I have many very fond memories of Death Cab For Cutie, discovering them during a particularly interesting period of my teenage years. In 2003, I remember going to a local record store and picking up Transatlanticism, motivated solely by its simple album cover. At first, I had difficulty grasping this thing called “indie rock” and its quirkiness, because at that time I was in the midst of slowly transitioning and moving away from a heavy background of pop-punk power chords à la New Found Glory and Midtown. After awhile though, I fell in love with that entire album (“A Lack Of Color” still gets me), eventually amassing the band’s entire discography.
The last DCFC album, Codes & Keys, just came out last year, but we know how how busy frontman Benjamin Gibbard can be (see: The Postal Service, his 2009 release with Jay Farrar, etc.), so it’s no real surprise that he’s putting out his own solo work. It’s actually about time. This new song, “Teardrop Windows,” features Gibbard in his comfort zone: a lolling, upbeat track, complete with a soft and sensitive tone. It hints a bit at DCFC’s earlier work, but the chorus’ pop polish is mostly reminiscent of the group’s recent efforts.
“Teardrop Windows” is off Benjamin Gibbard’s debut solo album, Former Lives, slated for release on October 15th via Death Cab For Cutie’s former indie label Barsuk Records. You can pre-order it here.