"I Will Follow You Into the Dark" is the third single from Death Cab for Cutie's album Plans. It is an acoustic ballad performed solo by frontman Ben Gibbard. It was released to radio in June of 2006, and has a music video directed by Jamie Thraves, best known for his video for Radiohead's single "Just." The video for the song was filmed in Romania.
In the video, Gibbard is going through his everyday life in a small home when he notices a hole in the wooden floor. As the song progresses, the hole gets bigger and he eventually falls into it, only to discover that what he thought was a black void is actually solid ground. As he walks off into the distance beyond the hole, then the hole is gone, the song ends.
Another video, directed by Monkmus, appeared on the band's DVD accompanying Plans: Directions: The Plans Video Album but was never aired on television. In this video, a picture-book takes up the center of the video frame, and the pages turn as the song progresses. Within the book, two rabbits meet and fall in love. Time passes, possibly months or years, until one of the rabbits apparently dies. There are other references to death throughout the video, such as a rotten bowl of fruit and an elderly man who appears to die, leaving grandson behind. The video ends with a picture of the two new rabbits together.
The song was nominated for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards.
The song has been covered by Amanda Palmer of The Dresden Dolls and Amy Millan, among others.
