Death Cab for Cutie’s frontman Ben Gibbard seems to be all over the music news outlets these day
s. First the guy gets attention for his marriage to Zooey Deschanel. Now his band’s getting attention for being the lead single for the popular “Twilight” series’ next movie “New Moon.” I think his name constantly coming up in half the headlines on my Google Reader was a sign that he needed to be featured on PopWreckoning as well and what better place to feature somebody so in the spotlight than by putting that person under cover?
Give Gibbard a guitar and put him alone on a stage and inevitably the guy slips into some sort of cover song. No matter the original quality of the song, he’ll cover it. Indie or pop, he’s done it all. I’m actually really surprised there hasn’t been a Death Cab cover album yet.
So for this week I bring you the best (or maybe the worst if you don’t have a sense of humor) of Ben Gibbard’s cover songs. He’s done a ton, so look for this to be a multi-parter.
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.Backstreet Boys – “I Want It That Way” (original, 1998)
.“I Want It That Way” (cover, 2001)
Bellingham, WA. If I could go back in time to any show, it would be this tiny show at the 5th Floor Coffeehouse in January 2001 in Bellingham. Gibbard’s local, so it was intimate with family and friends. This was also his first public solo show since Death Cab formed four years prior. The atmosphere was already special. So when Gibbard acts all serious and hypes up this little cover he is about to whip out, it was like the icing on the cake for an already perfect show. A big breath…the anticipation builds…”You are – my fire.” Laughter. Backstreet Boys was not expected, but like I said, this show was a special occasion. This cover isn’t mind-blowing. Gibbard is pitchy in spots. And it is just downright silly that he is playing it off as this great masterpiece of a song that he is covering as a simple acoustic piece. Yet that is the genius of so many of Gibbard’s covers. Musically, they’re nothing too complicated, but he brings such a fun performance to his versions, that they really are treats.
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.Michael Jackson – “Thriller” (original, 1984)
.“Thriller” (cover, 2007)
Gibbard covered this song at Theater of the Living Arts and I was unsure about including it on here. Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” sounds nothing like this and yet that is exactly what won me over to this cover. Gone are the glossy synth notes that cue Jackson’s “Thriller” so well that you know what it is within two notes before it hits that lovely rolling bass. Gibbard’s version is definitely that signature Death Cab indie folk sound. He’s managed to strip the Jackson hit into a simple strummed guitar tune. I also am a dork and I think it is hilarious that Gibbard had to read the lyrics off a piece of paper for this and still forgets lines midway through. I find it part of his charm.
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.Avril LaVigne – “Complicated” (original, 2002)
.“Complicated” (cover, 2008)
I’m pretty sure I wanted to shoot myself whenever Avril’s “Complicated” came on the radio in 2002. Her voice was just so nasally and her idea of punk was just so…pop. Not too mention she had that ridiculous intro, “Uh huh. Life’s like this.” Gag me. I guess you could say she was acting on her lyric: “trying to be cool, but looked like a fool.” Then Gibbard comes along and nearly six years later and turns it into a slow, folky number. About 50 seconds in, Gibbard starts chuckling and says, “This is a serious song.” I’m not sure if he is telling that to the audience or a reminder to himself, but either way, it is his personality that makes this song worth the listen. Heck as much as I love his music, the best part is the end when he gives a little commentary on the song, “It’s pretty cut and dry. Complicated? What the hell are you talking about? I like to dress in different clothes.” Aw, Ben. This is why we love you.
