"Beach Life-in-Death" is a song written by American rock musician Will Toledo,[1] that was originally released on Twin Fantasy (2011), his sixth album under his Car Seat Headrest alias.

According to Toledo, the idea of writing a song longer than ten minutes was influenced by the music of progressive rock band Pink Floyd[2], alongside the tracks "The Past is a Grotesque Animal" by Of Montreal and "Looter's Follies" by Destroyer.

[3] Toledo would walk around Williamsburg, Virginia thinking about how the different parts of the song would fit together, which contrasted with his songwriting process for previous Car Seat Headrest projects.

[5] After signing with Matador Records and completing their tenth studio album Teens of Denial (2016), sessions for the re-recording of Twin Fantasy would begin in mid-2016, and finished in mid-2017.

[3] Steve Hyden of Uproxx, while writing a guide to all Car Seat Headrest projects, described the track as the most stunning work Twin Fantasy had to offer.

Overall, they noted that the track, a "long, exploratory song composed of epic narratives and multiple musical movements" would become a staple of Toledo's sound in the future.

[11] Hannah Vettese of Record Collector used "Beach Life-in-Death" as an example of how Toledo's lyrics have become "far clearer in the mix", elaborating by stating his ability to capture "angst, fury, depression, and joy of human life".

He also complemented the guitar work of Ethan Ives, describing them as sounding "strained" and "squealing"[13] "Beach Life-in-Death" has been a staple of the band's setlist, often closing their live performances.