Death Cab began as a solo project of Ben Gibbard, now the band's vocalist and guitarist. Gibbard took the band name from the satirical song Death Cab for Cutie, performed by The Bonzo Dog Band in The Beatles' 1967 experimental film Magical Mystery Tour. As Death Cab for Cutie, Gibbard released a cassette titled You Can Play These Songs with Chords; the release was surprisingly successful, and Gibbard decided to expand the band into a complete project. He recruited Chris Walla (who had also worked on the cassette) as an electric guitarist, Nick Harmer as bass guitarist, and Nathan Good to play drums.
The four released the LP Something About Airplanes on August 18th 1998. The album was favorably reviewed in the independent music scene, and in 2000 the band released We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes. Nathan Good left the band at some point during this album's production. His playing on “The Employment Pages” and “Company Calls Epilogue” were kept, but Gibbard played drums on all other songs.
Michael Schorr would first appear on The Forbidden Love E.P., released on October 24, 2000. In 2001, another LP was released, entitled The Photo Album. Limited editions of this album contained three bonus tracks, which were later released separately as The Stability EP.
In 2003, there was another change of drummer, with Jason McGerr of Eureka Farm replacing Schorr. McGerr would play drums on the next release, Transatlanticism.
Transatlanticism was released in October of 2003. It received critical praise and also became the band's top-selling album, with 225,000 copies sold during its first year out.
In spring of 2004, the band recorded a live E.P. titled The John Byrd E.P., named for their sound engineer. The E.P. was released on Barsuk Records in March 2004.
In November of 2004, Death Cab for Cutie signed a “long-term worldwide deal” with Atlantic Records, leaving their long-time label Barsuk Records. Gibbard stated on the official website www.deathcabforcutie.com that nothing would change except that “Next to the picture of Barsuk holding a 7", there will be the letter "A" on both the spine and back of our upcoming albums.” This was a marked change from Gibbard's earlier views on major-label relations, which he said “are set up to fuck you and take all your money.”. After signing to Atlantic, the band was still nervous about corporate economics, and encouraged fans to download its songs from the Internet.
The first and second singles off the band's Atlantic Record release Plans were “Soul Meets Body” and “Crooked Teeth”, respectively. The full album was released in August of 2005. Plans was somewhat well-acclaimed by critics and fans, and received a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Album of 2005. It achieved Gold Status in 2006 after charting on Billboard for 47 consecutive weeks.
The band released a touring DVD titled Drive Well, Sleep Carefully in 2005. Known for their contributions to animal rights, the band is supporting the activist group PETA in giving away copies of the DVD to promote animal rights.
In early 2006, the band announced the upcoming release of Directions, eleven short films inspired by songs from the Plans album, each directed by a different person. The videos were posted one at a time at the band's website and the DVD went on sale April 11, 2006.
On May 12, 2008 their album, Narrow Stairs, was released and was well received by both critics and fans. It was their first album to reach #1 on the Billboard 200. The album contains the singles "I Will Possess Your Heart", "Cath..." and "Grapevine Fires".
The band's latest released The Open Door EP, which was released on March 31, 2009. Their main styles consist of slow progressive rock with dark lyrics.
The band's seventh album, Codes and Keys, was released on May 31, 2011. The album's first single was "You Are A Tourist".
On October 11, 2013, the band reportedly began working on their eighth studio album. This was then confirmed by the group's official Instagram profile in which an image was uploaded with the caption "DCFC LP8 begins". The new album will be produced by Rich Costey and is expected to be released in early 2015. In an interview with Stereogum, Gibbard said of the new album, "I do think from start to finish it's a much better record than Codes And Keys. If that record turned anybody off, I feel pretty strongly that this one could win them back. There are threads in this one that connect back to our earliest stuff that people love." On October 29, 2013, the band released a remastered tenth-anniversary version of their 2003 album Transatlanticism. The new album included a vinyl LP and MP3 download, with demos for all the songs from the album.
As part of the 2014 Record Store Day, the band released its first live album, a vinyl-only double LP recorded during various 2012 tour dates with Magik*Magik Orchestra. Included within the packaging was a code for a digital download of the recording.
On August 13, 2014, after 17 years as a member of Death Cab for Cutie, guitarist and songwriter Chris Walla decided to part ways with the band, with his last performance occurring on September 13, 2014 at the Rifflandia Music Festival in Victoria, British Columbia. Walla states that he plans to "...continue making music, producing records, and erring on the side of benevolence and beauty whenever possible." When asked in an interview about Walla's involvement in the eighth album, McGerr confirmed that Walla "played on everything and has been involved all the way through, even in the mixing. Even though he's played his last show with us, he's still been involved in everything involving this record."
Crooked Teeth-Ykk
Death Cab for Cutie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Whose tears didn't care they just hung in the air
And refused to fall, to fall
I knew I'd made a horrible call
And now the state line felt like the Berlin wall
And there was no doubt about which side I was on
Cause I built you a home in my heart with rotten wood that decayed from the start
No you can't find nothing at all if there was nothing there all along
I braved treacherous streets
And kids strung out on homemade speed
And we shared a bed in which I could not sleep
At all...
