Death Cab for Cutie: "President of What?"

I found a gem, you guys.

Death Cab for Cutie formed in Washington in 1997 when vocalist Ben Gibbard decided to get a full band together to play the music he'd written as a solo artist. In 1999, they played a show at a little joint called Crocodile Cafe in Seattle. Their friend recorded the show, waited for them to get famous, and then posted the videos of the early band on YouTube. The album containing this song (the band's first LP) was released in 1998, about five months before this video was taken.

It's not the best quality recording, so fans with previous knowledge of Death Cab may appreciate this more than the general populace. But it boggles the mind; at the beginning of the clip, someone yells happy birthday to bassist Nick Harmer, who turned 23 that day. Five EPs and six studio albums later, the entire band is still (mostly) intact, and still performing this song. (There have been three different drummers, but the front line has remained solid for 14 years.)

And now lead singer Ben Gibbard is married to the adorable Zooey Deschanel. I'd say life has treated Death Cab pretty well, which makes it especially fun to look back to when and where it all began: Seattle in the late nineties. Plus this is just an awesome song. Enjoy.

"President of What?," performed by Death Cab for Cutie.
Original on Death Cab's "Something About Airplanes" (1998).