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Death Cab For Cutie and The Beatles

The Beatles are the most influential band in the history of rock and roll.

Their music has inspired artists as diverse as Billy Joel, Kiss, U2 and Phish.

However, their influence transcends their chart toping albums and singles.

Their 1967 movie, Magical Mystery Tour, featured a band called the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band. This band performed a song written by Neil Innes and Vivian Stanshall. The name of that song is "Death Cab for Cutie."

Death Cab for Cutie formed in 1997 in Bellingham, Washington. The band consists of Benjamin Gibbard on vocals and guitar, Chris Walla on guitars, Nicholas Harmer on bass and Jason McGerr on drums.

The band originally started out as a solo project of Gibbard, who was recording under the name of "All-Time Quarterback."

In 1997, Gibbard released You Can Play These Songs with Chords on cassette. He released the offering under the name Death Cab For Cutie. It was so well received that he decided to expand and form a band.

In the next five years, the band would release four albums with independent record label Barsuk Records located in Seattle, Washington.

The band released Something About Airplanes in 1998 and it featured five songs from You Can Play These Songs with Chords as well as Nathan Good on drums.

The band's sophomore effort, We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes, was released in 2000. It was a tribute to Bellingham drummer Trevor Adams' not the British actor of the same name.

Sometime during production of We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes, Good left the band. The album was finished with Gibbard playing drums.

Good was replaced by Jayson Tolzdorf-Larson who joined the band for their first U.S. tour.

In 2001 the band released its third album, The Photo Album. Once again the band welcomed a new drummer, Michael Schorr.

The band's fourth studio album, and last before joining Atlantic, was Transatlanticism. It's also the first album to have McGerr on drums.

The band reached a new level of success in 2005 with their release of Plans. The album reached #4 on the Billboard 200 and eventually went platinum and it only took three years.

The album was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.

Their latest release is Narrow Stairs (2008). It has received rave reviews, including four out of five stars from Rolling Stone Magazine, Allmusic, Blender and The Guardian.

Even if their name doesn't sound familiar, chances are you have heard them. Death Cab For Cutie's music has appeared on several television shows: Heroes, The O.C., One Tree Hill, Six Feet Under, CSI: Miami, and Californication.

They've also appeared on the soundtracks to the movies Wedding Crasher and Mean Creek.

February of 2009 Death Cab will play several shows in Japan and Australia before returning to North America.

They start their tour of the U.S. in March with an appearance at the Langerado Music Festival in Miami, Florida.

In April, their tour picks up with shows at the Tower Theatre in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania; DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C.; and John Belk Arena in Davidson, North Carolina.

Their tour ends in May when Death Cab visits the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia.

Their most recognizable song is 'Soul Meets Body'. It's also their highest charting song, reaching number 5 on the U.S. Modern Rock Track chart.

Another highlight of their catalog is 'I Will Follow You into the Dark'. Gibbard wrote the song after realizing no one close to him has died. It's a touching and memorable ballad that was recorded in monaural as a solo-acoustical number.

Death Cab's sound is unmistakable thanks to Gibbard's unique and haunting voice. Their music has been described as melodic, melancholy, literate and romantic.

Their lyrics are dark, somber, and moody but very intelligent.

Needless to say, they aren't the happiest sounding band around.

Seed Newsvine

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