Photos by Sofia Cardenas
When imagining a cluster of popular emo bands from the late 90s and early 2000s, many come to name. But among these artists, an indie-rock infused ‘black sheep’ always makes its way into the grouping. Enter Death Cab for Cutie. Since their 1998 debut, Something About Airplanes, Death Cab have been distributing their own take on “emo” that’s only increased in popularity with new generations – even more so heightened by the mainstream success of 2003’s Transatlanticism, a defining album for its genre.
Death Cab have released their newest album, I Built You A Tower, this past June, coming four years after their last project. Between albums, frontman Ben Gibbard dealt with the grief of his then ongoing divorce – affecting his mental health and musical approaches as he toured with Death Cab and another side project, The Postal Service: “I was on the road doing Death Cab and Postal Service at the height of some of the worst of this separation…And I would have to set aside this stuff that was happening in my real life to go live my 26-year-old life for two hours, so there was a lot of context switching to do my job” Gibbard said with The Line of Best Fit. In this new era of both his personal life and Death Cab, Gibbard takes on the creative process for I Built You A Tower from an even more mature point of view, while keeping the music reminiscent of the band’s signature sound over the years. Come early this August, Death Cab prepared to perform two back to back shows at the iconic Greek Theatre in Los Angeles with support from Nation of Language.
On this warm Sunday night, I trekked up the slanted hills of the Greek Theatre parking lots alongside a majority of older millenial-aged fans. I found comfort in the minority of younger fans at this specific show, knowing that their dedicated fanbase has lasted them these past two decades into today – growing up alongside the band with every album release. As the house lights dimmed, the digital screen at the back of the stage began illuminating distorted videos of dancers from 80s goth nightclubs with Kraftwerk’s “Computer World” accompanying it in the dark ambiance. The choice initially felt out of place, but somehow contrasted perfectly alongside the band’s emo-associated background. Among the darkness, the crowd began to cheer for the moving shadowed figures of the band, eventually met with an opening performance of “Riptides” from their newest album.
Sonically, the band was stellar. The amphitheater style venue echoed buzzing reverberations of the guitars and bass with each song. The third song on the setlist was 2003’s “The New Year,” introduced with distorted guitar tones building on top of one another before exploding into the drums that officially kick the song off. From the photo pit, I was up close and personal with the band and the speakers, heightening my personal experience of the song. It truly took so much willpower for me to not put my camera down and start headbanging along with the people at the barricade behind me. Later making my way to my seat, I thankfully was able to do so. Gibbard gave a short speech on the band’s gratitude for being able to return to Los Angeles, shouting out local music label, ANTI- Records, whom they’ve signed to at the beginning of this year – all before the introduction of new song, “I Built You A Tower (a).”
Making note of their earlier discography, “Company Calls,” from their 2000 album We Have the Facts and We’re Voting Yes was up next. Being my favorite Death Cab album for its predominant makeup of softer indie tracks, I couldn’t help but dance between the two strangers I was sitting with. This track in particular is among the more upbeat ones on the album, so obviously it called for matched enthusiastic energy by the band. Eventually, it came time for fan favorite, “I Will Follow You Into the Dark” from Death Cab’s 2005 album, Plans. Here, Gibbard performed the track completely alone on stage, guitar in hand, lit only by a small handful of lights. Towards the final chorus of the song, he encouraged audience participation – telling the crowd to sing the iconic chorus amongst each other before he joined in once more. The emotional acoustic song simmered in the dark of the stage as the rest of the band returned to their instruments, with the lights glowing red in an eerie presence. Out of the shadows, Nick Harmer (bass) began his iconic introduction to “I Will Possess Your Heart,” with its pulsing bass line sounding as ominous as the name of the song. Death Cab did not try to shorten any portion of the song for time, performing the song’s four-minute long instrumental out of the entire eight-minute track. Harmer’s bass and the fuzzy guitars loomed over concert-goers like a thundercloud, all while Gibbard switched between his own guitar and a keyboard within that time. Musically, it was a distortion fan’s heaven.
The end of the night was near, but Death Cab still had some room left for audience intrigue. Finally, the long awaited “Soul Meets Body” shook the venue, with eruptions of cheers accompanying – not one person I could see was standing still. Like many kids who grew up in the early 2010’s, the 2005 song had been one I was accustomed to hearing. With “Soul Meets Body” being the catalyst of listening to more of Death Cab’s discography in my later high school years, I felt like I had been paying dues to my younger self by being here. I definitely was not the only person in the crowd to have felt this way, as many of the older fans around me looked like they had either been waiting their whole adolescence for this moment, or just excited to relive the live experience again – including a woman behind me who seemed to be overly (and rightfully) excited by literally anything the band did.
Death Cab walked off the stage for an encore, leaving everyone on a high of reliving their emo teen years. After continuous “ONE MORE SONG!” chants, they returned for the closing tracks left on the setlist, the first being “Champagne From a Paper Cup” from Something About Airplanes. The band finally ended their two hour show with “Transatlanticism,” an eight minute song that begins slow and ends in a pent up fit of crushing guitars and drums – perfect for a song about a man distanced between his lover by an entire ocean:
“I was standing on the surface of a perforated sphere / When the water filled every hole / And thousands upon thousands made an ocean / Making islands where no island should go, oh no”
Death Cab for Cutie have proven themselves to not be limited to the boundaries of their older work. As time has progressed, so have they – and after their first show at the Greek, they’ve made it all the more apparent. After recently playing Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival in San Francisco and a UK/European tour set for later this fall, they’re prepared to bring the noise, and the vulnerability to fans across the world.
Listen to Death Cab for Cutie’s newest album, I Built You A Tower here!
