The Postal Service was an American rock musical supergroup composed of vocalist Ben Gibbard,
producer Jimmy Tamborello with Jenny Lewis on background vocals/keyboards & samplers
live.
For the band's reunion tour in 2013, Laura Burhenn joined the lineup throughout the tour
to provide additional vocals and instruments, with Jen Wood filling in for a few shows.
History Background
The group formed after Gibbard contributed vocals for a song called "(This Is) The Dream
of Evan and Chan" from Dntel's album Life Is Full of Possibilities.
The song sparked an EP of remixes by other artists, such as Lali Puna, The Flaming Lips,
Safety Scissors, Barbara Morgenstern and Superpitcher, and was so well-received that the two artists
decided that further collaboration was in order.
The band's name was chosen due to the way in which it produced its songs.
Tamborello wrote and performed instrumental tracks and then sent the DATs to Gibbard,
who edited the song as he saw fit and sent them back to Tamborello through the United
States Postal Service.
The third member of the band, Jenny Lewis, lived in the same apartment complex as Tamborello
and would record temporary vocals for several of the album's tracks before eventually becoming
a full-fledged member of the band, sharing vocals and instrumentation in their live shows.
Give Up The band's debut album, Give Up, was released
on February 18, 2003.
Several songs on the album feature guest vocals from Jenny Lewis, the solo artist and lead
singer of Rilo Kiley, as well as vocals from indie rock musician Jen Wood.
Dntel and Chris Walla produced the album.
Walla played the guitar and piano on several tracks.
Though both artists' main bands were still active at the time, The Postal Service supported
the album with a successful concert tour and stated its intention to tour again in the
future.
The album was the Sub Pop label's most successful release since Nirvana's debut album Bleach.
The album's most well-known single was "Such Great Heights", which is featured in advertisements
for UPS and Kaiser Permanente.
"Such Great Heights" was also the first theme song for ABC's Grey's Anatomy in 2005.
The song was covered by Iron and Wine and was featured on the soundtrack for the film
Garden State, as well as a commercial for M&M's.
It was later covered by Amanda Palmer, Ben Folds, The Scene Aesthetic, Brack Cantrell,
Streetlight Manifesto, Confide and Joy Kills Sorrow.
The song "We Will Become Silhouettes" was covered by The Shins and the original version
was featured in the trailer for the movie Funny People.
The song "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight" was featured in the soundtrack of the 2004
film D.E.B.S..
In August 2003, the United States Postal Service sent the band a cease and desist letter, citing
its trademark on the phrase "postal service".
After negotiations, the USPS relented, allowing the band use of the trademark in exchange
for promotional efforts on behalf of the USPS and a performance at its annual National Executive
Conference.
Additionally, at one point the USPS website sold the band's CDs.
In 2007, "Such Great Heights" appeared in the background of the "whiteboard" advertising
campaign for one of the federal establishment's private competitors, the United Parcel Service.
In January 2006, Josh Melnick and Xander Charity, who had produced the "Such Great Heights"
music video, created a commercial for Apple Computer and Intel using similar footage.
While strikingly similar to the music video, the commercial did not contain imagery of
the band or a recording of its music.
On January 19, 2006, Gibbard stated on the band's website, "It has recently come to our
attention that Apple Computer's new television commercial for the Intel chip features a shot-for-shot
recreation of our video for 'Such Great Heights' made by the same filmmakers responsible for
the original.
We did not approve this commercialization and are extremely disappointed with both parties
that this was executed without our consultation or consent."
The band did not take legal action against Apple or the filmmakers.
Second album On June 22, 2007, it was revealed that The
Postal Service had begun work on a new album, though the specifics of the release date were
vague.
Gibbard stated, "We're slowly starting.
We're crawling right now, and whether that crawl turns into a walk remains to be seen.
But we'll know more towards the end of the year.
I've just been touring so much and trying to find time to make it happen and make our
schedules line up."
Tamborello added, "We're talking about wanting to finish an album by sometime next year,
because we have to work with Death Cab's schedule and stuff.
I definitely want to do another one."
On February 29, 2008, Spinner released an article stating that The Postal Service may
not release a new album.
Ben Gibbard stated, "Jimmy and I are still throwing ideas back and forth, but as time
goes on, we find ourselves busy with our own music.
... We have some stuff, but it's been difficult to find the time and the drive to do the record.
I'd love to finish it at some point and maybe even do some performances.
If it's meant to be, it's meant to be."
In May 2008, Gibbard stated that he and Tamborello were unlikely to release another album "before
the end of the decade."
In a December 2008 interview with Rolling Stone, Gibbard laughed off suggestions that
The Postal Service's long overdue follow-up to their 2003 hit Give Up would be an indie
version of Guns N' Roses' Chinese Democracy.
Gibbard said that both he and Tamborello do not see it as a priority in light of their
main projects, Death Cab for Cutie and Dntel.
He said, "The anticipation of the second record has been a far bigger deal for everybody except
the two of us...
I don't know about it being the indie-rock Chinese Democracy, but now that Chinese Democracy
has come out, I guess it just becomes the second Postal Service record that will never
come out.
There never really was a plan to do a second album.
We work from time to time together but we have other things that take up all of our
time."
As of November 2012, Ben Gibbard posted on his Twitter account that there are "no plans"
to produce another Postal Service record.
He did not cite any specific reason for this statement, other than the fact that multiple
fans questioned if there was going to be a second album.
Re-Issue In January 2013 Postal Service updated their
website to read "The Postal Service 2013," reigniting speculation that the band would
play shows, or possibly release a new album.
It was later confirmed that the image on the band's site portended that the band's debut,
Give Up, would receive a ten year anniversary re-issue featuring a 15-song disc of rarities,
including two new songs with Jenny Lewis to be released on April 9, 2013.
In February 2013, Postal Service announced it will officially reunite for an extended
world tour with venues including Red Rocks Amphitheater, the 2013 Coachella Valley Music
and Arts Festival in April 2013, the Primavera Sound Festival 2013 in Barcelona Sasquatch!
Music Festival in Washington in May, and Free Press Summer Fest in Houston in June.
Along with the reunion, the band released their first new track in ten years called,
"A Tattered Line of String" featuring Jenny Lewis.
On March 21, the band released a second new track titled "Turn Around".
The track was released through 107.7 The End.
On March 5, 2013, as a tie-in to the Give Up reissue, comedy website Funny or Die posted
a parody video directed by Tom Scharpling set in 2002 in which the Postal Service's
Jimmy Tamborello holds auditions for his musical collaborator.
Guest stars on the video include, "Weird Al" Yankovic, Moby, Duff McKagan, Tom DeLonge,
Aimee Mann, Jon Wurster, Page Hamilton, Nate Mendel, and Marc Maron.
On August 3, 2013 Ben Gibbard tweeted that the Lollapalooza after show would be their
last, and early in the morning of August 5, 2013 they played their last live song at the
Metro Chicago.
Discography
Give Up References
External links Official site
Sub Pop Records page for Postal Service