Death Cab at the Wiltern

Mini Death Cab
Originally uploaded by kardinalsin.

My computer crashed when I was writing this nice post about these nice boys from Seattle, Death Cab for Cutie and their nice performance at the nicest of venues, the Wiltern. I'll dispense with the usual lengthiness and go for a concise rundown of the festivities.

Opening band from Montreal, Stars played a good set full of songs of their latest album Set Yourself on Fire and maybe a few others I hadn't heard before. Very solid opening act, I was entranced by the single, solitary dance the violinist knew and the head tattoo of the drummer. Aside from the almost assymetrical inclusion of a trumpet, their music translates well to the stage. Check out their album if you haven't already.

The main act, Death Cab, displayed a cohesiveness one would expect from professionals, but I was particularly enthralled by how practiced they seemed. Not mechanical at all, these boys know how to perform. Playing many tracks from Plans, it was a crowd-pleasing set for everyone. Even after they pulled out a few songs from the original effort, We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes, the momentum of the crowd's enthusiasm never let up. I was singularly nonplussed that since the majority of the crowd could have been three-quarters of my age they could be such huge fans in the first place, but it's a testament to the level of quality they produce in the first place. Wouldn't it be great if all acts could gain new listeners as loyal as their original followers?

Great show, they pulled together an amazing encore and even brough Stars back onstage for Transatlanticism. Stirring and emotional, it'll go down in the books as a solid show.