BEN GIBBARD – FORMER LIVES

Famous for his whimsical pipes as frontman of Seattle’s Death Cab for Cutie (as well as half of  The Postal Service), Ben Gibbard has released his first solo album, Former Lives. Keeping to the acoustic sound mastered with Death Cab, Former Lives a study in lyrical and acoustic melody, a well-balanced mix of sadness (Oh Woe), pretty summer love ballads (Lilly), and a flare of mariachi (Something’s Rattling Cowpoke). Recently noteworthy for his rather public break up with Zooey Deschanel, it is hard not to speculate on some of Gibbard’s seemingly heartbroken lyrics. Complete with a beautifully bitter duet with Aimee Mann,  Former Lives is a soft album, not daring to push the boundaries from Death Cab’s floating indie world.

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