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Death Cab For Cutie
Codes and Keys
Atlantic
B+

Need to know: Seattle’s Death Cab For Cutie started as a solo project for Ben Gibbard, who wrote their first album as a demo called You Can Play These Songs With Chords. Signing with Barsuk to release it, he expanded Death Cab into a full band with Chris Walla, Nick Harmer and Nathan Good (later replaced by Jason McGerr) while studying at Western Washington University. Something About Airplanes, the band’s official debut was released in 1998, but it was 2000’s We Have The Facts And We’re Voting Yes and The Forbidden Love EP that established them as a favourite in the indie rock community. The Photo Album followed in 2001 and Transatlanticism in 2003, which helped the band get name-checked on The O.C. and feature on soundtracks including Wedding Crashers and a poignant Bell advertisement. Death Cab signed to Atlantic in 2004, though insisted on keeping Barsuk’s logo on all future releases. Plans, their major label debut was released in 2005 and reached #4 on Billboard’s album charts. They received two Grammy nominations for that album, which eventually went platinum. In 2008, they released Narrow Stairs, which debuted at #1 on Billboard and earned them two more Grammy nods. The next year, they released “Meet Me At The Equinox,” the lead single for the Twilight: New Moon soundtrack. Self-described as “a much less guitar-centric album than we’ve ever made before,” their seventh album, Codes and Keys, was mixed by the legendary Alan Moulder (My Bloody Valentine, Smashing Pumpkins).

Via Twitter: Using Radiohead’s playbook, DCFC’s docile indie rock is more liberal & spacious, but still retains the charm & heart of their early work.

Sample: “You Are A Tourist”

RIYL: Modest Mouse, The Shins, Nada Surf, Jimmy Eat World

DeathCabForCutie.com

Tags: ben gibbard, Codes and Keys, death cab for cutie

Posted on Tuesday, May 31st, 2011 at 4:12 pm by Cam and is filed under Blog, Review, The Wedge.

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