"Grapevine Fires" is the fourth single from Death Cab for Cutie

Death Cab for Cutie

Death Cab for Cutie is an American alternative rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band consists of Ben Gibbard , Chris Walla , Nick Harmer and Jason McGerr ....

's sixth studio album, Narrow Stairs

Narrow Stairs

Narrow Stairs is the sixth studio album by indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie. It was released on May 12, 2008, in the United Kingdom and on May 13, 2008, in the United States. The first single of the album was "I Will Possess Your Heart", released on March 18, 2008. The second single was...

. It was released on March 3, 2009. The single peaked at #21 on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks

Modern Rock Tracks

Alternative Songs is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. It lists the 40 most-played songs on modern rock radio stations, most of which are alternative rock songs...

 chart. It is the band's sixth charting single on that chart.

The song was used in the NBC drama "Heroes" in the episode "Ink". The track is also featured on the 2009 compilation album

Compilation album

A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...

, Change Is Now: Renewing America's Promise

Change Is Now: Renewing America's Promise

Change is Now: Renewing America's Promise is a compilation album released on April 28, 2009 through Hidden Beach Recordings in conjunction with the Presidential Inaugural Committee.The album includes previously released tracks from Wilco, Stevie Wonder, Death Cab for Cutie, and Common...

.

The drumbeat of the song is modeled after the "Purdie Shuffle"

Bernard Purdie

Bernard Lee "Pretty" Purdie is an American session drummer, and is considered an influential and innovative exponent of funk...

, although drummer Jason McGerr says it is more of an emulation, as opposed to a replication, of the famous drum pattern.

Music video

The video of the song is animated and created by Walter Robot

Walter Robot

Walter Robot is the fictional director created by artist Bill Barminski and writer Christopher Louie. They direct films, commercials and music videos...

. It features a semi-literal interpretation of the lyrics by showing a wildfire and its effect on the lives of the people in the video. The band members make a cameo appearance loading a van. The visual interpretation of the song in the video leaves out the imagery of the second verse of the song.

The video was accepted into the Los Angeles Film Festival

Los Angeles Film Festival

The Los Angeles Film Festival, presented by the Los Angeles Times is an event held annually in June in downtown Los Angeles, California. The Los Angeles Film Festival began as the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival in 1995. The first LAIFF took place over the course of five days in a single...

 where it won the Audience Choice Award for Best Music Video.

Chart positions

Chart (2008)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks	21