Death Cab for Cutie is an American indie pop rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band takes its name from a satirical song of the same name, performed by the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band on their 1967 album Gorilla and in The Beatles experimental movie, Magical Mystery Tour.

Death Cab for Cutie began as a solo project of Ben Gibbard while he was the guitar player for the band Pinwheel. As Death Cab for Cutie, Gibbard released a cassette titled You Can Play These Songs with Chords; the release was surprisingly successful, and Gibbard decided to expand the band into a complete project. He recruited Christopher Walla (who had also worked on the cassette) as an electric guitarist, Nicholas Harmer as bass guitarist, and Nathan Good to play drums.