At night, the sun in the trees
Made the skyline look like crooked teeth
In the mouth of a man who was devouring, us both
You're so cute when you're slurring your speech
But they're closing the bar and they want us to leave
And you can't find nothing at all if there was nothing there all along
No you can't find nothing at all if there was nothing there all along
Idle war of head versus heart
It's always this way
My head is weak it always speaks
Before I know what it will say
Cause you can't find nothing at all if there was nothing there all along
No you can't find nothing at all if there was nothing there all along
There were churches, theme parks and malls
There was nothing there all along
The song "Crooked Teeth" by Death Cab for Cutie tells a story of a failed relationship and the regret that comes with it. The first verse talks about sitting under a willow tree on a hot day, with tears hanging in the air refusing to fall. The singer reflects on the mistake they made, feeling trapped on one side of the state line, and realizing which side they are on. The second verse talks about the singer's efforts to make things work, but their attempts to build a home with rotten wood ultimately failed. The third verse describes the struggles of the relationship, sharing a bed in which the singer couldn't sleep, and the imagery of the skyline looking like crooked teeth. The chorus repeats the idea that you can't find something that wasn't there in the first place.
The song's lyrics are a reflection on the pain and regret that comes with the end of a relationship, and the singer's realization that perhaps there was nothing there to begin with. The crooked teeth image is particularly striking, representing the brokenness and imperfections of the relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
It was 100 degrees as we sat beneath a willow tree
The heat was overwhelming as we sat outdoors under a willow tree
Whose tears didn't care they just hung in the air
The tree's dewdrops appeared to be unusually still in the humid air, unaffected by gravity
And refused to fall, to fall
They seemed to cling to the tree's leaves and branches tightly, not letting go
I knew I'd made a horrible call
I realized that my decision had been a terrible mistake
And now the state line felt like the Berlin wall
The state boundary felt like an impenetrable barrier, just like the Berlin Wall
And there was no doubt about which side I was on
I had made a choice and was now committed to one side
Cause I built you a home in my heart with rotten wood that decayed from the start
I constructed a home for you in my heart using poor materials, which fell apart from the outset
Cause you can't find nothing at all if there was nothing there all along
It's impossible to discover something that never existed in the first place
I braved treacherous streets
I risked my safety by walking through dangerous neighborhoods
And kids strung out on homemade speed
The kids I encountered on the streets were impaired by their own homemade drugs
And we shared a bed in which I could not sleep
Despite sharing a bed, I found it impossible to rest
At night, the sun in the trees
During the evening, the trees cast shadows that looked like rays of the setting sun
Made the skyline look like crooked teeth
The silhouette of the city's skyline resembled a mouthful of uneven teeth
In the mouth of a man who was devouring, us both
The city seemed to swallow us both whole, like a predatory beast
You're so cute when you're slurring your speech
I find you endearing even when you're drunk and speaking unclearly
But they're closing the bar and they want us to leave
The bar is shutting down and the staff are asking us to exit
Idle war of head versus heart
I am struggling with a battle between logic and emotion
It's always this way
This internal struggle is a constant conflict for me
My head is weak it always speaks
My rational side is my weakness because I tend to follow it blindly
Before I know what it will say
I don't always know what my rational side will dictate before I act on it
There were churches, theme parks and malls
Despite the seeming abundance of places to visit, there was emptiness and lack of true fulfillment
There was nothing there all along
Ultimately, despite my seeking and journeying, there was nothing truly valuable or meaningful to find
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Gibbard, Benjamin / Walla, Christopher
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Saturn_Devouring
Imagine having whistling as a tic but not being able to whistle. Dunno why just feel like that would be hell.
Yngvi H.
when i started getting mine i wasn't super good at the specific whistle my brain wanted to do and it was very frustrating because if it doesn't come out right sometimes you need to do it again. but i've gotten a lot better at whistling since i started getting whistle tics, they're a lot sharper and louder and more consistent now haha
Becca
Maybe it would get easier to learn? Idk
rain
10:29 just 2 points to add on,
1. everyone stims a bit, nd people just do it more obviously, and do it more
2. if you're talking to someone whose physically or vocally stimming they're probably still listening to you, don't stop talking bc you think they're ignoring you (unless you're overwhelming them)
My neck my back My crippling anxiety Attack 🎗
Thank you thank you thank you
I hate it when I Tic/stim really loud, I get so scared people will think I’m bored/ not listening to them
Gay Thespian
Yea! I couldn’t have worded it better! When I’m non verbal (I have non verbal episodes) I can STILL VOCALLY STIM! I just sometimes cant with words! I physically cannot put words together! and sometimes, when I’m non verbal, I’m not always having a mental breakdown, or shutting down, sometimes I just can’t get words put and it comes out as just noises, or just bits of words. And I hate when people think I’m not listening and tell me to stop, which makes me not be able to actually listen to them bc I’m putting effort into being still, not listening. Honestly as much as NT people try to understand they never will fully understand
Becca
Thank you!! Also I didn’t know it was a thing, vocal stimming I mean. Yesterday I kept singing and singing and just walking around the house getting a few things done. My mom came up to talk to me and I was still singing but I was listening to her. I didn’t really realize I was doing it until she yelled for me to stop… good to know it’s a thing
rain
as someone with ocd the first one is kind of misleading, a lot of these are general, but the "mind is controlling you" and the "needing things to be even" can be symptoms of ocd. (also ask me any questions about ocd and it's symptoms if you have any)
OneSpicyDisaster
types of neurodivergence include Tourette's, dyspraxia, synesthesia, dyscalculia, Down syndrome, epilepsy, and chronic mental health illnesses such as bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, borderline personality disorder, anxiety, and depression.
OneSpicyDisaster
types of neurodivergence include Tourette's, dyspraxia, synesthesia, dyscalculia, Down syndrome, epilepsy, and chronic mental health illnesses such as bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, borderline personality disorder, anxiety, and depression.