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."
El Dorado
Death Cab for Cutie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Over in Culver City, shining bright naming lights
And I tried to be kind for you
Oh I'm trying to be kind for you, oh
It's kinda like a party that you never wanted to attend
But when an invitation finally arrives you change your mind
And I tried to be kind for you
Oh I'm trying to be kind for you
As you slip away behind the gates
Behind the gates
Seems you finally found, finally found El Dorado
So why does it feel underwhelming there be real
And I tried to be kind for you
Oh I'm trying to be kind for you
As you slip away behind the gates
Behind the gates
El Dorado, El Dorado, El Dorado, El Dorado
The lyrics of Death Cab for Cutie's song El Dorado tell the story of someone who has finally discovered El Dorado, a place of great wealth and prosperity. The location of this newfound El Dorado is in Culver City, and it is depicted as a place shining bright with naming lights. However, the singer of the song seems to be questioning whether the location lives up to its reputation, with lines such as "So why does it feel underwhelming there be real."
The overall message of the song seems to be about the pursuit of happiness and success, and the disappointment that can come when you finally achieve those things. The lyrics paint a picture of someone who has been searching for something their whole life, and upon finally finding it, feels let down. This sentiment is captured in the lines "It's kinda like a party that you never wanted to attend, but when an invitation finally arrives you change your mind." The song boldly explores the idea that not all that glitters is gold and that sometimes, the things we think will make us happy are not what we need to be content.
Line by Line Meaning
Seems you finally found, finally found El Dorado
It appears that you have finally discovered the place you have been searching for, El Dorado
Over in Culver City, shining bright naming lights
It is situated in Culver City where sparking lights are illuminating its name brightly
And I tried to be kind for you
I made an effort to show kindness to you
Oh I'm trying to be kind for you, oh
I want to continue trying my best to treat you with kindness
It's kinda like a party that you never wanted to attend
It's a bit like declining an invitation to a party and suddenly wanting to go
But when an invitation finally arrives you change your mind
But when you finally get invited, you reverse your decision
As you slip away behind the gates
You disappear as you move behind the closed gates
Seems you finally found, finally found El Dorado
It appears that you have finally discovered the place you have been searching for, El Dorado
So why does it feel underwhelming there be real
Why does it seem less exciting than you expected it to be in reality?
El Dorado, El Dorado, El Dorado, El Dorado
This line simply repeats the name of the place, El Dorado
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: BENJAMIN D GIBBARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Rachel Harper
Seems you finally found, finally found El Dorado
Over in Culver City, shining bright, name in lights
And I tried to be kind for you
Oh I'm trying to be kind for you
It's kinda like a party that you never wanted to attend
But when an invitation finally arrives you change your mind
And I tried to be kind for you
Oh I'm trying to be kind for you
As you slip away behind the gates
Behind the gates
Seems you finally found, finally found El Dorado
So why does it feel underwhelming there be real
And I tried to be kind for you
Oh I'm trying to be kind for you
As you slip away behind the gates
Behind the gates
El Dorado
El Dorado
El Dorado
El Dorado
Jaclyn Joseph
Can I just say how underrated these guys are? Especially this song. I have been going through all their albums and keep falling more in love with them! Such talented people and the lyrics are so poetic.
Every song is different but underneath you hear a tone that rings Death Cab feel.
SM
The melancholy about Ben's unsuccessful marriage with Zooey is really apparent with this song. It's what makes me come back to this song.
Judah Raah
Vibez
Mikaela Spencer
I want to dance and cry all at the same time while listening to this.
Mermaid in China
Best track off Kintsugi. That drumbeat though!! Jason McGerr bringing it hard.
c'est la vegan
Dragontooth150 No Way, this song is so much better than Little Wanderer!
Indigo
I think so too (best song ever)! Little wanderer is really good too
Gustavo Hernández
This song makes me dance everytime I hear it... and I really hate dancing. I fucking love Kintsugi.
Phil Dirlam
This has a very "Don't Fear the Reaper" feel.
Rei Roro
kinda, yeap