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I Built You A Tower sees the indie rock giants returning to the earliest versions of themselves after nearly three decades as a band. They recently announced their move to independent label ANTI- (MJ Lenderman, Waxahatchee, Wilco, Tom Waits) after 20 years on Atlantic Records, and now present the first preview of their next chapter with their new song, "Riptides".
Speaking about the single, vocalist and guitarist Ben Gibbard says: "'Riptides' is about the challenge of dealing with overwhelming grief as the world around us experiences tragedy and loss on an unfathomable scale. And how when these two elements intertwine themselves in our psyches, it feels utterly paralyzing."
I Built You A Tower emerged from a period of both nostalgia for the band and upheaval for Gibbard, who was touring in support of the 20th anniversaries of Transatlanticism and Plans, and fronting The Postal Service, while also grappling with the collapse of his marriage. “There’s this need to find a place in ourselves to put loss and grief,” he explains. “A place that can hold it so we can move on with our lives. But there are these moments where the trauma breaks out of that shell we created for it.”
Reflecting on the anniversary tours, guitarist and keyboardist Dave Depper says: “The anniversary tours exorcised any nostalgia in our systems. We felt part of this powerful force greater than all of us and went into the studio with a sense of, how can we capture that feeling and put it into something new?”
“The whole experience of this record got us back to the earliest versions of this band: If the musicians in the room like what we’re working on, that’s enough. We reconnected with the confidence that comes with that,” bassist Nick Harmer adds.
I Built You A Tower artwork
I Built You A Tower tracklist
"Full of Stars"
"Punching The Flowers"
"Pep Talk"
"I Built You A Tower (a)"
"Envy The Birds"
"Stone Over Water"
"How Heavenly a State"
"Trap Door"
"Riptides"
"The Flavor of Metal"
"I Built You A Tower (b)"
English (US) · 