Grammy Award-nominated artists Tycho and Benjamin Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie, The Postal Service) have released a landmark, anthemic new collaboration Only Love, available now via Mom + Pop Music/Ninja Tune.
The track powerfully and meticulously fuses Tycho’s transcendent production and signature arrangements with Gibbard’s cathartic, deeply humanist lyricism. This is the first major electronic collaboration for Gibbard since his RIAA platinum-certified work in The Postal Service more than a decade ago. Only Love came about after Death Cab for Cutie invited Tycho (Scott Hansen) to remix their 2015 single, The Ghosts of Beverly Drive. Hansen, famously selective about commissioned remixes, fully connected with the song’s lyrical melody and Gibbard’s distinctive vocals.
Hansen had been a long-time fan of Gibbard’s work, finding his vocals to be “a very inspiring element to work with.” Hansen says, “I felt it really meshed well with the kinds of sounds and instrumentation I gravitate towards.”
Only Love started as an instrumental from which Hansen felt “something was missing.” He sent the rough demo to Ben, who recorded some vocals over the top. Hansen says, “the first time I heard the rough vocals the whole song suddenly made sense and the arrangement flowed out of that. It was certainly an honor to be able to work with such an iconic voice.”
Gibbard, in turn, was moved by reading Naomi Klein’s This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate, in particular the fight to protect public lands in southeastern Montana from the mining company Arch Coal. People’s love for (and connection to) places is highly underestimated. “They don’t understand it so they disregard it. And that’s what in the end will save that place,” Gibbard says. “It’s not the hatred for the coal companies, or anger, but love will save this place.”
“When Scott sent me the music for ‘Only Love,’ it seemed perfect for this statement. The only way we preserve the people, places or things we care for is with love, not hatred.” -Benjamin Gibbard
Tycho recently announced the launch of his inaugural ISO50 branded event, set for Friday, 23 July at Brooklyn, NY’s Brooklyn Mirage. The Tycho-curated evening will feature six acts over six hours, headlined by Hansen himself and the East Coast debut of the new TYCHO: ISO50 show, an audio-visual immersive experience with 360-degree projection mapping.
Joining Tycho at the one-of-a-kind, outdoor event will be a number of artists who have all collaborated, remixed, toured with, and/or been staples of Tycho’s groundbreaking sunrise Burning Man DJ sets, including RAC, Com Truise, Roosevelt, Heathered Pearls, and Nitemoves.
