DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE
Published in aXis Magazine 2005
Don’t call them emo.
“I think it is just lazy journalism. Journalists should try to be a little bit more creative than that,” says Nick Harmer bassist for the band Death Cab for Cutie.
“At the end of the day we are just a straight up indie-rock band.”
It’s 11:00 o’clock on a Saturday morning. Death Cab’s management actually gave me Harmer’s cell phone number so I could interview him. I found it refreshing that there are still bands that are down to earth and that don’t need a lot of middle men to go through when it comes to press and promotional things.
At the time of our conversation, he had just woken up in Burlington, Vermont. He is currently on tour with the rest of his DCFC band mates who consist of Ben Gibbard (vocals), Chris Walla (guitarist/ keyboardist), and Jason McGerr (drums). The previous night they had played a show in Montreal. Harmer was tired, but still very cordial and willing to discuss pretty much anything.
“Like I said, as long as they don’t call us emo it’s fine. At least pop-rock is more creative!”
What inspired you to start playing music?
Well…I guess I could trace it back to my mother. She made me play the piano at a young age. At the time I thought it was awful and I really didn’t like it. But now I am thankful that I did it. Other than that I have just always been in bands since I was a kid.
When you all began this group, what were the expectations? Were you’re goals to sell millions of records or just make music that you enjoy?
It is funny, because the band has always worked with stepping stone expectations. At first we just wanted to play music for our friends that sounded good. Then we just wanted to record a CD. I can remember sitting on our front porch trying to decide between making five hundred or a thousand CDs. We weren’t sure if they were all going to sell.
Of course you sold them all, right?
(With a chuckle) yeah we sold out pretty quickly. For us it was another goal that we could check off of our list.
So what were the other goals of the band?
I guess we didn’t really have any lofty ambitions for life or anything. I personally just like the aspect of taking each thing as it comes and satisfying that. Then it creates a nice progression. There are no big disappointments. Our goals right now are to just keep being a band, to keep releasing records, to sell more copies, have bigger shows, and to give the record the best launch possible. And of course to give the best live show that we can each and every night.
What do you find to be the most enjoyable part of being in the band and touring every night?
Definitely the creative outlet it allows you to have. I mean it is a weird life to live. I wake up in a cold sweat a lot. I’m 28, and there are other people that are my age that are doing more moral and traditional things.
Yeah, but you wouldn’t really want to live a life like everyone else does, would you?
I guess not. For me I don’t really have the need to buy houses or things like that. I look at it like- I wake up in the morning being around people who are full of ideas and energy. It is inspiring to be in an environment where I am surrounded by driven people who are great guys. They all have good hearts, and I hope that they are the last band that I will ever be in.You are still young. You think that Death Cab will be the last band ever for you?Well at least for a really long time. I can not even conceive of being in another band right now.
What do you find to be the most challenging part of being in the band?
Being away from home for so long and the tough schedule while touring. But the thing about that is that my brother will give me grief when I complain about my schedule. When we aren’t doing band stuff there isn’t much to do. Sometimes we will have weeks off at a time. But when we are on tour we are working around the clock. So if you add it all up, we are working the same amount of hours as someone with a nine to five job, just with a more condensed time schedule.
Playing the same songs each night on tour, how do you all keep each show different and fresh?
By taking a lot of drugs. (He laughed for second. He was of course being sarcastic). Actually, the philosophy that the band and I have it is that every day is a new day. Even if one night we have a bad show, we know that tomorrow there will be a new crowd and a new set list. There is never a guarantee that we are going to have a great show every night. But we realize that and basically we just wait and see how everything unfolds. We realize that we can only control some things like playing the best we can every night and staying in a good mood. And we of course still love playing music, which is the most important thing.
When someone leaves a show, what would you like them to get out of the experience?
We want them to have a dynamic experience. We don’t want to just be a one trick pony. We have a bunch of different aspects, some that are really fun and full of energy. Then we have other moments that are more introspective. We definitely want people to walk away with a dynamic experience.
When it comes to Death Cab fans, why do you think that they are so loyal?
I don’t know, I guess because they like our music. We are nice fellas. We do our best not to embarrass our fans. We don’t want to turn our backs on them. We aren’t one day going to come out wearing silver pants or something and start dating supermodels.
Ah, come on what's wrong with silver pants?
(Laughing) Uh, I guess I am just past that stage in my life?
So you’re saying that you have already been through that stage of wearing silver pants?
No, I can’t say that I have, but you know what I mean. We just try to do our best and hope that the fans appreciate it.
What albums have you guys been listening to on the road?
Well, at the end of the day, we really are just music fans. We really enjoy just geeking it out when it comes to listening to music. Each of us get on the bus and go into our own worlds with our I-pods or lab tops and bring back random stuff to listen to. Everyone has there own tastes. Lately I have been listening to the new Outkast album. I like Andre’s the best. It is so random and fun.
Is there anything that you would like your fans to know about Death Cab for Cutie?
Well, let’s just keep that a mystery. There is a lot of mystery when it comes to the band and I think that works for us.
