Death Cab for Cutie

Death Cab for Cutie emerged from Bellingham, Washington, in 1997 and became one of the central American indie rock bands of the 2000s. Led by singer-songwriter Ben Gibbard, the group developed a melodic blend of indie rock, indie pop, and alternative rock, with Gibbard's introspective writing at its core. Its name came from “Death Cab for Cutie,” a song by the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band that appeared in the Beatles’ 1967 film Magical Mystery Tour.

Gibbard initially began Death Cab for Cutie as a solo project before expanding it into a band with bassist Nick Harmer and guitarist and producer Chris Walla. The group refined its early sound across Something About Airplanes (1998), We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes (2000), and The Photo Album (2001). Their 2003 record Transatlanticism became a commercial and critical breakthrough. Along with the major-label debut Plans in 2005, it helped bring indie rock to a broader mainstream audience.

The band followed those releases with Narrow Stairs in 2008, which topped the charts, and Codes and Keys in 2011, as its sound expanded beyond the approach of its earliest records. Walla departed before the 2015 release of Kintsugi. Death Cab for Cutie later released Thank You for Today in 2018 and Asphalt Meadows in 2022. Its eleventh album, I Built You a Tower, arrived in 2026.

The current lineup comprises Gibbard on vocals, guitar, and piano; Harmer on bass; Jason McGerr on drums; Dave Depper on guitar, keyboards, and backing vocals; and Zac Rae on keyboards and guitar. Death Cab for Cutie’s 2000s output produced several platinum-selling albums and charting singles, and the band has received multiple Grammy Award nominations. They have been described as one of the definitive indie bands of the 2000s and 2010s.