Indiespensables: Death Cab for Cutie

by: Carlos Figueroa

Death Cab for Cutie is an indie rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band consists of Benjamin Gibbard (vocals, guitar), Chris Walla (guitar, production), Nick Harmer (bass) and Jason McGerr (drums). The band has released 7 studio albums, but for this indiespensable I will focus on the band's last 3 albums only (although you should still have the band's first albums as indiespensables): Transatlanticism (2003), Plans (2005), and Narrow Stairs (2008).

From Transatlanticism I would point out songs such as "The New Year", "Title and Registration", and "A Lack of Color". Now, from the Plans, I would like to put some songs in the spotlight. First of all, the song "Soul Meets Body" is a song I really enjoy, as I find it very relaxing with its chilly vocals and guitar strumming. There are other songs I also find very relaxing, for example, "Summer Skin", with all its drumbeats and "I Will Follow You into the Dark", which I simply praise for its simple, smooth vocals. Now, "Crooked Teeth" is one of my favorites from this album-- its simple guitar riffs and drumbeats make it one of the most enjoyable songs in the album.

Narrow Stairs, is in my opinion the best of Death Cab's albums. With songs like "I Will Posses your Heart", characterized by its instrumental part (its basically the whole song), yet it is a very good beat and melody. "Cath...", one of my favorites in the album, can be best described as a piano tune song, going very slowly and pacing up just a tad near the middle and end of the song. "Long Division" and "Grapevine Fires" are probably the best in the album, and are a total indiespensable in anyones music library.

Now, a song that really deserves to be spotlighted in my opinion is "Meet Me on the Equinox", even though it is not from one of the band's albums. Just like the song "Decode" from Paramore, this song is in the Twilight Saga: New Moon Soundtrack. The song has a melody that portrays a very eerie mood and has a sort of hypnotizing feel, with lyrics that definitively go along with this feel.

Death Cab for Cutie is a really enjoyable band and is a real basic for anyone who knows the least about indie rock. In the realm of indie, Death Cab for Cutie ranks up as one of the most indiespensable of indie.