The Postal Service and Death Cab For Cutie cover Depeche Mode and kick off joint anniversary tour

6 September, 2023

Ben Gibbard of Death Cab For Cutie and The Postal Service and Depeche Mode's Dave Gahan

Death Cab For Cutie and The Postal Service kicked off their joint 20th anniversary co-headline tour in Washington last night (September 5).

Ben Gibbard joined both of his bands for the tour with Death Cab performing their 2003 album ‘Transatlanticism’ and The Postal Service’s ‘Give Up’ in full at The Anthem.

During the latter’s set, they were joined by Death Cab for a cover of Depeche Mode‘s classic hit single ‘Enjoy The Silence’ at the end of the show. You can view footage below.

They also performed two versions of ‘Great Heights’, with the latter take during the encore just featuring Gibbard on an acoustic guitar and Jenny Lewis.

Both shows are part of their joint US tour which continues throughout September and wraps up at the Los Angeles Hollywood Bowl on October 13. You can purchase any remaining tickets here.

Consisting of Gibbard along with Jimmy Tamborello and Jenny Lewis, The Postal Service released their debut and only album ‘Give Up’ in 2003. They reunited for an anniversary tour to mark a decade of the album in 2013 before they disbanded once more.

Speaking about the joint tour to NME earlier this year, Gibbard said: “Reflecting on who you were 20 years ago is necessary to understanding who you are today. I’m looking forward to it. There are no skeletons in those records that I can’t face head-on.”

Looking back on the influential synth-pop gem ‘Give Up’, NME also asked Gibbard if he felt at the time like he was making an important record that we’d still be talking about 20 years later.

“Of course not, but what if I said I did?” he jokingly replied. “Maybe I could really drum up some hate press! Really though, it’s important to understand the context of early ‘00s American indie rock.”

He continued: “We were making this record before 2004, when indie rock really broke [in the US]. Death Cab felt like we were on cloud nine, having sold like 40,000 records and playing venues like The Bowery Ballroom. We felt like we had made it. When we made ‘Give Up’, it was just a fun project, and I was thrilled to be releasing a record on [influential record label] Sub Pop.

“Author William Gibson was once talking about the Neuromancer trilogy, and was asked about why these books mean so much to people. He said: ‘I think of my books like my children, who went off into the world and had great adventures’. The record took on a life of its own and it felt like I had little-to-nothing to do with it.

“I’ve been taking credit by cashing the royalty cheques, but Jimmy and I have never felt the urge to grandstand about it. We were just two kids fucking around.”

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