Ben Gibbard, David Bazan, Johnathan Rice

Seems like you can't front a popular indie band these days without being expected to do the acoustic solo-tour thing: Mark Kozelek, Jeff Tweedy, James Mercer, Jim James—they've all stripped down and indulged their fans' desire for naked emotions and oddball covers. Tonight, Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard headlines...

By Mikael Wood

May 10, 2007

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Seems like you can't front a popular indie band these days without being expected to do the acoustic solo-tour thing: Mark Kozelek, Jeff Tweedy, James Mercer, Jim James—they've all stripped down and indulged their fans' desire for naked emotions and oddball covers. Tonight, Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard headlines a show that also includes Pedro the Lion mastermind David Bazan and Scottish singer-songwriter Johnathan Rice, who skipped the being-in-a-band phase and proceeded directly to the solo career. Gibbard's usually pretty entertaining in this context; he does a great "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun." Expect Bazan to air his frustrations with both the indie-rock and Christian-rock scenes—also a good time, if you're in the mood.

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