Cover Story

Death Cab for Cutie: Rock’s Most Functional Family: It’s no secret that Death Cab for Cutie are on the cusp of potentially achieving greater mainstream success. After already establishing an incredibly devoted following on indie-label Barsuk, the Seattle based band are about to plunge head-first into the choppy major label waters with the release of their fifth album, and major label debut, Plans, on Atlantic Records. Writer Matt Fink spoke to all four members of Death Cab for Cutie (Ben Gibbard, Chris Walla, Nick Harmer, and Jason McGerr), about the making of Plans and the pressures of going major, and found the band to be surprisingly well-adjusted and at the height of their creativity. The article features exclusive new photos taken in Seattle by Wendy Lynch.

Special Section

Britpop: A Decade On: It was August 14, 1995, and a war was raging in Britain. The generals were musical giants Blur and Oasis, the battlefields were record stores around the country, and the troops were armies of fans rushing out to buy their copies of two competing singles: Blur’s “Country House” and Oasis’s “Roll With It.” It was more than just a battle of the bands. It was a key moment in Britain’s musical Renaissance; an epic clash of homegrown musical talent, energy, and success; a blazing sign of how far British music had come, and how far it had to fall. These days, the hit-making prowess of British bands like Kasabian, Kaiser Chiefs, and Coldplay is taken for granted. But a decade ago, the massive success of British bands was such a strange phenomenon that someone had to invent a word for it: Britpop. The section features one main article, as well as separate articles on many of the Britpop bands, and includes new interviews with key members of the following Britpop bands:

Ash (Tim Wheeler)
The Bluetones (Mark Morriss)
Blur (Alex James)
The Charlatans (Tim Burgess and Mark Collins)
Elastica (Justine Frischmann)
Embrace (Danny McNamara)
Gene (Steve Mason)
Kula Shaker (Crispian Mills)
Longpigs (Crispin Hunt and Richard Hawley)
Lush (Emma Anderson)
Menswear (Chris Gentry and Simon White)
Pulp (Steve Mackey)
Rialto (Louis Eliot)
Sleeper (Louise Wener and Jon Stewart)
Teenage Fanclub (Norman Blake)

(Plus we spoke to Ricky Wilson of Kaiser Chiefs and Murray Lightburn of The Dears about how Britpop has and has not influenced their own music.)

The section includes new photo shoots with Ash (full band), The Bluetones (Mark Morriss), The Charlatans (Tim Burgess and Mark Collins), Rialto (Louis Eliot), and Sleeper (Louise Wener).

The section incorporates interviews by Jumana Farouky, Marcus Kagler, Nick Hyman, and Mark Redfern; and includes photos by Wendy Lynch, Derrick Santini, and Andy Willsher.

Main Features

Frank Black: The Pixies main-man discusses his new solo album, Honeycomb, and the future of the reformed Pixies. Words by Marcus Kagler. Features exclusive new photos taken in San Francisco by Wendy Lynch.
CocoRosie: Writer Joe Ragusa spoke to CocoRosie’s Bianca Cassidy about her sister Sierra and the duo’s new album, Noah’s Ark. Features exclusive new photos taken in New York by Sean McCabe.
Billy Corgan: Writer Marcus Kagler spoke to the former Smashing Pumpkins’ frontman about his first solo album, TheFutureEmbrace. Features exclusive new photos taken in Los Angeles by Wendy Lynch.
Franz Ferdinand (in the studio): Writer Joe Ragusa interviewed Franz Ferdinand’s frontman Alex Kapranos while the band was in the studio finishing up their much anticipated sophomore album, You Could Have It So Much Better…With Franz Ferdinand.
Goldfrapp: Writer Joe Ragusa interviewed Goldfrapp’s Alison Goldfrapp and Will Gregory to get a preview of their new album Supernature, which is due out in America in February 2006.
Lost Among the Found: The Movement That Didn’t Exist: Writer Matt Fink examines the Christian indie rock scene (or lack of a scene). The article incorporates interviews with faithful indie-rock musicians, including David Bazan (Pedro the Lion), John Davis (ex-Superdrag), David Eugene Edwards (16 Horsepower, Woven Hand), John Ringhofer (Half-Handed Cloud), Daniel Smith (Danielson Famile), Sufjan Stevens, and Rosie Thomas.
Sufjan Stevens: Writer Matt Fink spoke to Sufjan Stevens about his new album, Illinois, the next installment in his 50 States project. Features exclusive new photos taken in New York by Sean McCabe.
The Tears: Brett Anderson and Bernard Butler were once both in Suede, but had a much publicized falling out while they were finishing 1994’s acclaimed second album Dog Man Star. Anderson and the rest of Suede made three more albums after Butler left, and Butler recorded two solo albums and two albums with vocalist David McAlmont as McAlmont & Butler. After Suede split up in 2003, Anderson and Butler reunited to form The Tears. Senior Editor Mark Redfern interviewed both Anderson and Butler about their debut album Here Come The Tears. These are Anderson and Butler’s first American interviews as The Tears. Features exclusive new photos taken in London by Derrick Santini.

Artists to Watch

Dungen (Words by August Brown / Photo by Mike Lum)
Editors (their first American interview) (Words by August Brown / Photos by Andy Willsher)
Innaway (Words by Chris Tinkham / Photo by Jennifer Becker)
Mugison (his first American interview) (Words by Matt Fink)
Zabrinski (their first American interview) (Words by August Brown)

Chris Walla Explains It All

In his regular Under the Radar column, Death Cab for Cutie’s guitarist Chris Walla fittingly discusses his love of Britpop, including bands like Gene, Blur, Elastica, and Supergrass.

Reviews

Over 130 albums, EPs, singles, DVDs, and books reviewed. Some of the bands reviewed in this issue include:
Belle & Sebastian
Frank Black
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
The Bravery
Calla
Can
Clearlake
The Cloud Room
CocoRosie
Coldplay
The Concretes
The Coral
Billy Corgan
Cursive
The Dandy Warhols
The Dead 60s
Death Cab for Cutie
Dinosaur Jr.
DJ Shadow
Dressy Bessy
Dungen
Editors
Einsturzende Neubauten
Feist
Orenda Fink
The Flaming Lips
Ben Folds
Foo Fighters
Four Tet
The Free Design
Gorillaz
Holopaw
Hopewell
Richard Hawley
Innaway
Kinski
Kraftwerk
Lab Partners
Ladytron
Lali Puna
Longwave
Low
Stephen Malkmus
Marjorie Fair
Maximo Park
Bob Mould
The Mountain Goats
Nada Surf
The New Pornographers
Scout Niblet
Nine Black Alps
Stina Nordenstam
Oasis
Pernice Brothers
The Posies
The Real Tuesday Weld
Johnathan Rice
The Rosebuds
Royksopp
Shout Out Louds
Sloan
Smog
Sons and Daughters
Sparks
Stellastarr*
Sufjan Stevens
Super Furry Animals
The Tears
Teenage Fanclub
Mary Timony
Turin Brakes
John Vanderslice
Vatican DC
The Warlocks
The White Stripes
Why?