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."
Marching Bands Of Manhatten
Death Cab for Cutie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And span the length of the isle of Manhattan
I'd bring it to where you are
Making a lake of the East River and Hudson
If I could open my mouth
Wide enough for a marching band to march out
They would make your name sing
I wish we could open our eyes
To see in all directions at the same
Oh what a beautiful view
If you were never aware of what was around you
And it is true what you said
That I live like a hermit in my own head
But when the sun shines again
I'll pull the curtains and blinds to let the light in
Sorrow drips into your heart through a pin hole
Just like a faucet that leaks and there is comfort in the sound
But while you debate half empty and half full
It slowly rises, your love is gonna drown
Sorrow drips into your heart through a pin hole
Just like a faucet that leaks and there is comfort in the sound
But while you debate half empty and half full
It slowly rises, your love is gonna drown
Sorrow drips into your heart through a pin hole
Just like a faucet that leaks and there is comfort in the sound
But while you debate half empty and half full
It slowly rises, your love is gonna drown
Sorrow drips into your heart through a pin hole
Just like a faucet that leaks and there is comfort in the sound
But while you debate half empty and half full
It slowly rises, your love is gonna drown
Your love is gonna drown
Your love is gonna drown
Your love is gonna drown
Your love is gonna
The lyrics of "Marching Bands of Manhattan" by Death Cab for Cutie express a deep longing to be with someone and to bring them the beauty of the city. The opening line "If I could open my arms and span the length of the Isle of Manhattan" is a poetic way of saying that the singer wishes they could be with the person they love, and they would make such an effort to bring them to the city that the East River and Hudson River would become a lake. Similarly, the line "If I could open my mouth wide enough for a marching band to march out" is a metaphor for how much the singer wishes to praise the person they love, by making their name sing and echo through the city.
The chorus of the song reflects the idea that despair can slowly seep into a person's heart like a dripping faucet through a pinhole. The sound may be comforting, but the rise of sorrow is inevitable. The repetition of the line "your love is gonna drown" emphasizes the idea that no matter how much comfort people find in the sound of their heartbreak, it will eventually consume them entirely. The final lines of the song suggest that the singer is willing to let the light in, which suggests a sense of hope that they will overcome their grief and move forward.
Line by Line Meaning
If I could open my arms
If only I could physically embrace you, reaching all the way from Manhattan to where you are
And span the length of the isle of Manhattan
And cover the whole stretch of Manhattan with my arms
I'd bring it to where you are
I'd go to wherever you are
Making a lake of the East River and Hudson
To create a water body by merging the two rivers
If I could open my mouth
If my mouth could open so wide that an entire marching band could leave it
Wide enough for a marching band to march out
Big enough to fit a whole troupe of musicians
They would make your name sing
They would play such amazing music in your name
And bend through allies and bounce off all the buildings
Their music would fill the streets and echo off every building
I wish we could open our eyes
It would be great if we could see everything all around us
To see in all directions at the same
To have a 360-degree view of our surroundings
Oh what a beautiful view
That would be so breathtaking
If you were never aware of what was around you
If we didn't know what we were missing out on
And it is true what you said
You were right about me living a solitary life in my own head
That I live like a hermit in my own head
I tend to be reclusive and self-contained
But when the sun shines again
But when the good times return
I'll pull the curtains and blinds to let the light in
I'll open myself up to the world and let positivity come in
Sorrow drips into your heart through a pinhole
Sadness can enter someone's heart like a slow drip through a tiny opening
Just like a faucet that leaks and there is comfort in the sound
Even though the never-ending drop may soothe, it's still a sign of something needing repair
But while you debate half empty and half full
But as you ponder over optimistic or pessimistic views
It slowly rises, your love is gonna drown
The sadness you feel will slowly accumulate and overwhelm your love
Your love is gonna drown
Your love will be suffocated by the sorrow you feel
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: BENJAMIN GIBBARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
M Path
I'm 25 and I remember seriously being into this band since high school and saw them live when I was 20 and no one went with me because no one else was into Death Cab and I'm just glad I went and saw them live
a
@Josh Hall who should delete their comment??
Josh Hall
Delete your comment
Soulvei
I went and saw them alone for the same reason. They were fantastic live. I was the dumbass in the crowd yelling "play Brothers On A Hotel Bed!!"
Ryan Alexander Holmes
SAME, kudos to you to going to the concert yourself
Ethan Sapp
Same people would give me weird looks when I asked if they wanted to go but if only they knew 😭
bobo1million
2020, 100% upvotes. thanks deathcab, these sad nostalgic lyrics make me sad-happy
Alex A
Well 3 people ruined it
grenouillesscent
Beautiful song. Describes the process of combatting pessimism perfectly. Little doubts and old comfortable theories slip in and accumulate.
Andiar Rohnds
i think you are over analyzing the lyrics