Death Cab For Cutie

Death Cab For Cutie was a one-man band of Indian Rock founded by Ben Gibbard (Guitare / Claviers / Chant) in Bellingham, USA, in 1997. The name is inspired by a song played by the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band in the Beatles movie, Magical Mystery Tour. Ben Gibbard released his first album, You Can Play These Songs With Chords , in 1997 and quickly surrounds other musicians: Chris Walla on guitar, Nick Harmer on bass and Nathan Good on drums, Gibbard on second guitar and singing. Inspired by the small stories of his locality, the band announces a first album, Something About Airplanes in 1998, received favourably in the local Indie milieu. In 2000 follows We Have The Facts And We're Voting Yes. Nathan Good leaves the band during the recording of We Have Facts and Ben plays drums on most songs. Michael Schorr arrived behind the drums in 2000 and participated in theep The Forbidden Love E.P. . The following year The Photo Album was released. The limited edition of the album contains three bonus tracks, grouped on The Stability Ep. From this moment on, Gibbard's eternal teenage voice and nostalgic guitar chords will continue to gain in fame through, among other things, participation in various original bands of series and films. However, a new drummer change came with Michale leaving the training to give way to Jason McGerr. For his part, Ben Gibbard embarked on the electronic project The Postal Service with the release of the first album: Give Up .
Death Cab For Cutie's reputation peaked in 2003 with the release of the excellent Transatlanticism (now known as their best album to date) and their surprise signature on Major Atlantic Records in 2004. A contract that doesn't fail to worry fans who warmly welcome Plans a year later. Undoubtedly, the band made itself more catchy, facilitating its melodies, opening up to a wider audience (winner of the Grammy Awards of the alternative music album the same year) and allowing it to become the singer of the American Indian Rock and land in Europe. The group's growing activity forced Gibbard to put his collaboration with Jimmy Tamborello as The Postal Service in hiatus despite a promising album.
It is in this context that a feverish and exaggerated expectation surrounds the release of Narrow Stairs in 2008, then in 2009, Ben Gibbard joins up with Jay Farrar to deliver an album Folk / Americana inspired by Jack Kerouac's novel, Big Sur . Death Cab For Cutie then began a particularly long tour, passing twice in Europe. Still on national tour, an ep is announced later this year and is called The Open Door . In 2009, the band also directed the title M eet Me On The Equinox, which became the soundtrack of the film Twilight, Chapter II: Tentation . Even more Pop, the group crossed a level with Codes And Keys in 2011 which clearly becomes more Electro. Ben Gibbard and Nick Harmer consider that there are fewer guitar tracks compared to previous albums. On August 13, 2014, after 17 years with Death Cab For Cutie, guitarist Chris Walla announced his intention to separate from the band, which did not prevent his participation in the album Kintsugi, which appeared in 2015, still in a vein Electro / Pop. Dave Depper joined the musicians as guitarist, claverist and singer in 2016 and Zac Rae (Guitare / Claviers) was also recruited. The now quintet released Thank You For Today in 2018 and Asphalt Meadows in 2022 that offers new perspectives for the band and opens up to other facets of Indian Rock such as Post-Punk, Art Pop, Noise Pop with this electronic touch.