Notes
Several of the songs have literary or cultural themes. "Grapevine Fires" appears to be centered around the wildfires that raged in California during the summer and fall of 2007.
"Bixby Canyon Bridge" is rife with references to Jack Kerouac's writing; Gibbard often notes that Kerouac is a favorite author in interviews, and the song was written during the artist's trip to Big Sur. Gibbard has written lyrics about Kerouac before, including his contribution of lyrics and vocals to a song by Styrofoam titled "Couches in Alleys", and in songs "Lowell, MA" and "Title Track" from Death Cab for Cutie's 2000 album, We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes.
Unusually, the tenth song, "Pity and Fear", ends abruptly. In an interview, the band stated that the tape machine they were using broke toward the end, and they liked the sound it produced so much that they included it in the final version of the song.
The final track on the album, "The Ice Is Getting Thinner", is used in the first season finale of the television series Gossip Girl, as well as in the fourth season of reality series The Hills. The song "No Sunlight" is included in the soundtrack for Choke. "Pity and Fear" was included in the ending of an episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. The first track, "Bixby Canyon Bridge", was used at the end of the Friday Night Lights episode, "How the Other Side Lives".
The cover art was created by designer EE Storey, the art director for Tegan and Sara.
Read more about this topic: Narrow Stairs
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