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Preview: Death Cab For Cutie at The Sylvee

  • Post Author
    by Music director
  • Post Date
    Thu Sep 22 2022

By: Madeline Kelly

Death Cab for Cutie's sound and legacy are consistent. Hailing from Bellingham, WA, what started as a college-age solo project for lead singer Benjamin Gibbard has become a staple of indie rock with a wide fan base spanning from their first release, You Can Play These Songs With Chords (1997), to the recent Asphalt Meadows (2022).

Death Cab's sound is marked most strongly by Gibbard's iconic voice and the beautiful, memorable acoustics that feed unplumbed emotions brought forth by slightly abstract, poetic lyric writing.


An iconic example of this is DCFC's Plans (2005) and the track they are best known for, I Will Follow You Into The Dark. This song is an essential-elements acoustic piece where Gibbard sings about exercising hard earned faith and experiencing peace and fearlessness in the face of death.



Their 2008 release Narrow Stars evokes similar themes of reflections on one's experiences and emotions and explorations into the what-if with Cath…, Grapevine Fires and You Can Do Better Than Me.

Transatlanticism (2003) also features a few tracks like You Can Do Better Than Me and Plans' Marching Bands of Manhattan, that feature powerful, thematic and illustrative uses of diverse percussion.


The departure of long-time producer Chris Walla before the release of Thank You For Today (2018) saw a notable shift towards electrifying basslines, distortion and a younger modern indie rock sound. However, the memorable flow of DCFC tracks and Gibbard's compelling phrasing have not taken a backseat, especially not in the tour's focus, the vibey 2022 album Asphalt Meadows.

Death Cab For Cutie will be playing at the Sylvee on September 22nd with Thao, a similarly seasoned musical veteran with a similarly variable background and attractive, folk-pop touch not dissimilar to DCFC's post-Walla direction. It's sure to be a great show.  

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