Dave Depper (of Death Cab for Cutie) Announces Debut Solo Album | Listen To “Do You Want Love?”

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Everyone knows Dave Depper.

The perennial side man, Depper began his music career with a white lie. On a whim he decided to buy a Farfisa organ off of Craigslist, an organ that just happened to belong to the founder of Hush Records and member of Blanket Music, Chad Crouch. Crouch asked if Depper wanted to play bass, and despite not playing bass or owning one, he said yes. From there he went on to become the connection point between a staggering number of Northwest bands, playing with Menomena, Fruit Bats, Mirah, Corin Tucker, and Laura Gibson. Tapped to join Ray LaMontagne’s touring band in 2014 and then snatched up to become a full-time member of Death Cab for Cutie, Depper solidified his role as the go-to guy, the man next to everyone on late night.

One night he and his friends decided to play a game where they each had to write 20 songs in 12 hours, and come back together at the end of it to listen to everyone’s efforts together. From that session came a slew of songs. When Depper presented them, though, almost everyone picked up on the synth-pop beat of “Never Worked So Hard,” a nascent but catchy tune half-finished and unlike any of the music Depper had played before. Emotional Freedom Technique began there.

Straddling the line between pop and despair, Emotional Freedom Technique is a letter to the broken heart that won’t mend but still beats. It is a portrait of what happens when someone is flung across the world on tour – grateful to be there, grateful for the success and the adventures, but ultimately lonely. The most straightforward pop song, “Your Voice on the Radio”, features friend and former bandmate Laura Gibson adding vocals about unrealized and unsatisfied love over bubbling bass and sparkling, multiplying shakers and synths that build to a deceptively joyous chorus. Songs like “Do You Want Love”, which premiered this morning on Stereogum, and “Communication” lean forward on cutting deep, propulsive grooves. Grappling with loneliness, the longing for human connection and the fear thereof, Depper strings ornate synth melodies together into simple hooks that speak to the most relatable reasons we listen to pop music – to remember we aren’t alone, and to still have a good time with it.

Emotional Freedom Technique is out June 9th on Tender Loving Empire. Dave will play two special album release shows: Wed. June 22 at Barboza in Seattle and Thu. June 22nd at Mississippi Studios in Portland.

Listen to “Do You Want Love?” — 
https://soundcloud.com/tenderlovingempire/dave-depper-do-you-want-love

Emotional Freedom Technique tracklisting:
01. Do You Want Love?
02. Communication
03. Lonely With You
04. Your Voice On The Radio (feat. Laura Gibson)
05. Never Worked So Hard
06. Anytime, Anywhere
07. EZ-101
08. Summer Days
09. Hindsight / Emotional Freedom Technique

Dave Depper Tour Dates:
Wed. June 21 — Seattle, WA @ Barboza
Thu. June 22 — Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios

Pre-order Emotional Freedom Technique — http://bit.ly/2mD1S4H