Death Cab for Cutie — The Blue EP (Sept. 6th, 2019) 
°•° One of the definitive indie bands of the 2000s and 2010s, led by Ben Gibbard, whose wistful vocals and sensitive songwriting straddle indie and emo.
We couldn’t be more pleased to share The Blue EP with you today — it’s a collection of five new Death Cab tracks.
°•° You’ve already heard “Kids in ‘99” and “To the Ground”. “Kids in ‘99” and “Blue Bloods” are two brand~new recordings that we made with producer Peter Katis this past winter. It was our first time working with him and we are absolutely thrilled with the results. The future feels filled with endless possibilities; these two songs point toward some of them.
°•° “To the Ground” and “Before the Bombs” were both recorded with Rich Costey during the sessions for Thank You For Today. They were both in the final running order for the record until the very last moment, but in the end we felt that they didn't quite fit the theme that ultimately unified TYFT. We’re so glad they are seeing the light of day on this collection.
°•° As for “Man in Blue”, in the months leading up to recording Thank You For Today, we convened at Zac’s studio in Burbank to come up with and informally record band arrangements of potential songs for that album. Many of the final tracks, such as “Northern Lights" and “I Dreamt We Spoke Again”, were first arranged during these sessions.
°•° “Man in Blue” was one of these songs, but something about our very first run~through of it had such a special quality to it that we decided not to re~record it for the album. What you’re hearing here is our efforts from that day.
°•° As this touring cycle begins to wind down, we are once again looking to the future, getting excited to record again, feeling more free and fearless than ever before. The Blue EP feels like a good, big step in the right direction. As always, thanks for following along. xo, DCfC
Formed: 1997 in Bellingham, WA
Location: Seattle, WA
Album release: September 6th, 2019
Studio: Santa Monica, California
Record Label: Barsuk Records
Duration: 20:53
Tracks:
01. To the Ground 5:16
02. Kids in ‘99 3:13
03. Man in Blue 3:02
04. Before the Bombs 3:41
05. Blue Bloods 5:41
Personnel:
Death Cab for Cutie
° Benjamin Gibbard — lead vocals, backing vocals, guitars, piano, keyboards, samples
° Nick Harmer — bass, backing vocals
° Jason McGerr — drums, percussion, programming
° Dave Depper — guitars, keyboards, backing vocals
° Zac Rae — keyboards, guitars
∴⇓∴ Released just a year after the full~length Thank You for Today, 2019’s The Blue EP finds Death Cab for Cutie benefitting from working with a smaller canvass.
The central tune of this five~track EP is “Kids in 99,” a song written in tribute to three children who died in an explosion on the Olympic Pipeline in 1999. It has clean lines but a nervy energy, and its hushed outrage provides an emotional keystone for the record, which also contains the coiled “Before the Bombs.”
∴⇓∴ Death Cab doesn’t depart from the cool textures and subtle melodies that distinguish Thank You for Today, but that added grace note of despair, outrage, and quiet urgency does give The Blue EP a subtle and welcome emotional resonance.
Website: http://benjamingibbard.net/Bandwagonesque/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/dcfc
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bengibbard
______________________________________________
We couldn’t be more pleased to share The Blue EP with you today — it’s a collection of five new Death Cab tracks.
°•° You’ve already heard “Kids in ‘99” and “To the Ground”. “Kids in ‘99” and “Blue Bloods” are two brand~new recordings that we made with producer Peter Katis this past winter. It was our first time working with him and we are absolutely thrilled with the results. The future feels filled with endless possibilities; these two songs point toward some of them.
°•° “To the Ground” and “Before the Bombs” were both recorded with Rich Costey during the sessions for Thank You For Today. They were both in the final running order for the record until the very last moment, but in the end we felt that they didn't quite fit the theme that ultimately unified TYFT. We’re so glad they are seeing the light of day on this collection.
°•° As for “Man in Blue”, in the months leading up to recording Thank You For Today, we convened at Zac’s studio in Burbank to come up with and informally record band arrangements of potential songs for that album. Many of the final tracks, such as “Northern Lights" and “I Dreamt We Spoke Again”, were first arranged during these sessions.
°•° “Man in Blue” was one of these songs, but something about our very first run~through of it had such a special quality to it that we decided not to re~record it for the album. What you’re hearing here is our efforts from that day.
°•° As this touring cycle begins to wind down, we are once again looking to the future, getting excited to record again, feeling more free and fearless than ever before. The Blue EP feels like a good, big step in the right direction. As always, thanks for following along. xo, DCfC
Formed: 1997 in Bellingham, WA
Location: Seattle, WA
Album release: September 6th, 2019
Studio: Santa Monica, California
Record Label: Barsuk Records
Duration: 20:53
Tracks:
01. To the Ground 5:16
02. Kids in ‘99 3:13
03. Man in Blue 3:02
04. Before the Bombs 3:41
05. Blue Bloods 5:41
Personnel:
Death Cab for Cutie
° Benjamin Gibbard — lead vocals, backing vocals, guitars, piano, keyboards, samples
° Nick Harmer — bass, backing vocals
° Jason McGerr — drums, percussion, programming
° Dave Depper — guitars, keyboards, backing vocals
° Zac Rae — keyboards, guitars
∴⇓∴ Released just a year after the full~length Thank You for Today, 2019’s The Blue EP finds Death Cab for Cutie benefitting from working with a smaller canvass.
The central tune of this five~track EP is “Kids in 99,” a song written in tribute to three children who died in an explosion on the Olympic Pipeline in 1999. It has clean lines but a nervy energy, and its hushed outrage provides an emotional keystone for the record, which also contains the coiled “Before the Bombs.”
∴⇓∴ Death Cab doesn’t depart from the cool textures and subtle melodies that distinguish Thank You for Today, but that added grace note of despair, outrage, and quiet urgency does give The Blue EP a subtle and welcome emotional resonance.
Website: http://benjamingibbard.net/Bandwagonesque/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/dcfc
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bengibbard
______________________________________________