Don’t call them emo.
“I think it is just lazy journalism. Journalists should try to be a little bit more creative than that,” says Nick Harmer bassist for the band Death Cab for Cutie.
“At the end of the day we are just a straight up indie-rock band.”
It’s 11:00 o’clock on a Saturday morning. Death Cab’s management actually gave me Harmer’s cell phone number so I could interview him. I found it refreshing that there are still bands that are down to earth and that don’t need a lot of middle men to go through when it comes to press and promotional things.
At the time of our conversation, he had just woken up in Burlington, Vermont. He is currently on tour with the rest of his DCFC band mates who consist of Ben Gibbard (vocals), Chris Walla (guitarist/ keyboardist), and Jason McGerr (drums). The previous night they had played a show in Montreal. Harmer was tired, but still very cordial and willing to discuss pretty much anything.
“Like I said, as long as they don’t call us emo it’s fine. At least pop-rock is more creative!”
What inspired you to start playing music?
Well…I guess I could trace it back to my mother. She made me play the piano at a young age. At the time I thought it was awful and I really didn’t like it. But now I am thankful that I did it. Other than that I have just always been in bands since I was a kid.
When you all began this group, what were the expectations? Were you’re goals to sell millions of records or just make music that you enjoy?
It is funny, because the band has always worked with stepping stone expectations. At first we just wanted to play music for our friends that sounded good. Then we just wanted to record a CD. I can remember sitting on our front porch trying to decide between making five hundred or a thousand CDs. We weren’t sure if they were all going to sell.
Of course you sold them all, right?
(With a chuckle) yeah we sold out pretty quickly. For us it was another goal that we could check off of our list.
So what were the other goals of the band?
I guess we didn’t really have any lofty ambitions for life or anything. I personally just like the aspect of taking each thing as it comes and satisfying that. Then it creates a nice progression. There are no big disappointments. Our goals right now are to just keep being a band, to keep releasing records, to sell more copies, have bigger shows, and to give the record the best launch possible. And of course to give the best live show that we can each and every night.
What do you find to be the most enjoyable part of being in the band and touring every night?
Definitely the creative outlet it allows you to have. I mean it is a weird life to live. I wake up in a cold sweat a lot. I’m 28, and there are other people that are my age that are doing more moral and traditional things.
Yeah, but you wouldn’t really want to live a life like everyone else does, would you?
I guess not. For me I don’t really have the need to buy houses or things like that. I look at it like- I wake up in the morning being around people who are full of ideas and energy. It is inspiring to be in an environment where I am surrounded by driven people who are great guys. They all have good hearts, and I hope that they are the last band that I will ever be in.You are still young. You think that Death Cab will be the last band ever for you?Well at least for a really long time. I can not even conceive of being in another band right now.
What do you find to be the most challenging part of being in the band?
Being away from home for so long and the tough schedule while touring. But the thing about that is that my brother will give me grief when I complain about my schedule. When we aren’t doing band stuff there isn’t much to do. Sometimes we will have weeks off at a time. But when we are on tour we are working around the clock. So if you add it all up, we are working the same amount of hours as someone with a nine to five job, just with a more condensed time schedule.
Playing the same songs each night on tour, how do you all keep each show different and fresh?
By taking a lot of drugs. (He laughed for second. He was of course being sarcastic). Actually, the philosophy that the band and I have it is that every day is a new day. Even if one night we have a bad show, we know that tomorrow there will be a new crowd and a new set list. There is never a guarantee that we are going to have a great show every night. But we realize that and basically we just wait and see how everything unfolds. We realize that we can only control some things like playing the best we can every night and staying in a good mood. And we of course still love playing music, which is the most important thing.
When someone leaves a show, what would you like them to get out of the experience?
We want them to have a dynamic experience. We don’t want to just be a one trick pony. We have a bunch of different aspects, some that are really fun and full of energy. Then we have other moments that are more introspective. We definitely want people to walk away with a dynamic experience.
When it comes to Death Cab fans, why do you think that they are so loyal?
I don’t know, I guess because they like our music. We are nice fellas. We do our best not to embarrass our fans. We don’t want to turn our backs on them. We aren’t one day going to come out wearing silver pants or something and start dating supermodels.
Ah, come on what's wrong with silver pants?
(Laughing) Uh, I guess I am just past that stage in my life?
So you’re saying that you have already been through that stage of wearing silver pants?
No, I can’t say that I have, but you know what I mean. We just try to do our best and hope that the fans appreciate it.
What albums have you guys been listening to on the road?
Well, at the end of the day, we really are just music fans. We really enjoy just geeking it out when it comes to listening to music. Each of us get on the bus and go into our own worlds with our I-pods or lab tops and bring back random stuff to listen to. Everyone has there own tastes. Lately I have been listening to the new Outkast album. I like Andre’s the best. It is so random and fun.
Is there anything that you would like your fans to know about Death Cab for Cutie?
Well, let’s just keep that a mystery. There is a lot of mystery when it comes to the band and I think that works for us.
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