Grapevine Fires

Album: Narrow Stairs (2008)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Frontman Ben Gibbard explained this track to VH1 News, which is centered around the 2007 wildfires that raged in California: "I was in LA, after we were there for the Grammys or something like that and I decided to stay a couple more days. I ended up with a couple friends of mine, Jonathan Rice and our friend Autumn de Wilde who's a great photographer, and her daughter. It's a very literal story. We were having some wine and having a picnic on top of this big cascading hill with the ocean off in the distance, and at the time there were a lot of fears about these fires creeping down from the grapevine. This was a very real moment, just seeing her daughter, playing in this cemetery. It struck me as this really powerful image of a child playing in a cemetery, not having any understanding of what this area means. It was a really interesting example of youth having a way with death."
  • The song's animated music video features the Death Cab band members making a cartoon cameo in the background loading a van as wildfires approach. Death Cab bassist Nick Harmer who handles the "visual stuff" for the band, explained to MTV News: "I'm a huge comic book fan, so there was that. Plus, in my head, I couldn't see any kind of live-action video that wouldn't come off as heavy-handed or overwrought. So we knew what we didn't want it to be. Plus, we knew we should do a cameo, which meant we'd get to be animated, so that was a bonus."
  • The animated clip was shown at the 2009 Los Angeles Film Festival where it won Audience Award for Best Music Video.

Comments: 1

  • Heather from Los Angeles, CaThis is a touching song about an event I lived through. The fires in SoCal last summer burned up a lot. A lot of land and a lot of houses. Many songs don't bother dealing with day-to-day reality. But this one surely does; and it's a very poignant reminder of the way it felt.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Matthew Wilder - "Break My Stride"

Matthew Wilder - "Break My Stride"They're Playing My Song

Wilder's hit "Break My Stride" had an unlikely inspiration: a famous record mogul who rejected it.

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: '80s Edition

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: '80s EditionMusic Quiz

You know the scenes - Tom Cruise in his own pants-off dance off, Molly Ringwald celebrating her birthday - but do you remember what song is playing?

Mike Scott of The Waterboys - "Fisherman's Blues"

Mike Scott of The Waterboys - "Fisherman's Blues"They're Playing My Song

Armed with a childhood spent devouring books, Mike Scott's heart was stolen by the punk rock scene of 1977. Not surprisingly, he would go on to become the most literate of rockers.

Danny Clinch: The Art of Rock Photography

Danny Clinch: The Art of Rock PhotographySong Writing

One of rock's top photographers talks about artistry in photography, raising funds for a documentary, and enjoying a County Fair with Tom Waits.

Tom Johnston from The Doobie Brothers

Tom Johnston from The Doobie BrothersSongwriter Interviews

The Doobies guitarist and lead singer, Tom wrote the classics "Listen To The Music," "Long Train Runnin'" and "China Grove."

Joe Ely

Joe ElySongwriter Interviews

The renown Texas songwriter has been at it for 40 years, with tales to tell about The Flatlanders and The Clash - that's Joe's Tex-Mex on "Should I Stay or Should I Go?"