Death Cab For Cutie are Doing It Live

Late last month northwest indie stalwarts Death Cab for Cutie dropped “You are a Tourist“, the first single from their big new spring album, Codes and Keys. Later this afternoon, they’re making history by doing “The First Live, Scripted, One-Take Music Video Shoot. Ever.” After reading and re-reading the promotional materials, the logistics of the whole affair still seem mildly confusing. Nevertheless, seasoned director Tim Nackashi will be at the helm of the project that was ”conceptualized” by frequent DCFC collaborator Aaron Stewart-Ahn. It will be broadcast as it is being filmed; so let’s all gather round the tubes at around 4 pm this afternoon and see if it turns out to be more 30 Rock Live Show or Bill O’Reilly  ”doing it live” breakdown.

Can’t see the stream on your mobile device? Click here.

The band has already faced the pressure of opening a Mariners home season and frontman Ben Gibbard trained so hard for the LA Marathon that he had to give up skinny jeans; so I have a feeling that they’re up to this latest challenge. If you like what you see, the full album goes on sale at the end of May a few days after the band’s headlining spot at the Gorge for this year’s Sasquatch festival.

Update: Well, that was really something, wasn’t it? A bare set brought to life by lots of digital projections, the guys mainly in the dark illuminated by synchronized LED costumes, everything lit up like Xmas, a few cameras providing shots for editing on the fly, and a pack of feather-clad dancers approximating Rockettes and synchronized swimmers. History in the making, and no obvious flubs. The archived version should be appearing on YouTube any minute now.