Death Cab to Nokia

Our friend Nick (center, with bass) was in town for the current Death Cab for Cutie tour and hooked us up with tickets and backstage passes. Last time I saw him, I crashed at his house while touring with Damon & Naomi and Boris. He was a great host, and even paid for breakfast at his favorite spot. Usually, I only get to him when he's on tour.


Each time I see the Seattle band play, the venue gets larger. This was my first time at Nokia and it's cavernous and modern but not entirely soul-less. The sound was quite good, too, and I think the Emmys and American Music awards take place here. I though it was cool that the band charged 40 bucks per seat, whether you sat in the front row or the nosebleed seats, which rewards young, diligent super fans with good seats for a decent price.


Death Cab has released a ton of albums now, and it's cool to see the band's set list evolve and get stronger. Although there seems to be one huge hit on each of their last three albums, I don't really consider them to be a "singles" band. Each show seems to be more like a collection of fan favorites. Of course there's "Crooked Teeth" and then in Los Angeles, there's also "Why'd You Want To Live Here?" (It makes me smile when Los Angelenos sing along to that one.) When you listen to those and then hear the latest single, you can tell that while the lyrics remain poetic and personal, the music is always changing. The previous songs are solid indie songs, but the epic structure of "I Will Possess Your Heart" reminds me of a Brian Eno-era Bowie song.



We stuck around the "VIP room" afterward, but left before getting to thank Nick for getting us in. He called this morning, and explained that he was tied up in promoter talk that couldn't be escaped. Then he had to go to take an phone interview before heading to KROQ for a short acoustic set around noon and then taking off for tonight's show in Santa Barbara and the tour's final show in Oregon. Right after that, it's Europe, Asia, Australia... But he'll be back eventually.