Home Is A Fire

Boing Boing is thrilled to feature the premier of Death Cab For Cutie's "Home Is A Fire" music video, by artist Shepard Fairey and Death Cab bassist Nicholas Harmer. The song is from Death Cab for Cutie's exquisite new album, Codes And Keys, available May 31, 2011 on Atlantic Records. Below, Shepard and Nick share their inspiration and thoughts on this perfect collaboration. — David Pescovitz

Shepard Fairey: I have been a fan of Death Cab for years so I was excited to hear from bassist Nick Harmer about his idea to collaborate on a video piece for their song Home Is A Fire. I love the democracy of music and I'm always excited to bundle visual art with great music. Nick sent me the lyrics to Home Is A Fire and they evoked the duality of "home" both as a place you inhabit, and also as a place that inhabits or traps you. One's relationship with home might be complicated, but ultimately it can be a two-way dialogue, of which we can at least affect one-way. The city can be an impersonal place, imposing, simultaneously anonymous and claustrophobic. However, there are opportunities for us to affect the city(and life) experience rather than accepting things as passive voyeurs. We all have fears and insecurities about ourselves and our circumstances, but if we have the courage to take risks and participate we can adapt and embrace the flux, rather than fear it. This video is about illustrating these ideas and the multiple dimensions of the city experience by taking the viewer on a journey to encounter the Home Is A Fire lyrics as street art. Street art appeals because it makes the landscape a little less dreary for the viewer, and it is a bureaucracy free creative outlet for the participants. I would say that a street art call to action is "if you don't like your home… reshape it". The power of street art is in its intrigue and authenticity , so it was crucial to actually put all the lyrics and images up on the streets. We wanted the viewer to experience the urban environment in a very real and intimate way that celebrates that one persons wart is another's beauty mark. Some of the art was put up prior to the video shoot in places that seemed appropriate to the lyrical themes, while other pieces were put up during the shoot. We filmed the preparation of materials as well to demonstrate the energy and process involved in becoming pro-active. Some of the street art was cleansed within a day. Street art, like everything, is ephemeral but I hope that in watching this video and listening to the song, people see a little magic and potential in the unappreciated details of the landscape of their lives, no matter how fleeting they may be. Thank you to all the people who helped make this video happen.