Death Cab for Cutie is an American indie rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997 around Ben Gibbard. Transatlanticism (2003) and Plans (2005) are the definitive records — literate, emotionally direct indie rock that carried the genre into the mainstream. Browse Death Cab for Cutie vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
Death Cab for Cutie formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997 as a solo project for Ben Gibbard, who had been playing in Pinwheel and other bands. He expanded the project into a full band with longtime collaborator Chris Walla (guitar, production, until 2014), Nick Harmer (bass), and various drummers (Jason McGerr since 2003). The band signed with Barsuk Records for their early catalog before moving to Atlantic for Plans (2005) and subsequent albums. Walla departed in 2014; Dave Depper and Zac Rae joined for Thank You for Today (2018) and subsequent work. Gibbard also leads the Postal Service as a parallel project (with Jimmy Tamborello of Dntel).
Death Cab for Cutie's sound combines indie rock, alternative rock, indie pop, and emo with Gibbard's distinctive vocal delivery and lyrical engagement with relationships, mortality, and emotional vulnerability. Their work has been a defining act in the early-2000s indie rock crossover into broader mainstream attention.
Barsuk and Atlantic pressings of the Death Cab for Cutie catalog have been issued in multiple color variant editions, with anniversary editions of Transatlanticism (20th anniversary) released in 2023.
Listeners new to Death Cab for Cutie typically start with Transatlanticism (2003) or Plans (2005).
