Franz, Death Cab, (Harvey Danger), Oilers

Franz Ferdinand and Death Cab for Cutie came through town last night and I went to check it out... it was pretty good. Alas, I wish I could say I'm a huge fan of either of these bands and that I know more than just whatever's played on the radio, but I'm not really all that familiar with any more than 5 or 6 Franz/Death Cab tunes, so that kinda put a damper on the entertainment. But still, not bad.

My favourite part was when Ben went solo acoustic and played I Will Follow You Into the Dark. I was somewhat surprised that most of the crowd was singing along since I wasn't sure how much of a following Death Cab had here in E-Town, but they proved me wrong. During that song he sings, “You and me have seen everything to see from Bangkok to Calgary”, which inspired boos for our hated rivals to the south. Later Ben would shout “Hockey update! Oilers 1, Red Wings 0." to a loud ovation because game 3 of our playoff series was going on elsewhere in the city, then he added "And here’s a song about something completely different." I must say that they were rocking harder than I would have expected from the few songs I know by them. I was also kinda hoping they'd play Such Great Heights from Ben Gibbard's other band The Postal Service, but 'twas not to be.



Franz Ferdinand was rockin' hard. Though again, outside of their hits Take Me Out, Do You Want To, and This Fire, I was sorta out of the loop. The best part was in the second song of the encore when the Death Cab for Cutie guys came out with drum sticks for a big drum-a-long percussion spectacular, which was damn cool. Two Franz guys + a Cutie were on one drumset and the other 3 Cuties were banging along some side drums. Then after This Fire, the concert ends and everybody filters into the lobby to find a 3-3 Oilers tie with 3:00 minutes left in the 3rd. Everyone freezes and 1000 people are riveted to one teeny weeny 17-inch TV hanging from the ceiling. Oiler chants begin as time winds down and we get a late powerplay, but the period ends and everbody rushes off to find a real TV to watch overtime. Long story short, Oilers won in double OT. YEEEHA! Now I'm scared the Oilers will go deep in the playoffs as I jet off to Europe... oh the dilemma!

For lack of Death Cab apparel, I went to the concert armed with my Harvey Danger shirt. If you go way back to one of my October posts, you'll know that I'm a huge HD fan and that their fates are curiously intertwined with Death Cab for Cutie. Both hail from Seattle and have done gigs/collaborations with each other. Their careers follow opposite paths: Harvey Danger had one huge song (Flagpole Sitta) then unfairly faded into oblivion, while Death Cab for Cutie were relatively unknown for years before having a meteoric rise in fame in the past year. I couldn't help but think as I watched Death Cab perform how much I wish Harvey Danger would actually tour up here (or me down there). Their second album King James Version is just so damn good! They reunited late 2004 after a 4 year hiatus (now if I could only get Moxy Fruvous to reunite, I'd be complete) and last year released their 3rd album Little By Little, which can still be downloaded in its entirety for FREE from their website. Go! Download! Listen! What you waiting for?


Harvey Danger - (This is) The Thrilling Conversation You've Been Waiting For
Ben Gibbard does back-up vocals on this HD song from King James Version.

Lounge-O-Leers - Flagpole Sitta [originally by Harvey Danger]
There aren't too many covers (if any, besides this one) of Harvey Danger... it's kinda goofy.

Franz Ferdinand - What You Waiting For? [originally by Gwen Stefani]
Oddly enough, this combo works.

The Shins - We Will Become Silhouettes [originally by The Postal Service]
Another reason to love the Shins: this cover.

The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band - Death Cab for Cutie
This is the 60's novelty song from whence Ben Gibbard & the boys derive their name. Curiously, this song was also performed in the Beatles' film Magical Mystery Tour as a striptease, or so I'm told.

Death Cab for Cutie - Earth Angel [originally by The Penguins]
From the Stubbs the Zombie soundtrack.