Death Cab for Cutie Embraces the Chaos

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It’s never easy when a band loses a longtime founding member, especially when that member produced nearly two decades' worth of the band's distinctive albums and co-wrote many of their biggest hits. But Death Cab for Cutie frontman Ben Gibbard doesn't seem fazed by the departure of guitarist Chris Walla.

"It hasn’t had any ill effects that I can see so far," Gibbard says of the split, which happened at the end of last year. "We’re enjoying the presence of the new members. It hasn’t had any ill effects quite yet — it’s what was best for everybody."

The split was amicable, with Walla releasing a statement saying he was "profoundly grateful to Ben, Nick, and Jason, for the experiences that define my adult life. Truly grateful, beyond words." Death Cab for Cutie, which also includes bassist Nick Harmer and drummer Jason McGerr, finished recording their eighth studio album together, Kintsugi, and then Walla took his leave to pursue other creative endeavors.

Now in the midst of an extensive world tour supporting the album with two new members in tow — guitarist Dave Depper and keyboardist/guitarist Zac Rae — Death Cab has their gaze planted firmly on the road in front of them rather than in the rearview mirror

“Right now I can only see about a day ahead of myself,” says Gibbard. “We’ll be on the road all year. I want to focus on this part of the job.”

The new record sees Death Cab returning to their roots in many ways, making the most of the guitar-driven, indie-rock sound that made them one of the definitive indie rock bands of this millennium. Many of the songs’ lyrics come across as heartbreakingly honest, with Gibbard trying to find hope in the most deadly life blows. “There is an answer in a question/And there is hope within despair/And there is beauty in a failure/And there are depths beyond compare/There is a role of a lifetime/And there's a song yet to be sung/And there's a dumpster in the driveway/Of all the plans that came undone,” he sings in “Black Sun.”

Many have speculated that the album's title, Kintsugi, which is a philosophy derived from the Japanese art of repairing cracked ceramics with gold to highlight flaws instead of hiding them, refers to Gibbard's very public divorce from actress/singer Zooey Deschanel, but Gibbard doesn't admit to that. "People will make those assumptions, but for me, I related to the term because I thought it was what we’ve been trying to do in general," he says. "For me it represents what it means to be an artist — you try to make things out of broken corners."

The album has been met with mixed reviews, but Gibbard doesn't seem to mind, and says that he doesn't read anything that's written about him.

Although Walla plays on the album, he relinquished production duties this time around, so the band recruited Rich Costey (Muse, Foster the People, Santigold). "After all these years we needed a fresh perspective on the music to bring us out of [our comfort zone]," says Gibbard. "He didn’t micromanage the album or tell us what to play. He told us what was working and what wasn’t. You kind of need that outside influence."

Another strong influence on the album came from Gibbard's longtime friend, singer-songwriter Jenny Lewis, who gave him some good advice. "I was in the process of trying to write songs and maybe feeling gun-shy about some things," Gibbard explains. "She gave me a powerful pep talk that made me realize I had to be straightforward and honest about how I write my songs. She’s been a very good friend for a long time; it’s nice to have someone to give you that kind of advice."

As for writing the songs for Kintsugi, it helped Gibbard expel some demons. "Every record is its own little catharsis," he says. "You write what you know and you process whatever series of emotions you might be having at the time."