=Consequence of Sound}}</ref> Gibbard announced that the Lollapalooza after-show, performed at local club the Metro, would be the last Postal Service performance, formally ending the band's career.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-postal-service-say-goodbye-in-chicago-205041/|title=The Postal Service Say Goodbye in Chicago|first=Steve|last=Baltin|date=August 5, 2013|access-date=March 26, 2020|magazine=Rolling Stone}}</ref>

The following year, the band released a feature-length documentary [[concert film]] titled ''Everything Will Change'', filmed during a stop of the tour in [[Berkeley, California]];<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.popmatters.com/188376-the-postal-service-everything-will-change-2495583165.html|title=The Postal Service: Everything Will Change|first=Dave|last=Bloom|website=PopMatters|date=November 25, 2014|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> a remixed live album of the same name was later issued in 2020.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-postal-service-everything-will-change-live-album-1092402/|title=The Postal Service Announce 'Everything Will Change' Live Album|first=Althea|last=Legaspi|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=November 18, 2020|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref> In addition, the Creators Project (a partnership between Intel and [[Vice Media|Vice]]) produced a 15-minute documentary on the tour and the album, titled ''Some Idealistic Future''.<ref name="tv13"/>

==Legacy==
''Give Up'' was released during a period in which [[independent music]] first began to garner mainstream interest. It has been considered "one of the touchstones of a new generation of indie music."<ref name="bb13"/> It was suggested that its success was a reaction to more heavy or aggressive indie rock, such as [[the White Stripes]] or [[the Strokes]].<ref name="bb04"/> In addition to the younger indie fanbase, the album also connected with older listeners, who appreciated its synth-pop influences.<ref name="bb04"/> ''[[New York Times]]'' editor [[Jon Pareles]] observed in 2013 that the album was influential on groups like [[Owl City]] and [[Passion Pit]].<ref name="nyt13">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/17/arts/music/the-postal-service-delivers-at-the-barclays-center.html|title=10 Years Later, a Onetime Side Project With Outsize Clout|first=Jon|last=Pareles|work=The New York Times|access-date=March 26, 2020|date=June 16, 2013}}</ref> ''Give Up'' represented Sub Pop's second biggest-selling album in its history, only behind Nirvana's ''Bleach'' (1989). The Postal Service eclipsed [[the Shins]] and [[Hot Hot Heat]] as the record label's most popular act in the early aughts.<ref name="bb05"/> Gibbard has remarked that between ''Give Up'' and Death Cab's ''[[Transatlanticism]]'', "I’ve never had a more creatively inspired year."<ref name="ryr">{{cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/rank-your-records-death-cab-for-cutie-ben-gibbard/|title=Ben Gibbard Ranks Death Cab for Cutie's Eight Albums|date=August 9, 2018|first=Dan|last=Ozzi|website=Noisey|publisher=Vice|access-date=March 26, 2020}}</ref>

Though the album was by all accounts immensely successful, ''Give Up'' still stands as the Postal Service's only album. From its genesis, its creators intended it as a one-off experiment. Still, Gibbard and Tamborello continued to collaborate in the intervening years, this time sending their music to one another using the Internet. The duo completed two original songs in 2006—"Turn Around" and "A Tattered Line of String"—before determining the project should remain in the past. Both tracks, and the bulk of the rest of the band's recorded output, feature on a bonus disc of the tenth anniversary reissue of the album. As for the future of another album, both musicians have considered it unlikely. Gibbard said that the moment captured something special: "It was just this moment that was very inspired and unique."<ref name="ew13"/> Tamborello concurred: "[''Give Up''] came together in such a natural way that I feel like if it happens again, it has to feel like that, and maybe that's impossible."<ref name="itow"/>

==Track listing==
{{Track listing
|all_writing = The Postal Service
|title1 = [[The District Sleeps Alone Tonight]]
|length1 = 4:44
|title2 = [[Such Great Heights]]
|length2 = 4:26
|title3 = Sleeping In
|length3 = 4:20
|title4 = Nothing Better
|note4 = featuring [[Jen Wood]]
|length4 = 3:46
|title5 = Recycled Air
|length5 = 4:30
|title6 = Clark Gable
|length6 = 4:54
|title7 = [[We Will Become Silhouettes]]
|length7 = 5:00
|title8 = This Place Is a Prison
|length8 = 3:54
|title9 = Brand New Colony
|length9 = 4:12
|title10 = Natural Anthem
|length10 = 5:08
}}

'''Note'''
*The [[Gramophone record|vinyl]] version of ''Give Up'' was released on November 9, 2004, and featured a bonus 12" of B-sides, covers and remixes, all of which can also be found on the ''Such Great Heights'' and ''The District Sleeps Alone Tonight'' EPs:
{{Track listing
|headline = Bonus vinyl disc
|title1 = There's Never Enough Time
|title2 = We Will Become Silhouettes
|note2=performed by [[The Shins]]
|title3 = Such Great Heights
|note3=performed by [[Iron & Wine]]
|title4 = Suddenly Everything Has Changed
|note4=[[The Flaming Lips]] cover
|title5 = The District Sleeps Alone Tonight
|note5=DJ Downfall Persistent Beat Mix
|title6 = Such Great Heights
|note6=[[John Tejada]] Remix
|title7 = Nothing Better
|note7=[[Styrofoam (musician)|Styrofoam]] Remix
}}

