Ben Gibbard Covers Minor Threat's "Filler"

The song appears on the artist's forthcoming "Proxima B" 7-inch

BY Allie GregoryPublished May 28, 2020

After several weeks of shows, Death Cab for Cutie frontman Ben Gibbard is wrapping up his popular quarantine livestream series later today, and with it, he has shared plans to release a 7-inch worth of new material. In addition to an original song by Gibbard, the artist has also recorded a cover of Minor Threat's 1981 song "Filler."

The critical punk track first appeared on the band's First Two Seven Inches — and now Gibbard's rendition is hitting the market on wax and cassette as a B-side alongside an additional isolation-recorded single, "Proxima B."

As for the "Proxima B" A-side, Gibbard explained:

This one I wrote a while ago and I was going to have it out as a single for my solo tour this spring. It's about a planet that was discovered deep, deep in the cosmos, called Proxima B. The three things you need to know about Proxima B to understand the song are: One, there's a planet called Proxima B that they think has water on it. It's somewhat Earth-like. Secondly, it orbits the star called Centauri. And three, there's been a lot of talk of "Ooh, maybe we can get there at some point." So I wrote this song in response to that.

"Proxima B" b/w "Filler" goes on sale at Death Cab for Cutie's webstore tomorrow (May 29).

Gibbard's final isolation stream airs live tonight at 7 p.m. ET, with donations being collected for Seattle non-profit Northwest Film Forum. He has been hosting daily, and eventually weekly, streams in support of various charities since early March. Previous performances saw the artist's covers of "Fake Plastic Trees," "Ceremony" and "Don't Cry No Tears."

Listen to Gibbard's "Filler" cover, as well as his new single "Proxima B" below.



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