Death Cab for Cutie

Death Cab for Cutie is an American indie rock group from Bellingham, United States. It forms in 1997 and remains active. Its line-up includes Benjamin Gibbard, Nick Harmer, Jason McGerr, Dave Depper and Zac Rae, with earlier members including Nathan Good, Chris Walla and Michael Schorr. The band releases music through DCFC, LLC and is associated with alternative rock, emo, indie folk, indie pop, indie rock and midwest emo.

Formation and early releases

The project begins as a solo outlet for Benjamin Gibbard, who later becomes the band's vocalist and guitarist. The name comes from the satirical song “Death Cab for Cutie”, performed by The Bonzo Dog Band in The Beatles' film Magical Mystery Tour. Gibbard first issues a cassette under the Death Cab for Cutie name, You Can Play These Songs with Chords, and its strong reception leads him to expand the project into a full band.

Chris Walla joins as electric guitarist, Nick Harmer on bass and Nathan Good on drums. The four record Something About Airplanes, which is released in 1998 and gains a favourable response in the independent music scene. In 2000 the band releases We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes. During that album's production, Nathan Good leaves; his parts remain on “The Employment Pages” and “Company Calls Epilogue”, while Gibbard plays drums on the other tracks.

Line-up changes and 2000s releases

Michael Schorr appears on The Forbidden Love EP in 2000. The following year the band releases The Photo Album; limited editions include three bonus tracks that later appear separately as The Stability EP. In 2003 Jason McGerr replaces Schorr on drums, and he plays on Transatlanticism, released later that year. That album receives critical praise and becomes the band's best-selling release, with 225,000 copies sold in its first year.

In 2004 the band records the live EP The John Byrd EP, named after its sound engineer, and releases it on Barsuk Records. Later that year it signs a long-term worldwide deal with Atlantic Records after leaving Barsuk. The group also encourages fans to download its songs from the internet. Its Atlantic debut, Plans, follows in 2005, with “Soul Meets Body” and “Crooked Teeth” as the first two singles. The album earns a Grammy nomination for Best Alternative Album of 2005 and reaches gold status in 2006 after spending 47 consecutive weeks on the Billboard chart.

Also in 2005, the band releases the touring DVD Drive Well, Sleep Carefully. It works with PETA to distribute copies in support of animal rights. In 2006 the group releases Directions, a set of eleven short films inspired by songs from Plans, each directed by a different filmmaker.

Later albums and activity

Narrow Stairs is released in 2008 and becomes the band's first album to reach number one on the Billboard 200. Its singles include “I Will Possess Your Heart”, “Cath...” and “Grapevine Fires”. The band follows with The Open Door EP in 2009 and Codes and Keys in 2011, whose first single is “You Are a Tourist”.

In 2013 the band begins work on its eighth studio album. That same year it releases a remastered tenth-anniversary edition of Transatlanticism with a vinyl LP, MP3 download and demos for all the songs. In 2014 it issues its first live album, a vinyl-only double LP recorded on various 2012 tour dates with Magik*Magik Orchestra. Chris Walla leaves the band in 2014 after 17 years, with his final performance at the Rifflandia Music Festival in Victoria, British Columbia; he remains involved in the recording and mixing of that period's album work.

Style and themes

The band's music is described in the input as slow progressive rock with dark lyrics, alongside indie rock and related alternative styles. Its catalogue spans studio albums, EPs, live releases, a touring DVD and film project, and it has moved from an independent start on Barsuk to a major-label deal with Atlantic while retaining a strong indie-rock identity.