

About This Song
The indie folk group The Low Anthem released "Boeing 737-800" in March 2011 as the third track on their album Smart Flesh. The band recorded the entire project inside a vacant pasta sauce factory in Central Falls, Rhode Island. This industrial setting provided specific acoustic textures that shaped the raw, stomping sound of the percussion and instrumentation found throughout the record.
Lyrical content depicts the September 11 attacks from the perspective of an individual trapped in the World Trade Center. The opening lines place the narrator in a bar on the 84th floor at the moment the second tower was struck. Critics have noted how upbeat banjo lines and heavy drumming contrast with the devastating subject matter to create a sense of urgency.
An official music video directed by End of the Road Pictures was filmed at the same factory used for the album sessions. While the song holds significant cultural weight as a response to national trauma, it did not appear on major commercial singles charts or receive certification awards from industry bodies.
Music Videos
Credits
Songwriters
Owen Pallett, Jeff Prystowsky, Ben Knox Miller, Andrew Bertram
Producers
The Low Anthem, Owen Pallett
Keywords
Sources
Song Info
- Artist
- The Low Anthem
- Album
- Smart Flesh
- Released
- March 29, 2011
- Duration
- 160
- Label
- Nonesuch Records
- Track #
- 3
- Recording location
- Vacant pasta sauce factory, Central Falls, Rhode Island
- Director of music video
- End of the Road Pictures
- Opening lyric reference
- Bar on the 84th floor during 9/11 attacks
- Label description
- Known for eclectic roster including classical and jazz artists
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