Ben Gibbard Covers Stars In NYC

Yesterday I gave you the gig's review. Today I can share one of its highlights.


MP3: Death Cab For Cutie - Soul Meets Body

Ben Gibbard @ Hiro Ballroom: Into The Dark

Last night (courtesy of the fine folks at Rhapsody), I was fortunate enough to catch an extraordinarily intimate gig from Death Cab For Cutie's alluring frontman. While you might assume that the 50 minute acoustic set would be corporate and lackluster, it was anything but. Ben showcased a bouquet of covers (including Rilo Kiley's 'Silver Lining' & Stars' 'Your Ex Lover Is Dead) alongside some of DCFC's most cherished early material (stunning takes on 'Photobooth' & '405'). Perhaps an even bigger treat was a flawless rendition of The Postal Service's 'Brand New Colony'. The surprisingly respectful crowd pleaded for 'I Will Follow You Into The Dark' (off 2005's Plans) and that's exactly how Ben ended the divine evening. Read my review of Ben Gibbard @ NYC's Town Hall, circa May of 2007, here. Photos below.







MP3: Death Cab For Cutie - Title & Registration

Ben Gibbard Shares Fate Of Postal Service's Sophomore LP

It ain't pretty. He unleashes these saddening words with Rolling Stone: *"The second album is threatening to become the Chinese Democracy of indie rock."* Yikes! Let's hope not. MP3 below.

Visit The Postal Service on MySpace.

MP3: The Postal Service - The District...

The World Of B-Sides & Rarities, #587

The Cribs - I'm A Realist (The Postal Service Mix)

Visit The Cribs on MySpace.

Check out the status of TPS's sophomore LP here.

MP3: The Cribs - I'm A Realist (TPS Mix) [alt link]

Sophomore LP From The Postal Service 'May Never Happen'

Ben Gibbard breaks the disappointing news to Spinner: *"It's just not a priority for either of us. So the next Postal Service record may or may never happen. Jimmy and I are still throwing ideas back and forth, but as time goes on, we find ourselves busy with our own music. We have some stuff, but it's been difficult to find the time and the drive to do the record. I'd love to finish it at some point and maybe even do some performances. If it's meant to be, it's meant to be."*

MP3: The Postal Service - The District...

The World Of B-Sides & Rarities, #391

The Postal Service - Nothing Better (Styrofoam Remix)

Let's take a moment & flashback to 2002's superb Give Up LP.

Read the latest update on TPS's sophomore record here.

Learn more about Styrofoam at his MySpace page.

MP3: The Postal Service - Nothing Better (Styrofoam Remix)

The World Of B-Sides & Rarities, #170

The Postal Service - Brand New Colony (Live On KCRW)

Another lost treasure from Morning Becomes Eclectic.

Enjoy a live version of the much-loved Give Up tune below.

Read the latest update on TPS's second LP here.

MP3: The Postal Service - Brand New Colony (Live On KCRW)

Ben Gibbard Explains Kerouac Fascination

SF Weekly reports: *Like many other songwriters before him, Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie is a huge Kerouac enthusiast who has written a couple of tracks in tribute to the author. But it's interesting that while On the Road was an early favorite for this eloquent lyricist, it's Kerouac's later, darker novel Big Sur that Gibbard relates to most these days. "In Big Sur, Kerouac's in his mid-30s and he's already kind of over the mythology that's been created around him since On the Road," says Gibbard. "He's a woeful alcoholic and everywhere he used to haunt is now overrun with these wannabes. He's cynical and he's drinking more and at some point [Lawrence] Ferlinghetti says, 'I have this cabin and you should go down there and just dry out for a couple weeks.'" The book shows Kerouac in a struggle to pull meaning out of his fame, his drinking, and his friendships. "He's trying to re-create all these moments in his life that are so important to him, but now they're so long gone it's kind of pathetic," adds Gibbard.

It just so happens that Gibbard has embarked on a two-week solo songwriting trip to the Big Sur cabin where Kerouac wrote his novel named after the picturesque beach community. He lucked into the rental by taking part in a documentary about Big Sur produced by Kerouac's nephew and so far involving such luminaries from the writing and music worlds as Ferlinghetti, Michael McClure, Tom Waits, and Jay Farrar. At 31, Gibbard talks candidly about the arrested development many artists — musicians and otherwise — realize they've stumbled into once they leave their 20s behind. The parties and the travel and the excitement of youth get a little more complicated once you hit an age when your peers are worrying about diapers, marriages, and mortgages. "I don't want to be overdramatic about it, but I'm starting to see a lot of my bad habits get the best of me," Gibbard admits. "Living this life in the same sorta way that Kerouac lived ... you get to hang out at shows and drink and you're able to not really face reality and adulthood the way most of my friends are."*

Read the rest of the article here.

MP3: The Postal Service - Sleeping In

Ben Gibbard @ Town Hall: Acoustic Guitar, I'm Gonna Make You A Star

For as much as I adore all albums from Death Cab For Cutie's catalog and The Postal Service's ever-so-brilliant debut, Give Up, I've failed to see Ben Gibbard and the gang live since their Siren Festival appearance back in '04. I've been holding out for the opportunity to hear Ben's tunes in an intimate setting for some time now (I regretfully missed his Bowery gig last year) and Town Hall was the ideal venue to carry out my wish.

Performing a selection of tunes from The Photo Album through Plans, intertwined with Neil Young & Nirvana covers, a couple new ditties, and yes, even some Postal Service tracks for good measure, Ben Gibbard's 75-minute set was genuinely outstanding. Well worth the wait.

Highlights of the evening included 'Brand New Colony', 'Passenger Seat', 'Crooked Teeth' and 'A Lack Of Color'. Take a listen to the latter track below.

UPDATE: SETLIST! (Note: He did NOT perform 'Blacking Out The Friction' in spite of the fact that it's listed below)

MP3: Death Cab For Cutie - A Lack Of Color

The World Of B-Sides & Rarities, #15

The Postal Service - Against All Odds

Featured on the Wicker Park soundtrack in 2004, The Postal Service attempted and succeeded in bringing back to life the Phil Collins classic 'Against All Odds'. What at first seems like a bizarre cover choice, quickly becomes second nature as Ben & Jimmy do a brilliant job at turning the gloomy (yet always amazing) track into an ironic electronic-infused pop-ready ditty. Take a listen below to decide for yourself.

MP3: The Postal Service - Against All Odds

Postal Service Halfway Done With Next LP

Winter release? I surely hope so! That's the band's plan, as well, although Sub Pop isn't holding them to anything and the guys are surely taking their precious time...

Punk News has the dirt on Jimmy and Ben's next album. Jimmy (aka Dntel) tells the site: If we don't make the deadline we set for ourselves, we can extend it. Sub Pop has never given us a deadline, and we're trying our best to make it in the same environment we made the first one: We have to keep reminding ourselves that we're doing it for fun and trying to keep things casual," he said. "And that's pretty difficult to do, to be honest. I have to keep reminding myself that it doesn't have to sound like a giant mainstream pop record just because the last one got to so many people. I have to remember how the last one sounded — lo-fi and in my comfort level of production — and I want to stay that way.

Just over the weekend, we shared with you Ben Gibbard's solo tour dates. Definitely a show not to miss this spring!

MP3: The Postal Service - Nothing Better