{{Track listing
|headline = 10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition
|title1 = The District Sleeps Alone Tonight
|length1 = 4:43
|title2 = Such Great Heights
|length2 = 4:26
|title3 = Sleeping In
|length3 = 4:21
|title4 = Nothing Better
|length4 = 3:46
|title5 = Recycled Air
|length5 = 4:29
|title6 = Clark Gable
|length6 = 4:54
|title7 = We Will Become Silhouettes
|length7 = 5:00
|title8 = This Place Is a Prison
|length8 = 4:12
|title9 = Brand New Colony
|length9 = 4:12
|title10 = Natural Anthem
|length10 = 5:07
|title11 = Turn Around
|length11 = 3:45
|title12 = A Tattered Line of String
|length12 = 2:56
|title13 = Be Still My Heart
|length13 = 3:03
|title14 = There's Never Enough Time
|length14 = 3:32
|title15 = Suddenly Everything Has Changed
|note15 = [[The Flaming Lips]] cover
|length15 = 3:26
|title16 = [[Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)]]
|note16 = [[Phil Collins]] cover
|length16 = 4:17
|title17 = [[Grow Old with Me]]
|note17 = [[John Lennon]] cover
|length17 = 2:31
|title18 = Such Great Heights
|note18 = [[John Tejada]] Remix
|length18 = 5:49
|title19 = The District Sleeps Alone Tonight
|note19 = DJ Downfall Persistent Beat Mix
|length19 = 6:54
|title20 = Be Still My Heart
|note20 = [[Nobody (producer)|Nobody]] Remix
|length20 = 3:54
|title21 = We Will Become Silhouettes
|note21 = [[Matthew Dear]]'s Not Scared Remix
|length21 = 5:05
|title22 = Nothing Better
|note22 = [[Styrofoam (musician)|Styrofoam]] Remix
|length22 = 3:27
|title23 = Recycled Air
|note23 = Live on [[KEXP-FM|KEXP]]
|length23 = 2:59
|title24 = We Will Become Silhouettes
|note24 = performed by [[The Shins]]
|length24 = 3:01
|title25 = Such Great Heights
|note25 = performed by [[Iron & Wine]]
|length25 = 4:16
}}

==Personnel==
*[[Benjamin Gibbard]] – lead vocals, guitars {{small|(1, 2, 3, 5, 9)}}, additional keyboards {{small|(2, 7)}}, electric piano {{small|(8)}}, drums {{small|(6, 8, 9)}}
*[[Dntel|Jimmy Tamborello]] – keyboards, synthesizers, programming, accordion {{small|(8)}}, electric drums, production, glitching
*[[Jenny Lewis]] – backing vocals {{small|(1, 3, 5–7, 9)}}
*[[Chris Walla]] – piano {{small|(4)}}
*[[Jen Wood]] – backing vocals {{small|(2)}}, vocals {{small|(4)}}

==Chart positions==
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}

===Week-end charts===
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+Weekly chart performance for ''Give Up'' in 2003
! Chart (2003)
! Peak<br />position
|-
{{Album chart|Billboard200|45|artist=The Postal Service|access-date=September 17, 2015|rowheader=true}}
|-
{{Album chart|BillboardDanceElectronic|1|artist=The Postal Service|access-date=September 17, 2015|rowheader=true}}
|-
{{Album chart|BillboardHeatseekers|1|artist=The Postal Service|access-date=September 17, 2015|rowheader=true}}
|-
{{Album chart|BillboardIndependent|3|artist=The Postal Service|access-date=September 17, 2015|rowheader=true}}
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+Weekly chart performance for ''Give Up'' in 2013
! Chart (2013)
! Peak<br />position
|-
{{Album chart|Billboard200|45|artist=The Postal Service|access-date=September 17, 2015|rowheader=true}}
|}

===Year-end charts===
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+Year-end chart performance for ''Give Up''
!scope="col"|Chart (2003)
!scope="col"|Position
|-
!scope="row"|US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (''Billboard'')<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bA8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=RA1-PA34-IA7#v=onepage&q&f=false|title=Year in Music – Top Electronic Albums|magazine=Billboard|volume=115|issue=52|page=YE-66|date=December 27, 2003|access-date=February 5, 2025|via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref>
|align="center"|4
|}
{{col-end}}

==Certifications==
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|type=album|title=Give Up|artist=Postal Service|award=Gold|relyear=2003|access-date=January 24, 2012|refname=Music Canada Certification}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=album|title=Give Up|artist=Postal Service|award=Silver|relyear=2003|certyear=2021|id=17539-5732-2|access-date=October 8, 2021}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=album|title=Give Up|artist=Postal Service|award=Platinum|relyear=2003|access-date=January 24, 2012|refname=RIAA Certification}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true|streaming=true}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20040212235127/http://www.subpop.com/bands/postalservice/album.php ''Give Up''] at [[Sub Pop|Sub Pop Records]]
*[https://go-astuces.com/liste-des-mots-contenant-w/ ''Give Up''] at [[Sub Pop|Sub Pop Records]]
* {{Metacritic album}}

{{good article}}

{{The Postal Service}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:2003 debut albums]]
[[Category:The Postal Service albums]]
[[Category:Sub Pop albums]]