The National have shared a new single featuring Phoebe Bridgers – listen to ‘Your Mind Is Not Your Friend’ below.
READ MORE: On the road with The National: “Sex, death and losing – what else is there?”
The melancholic piano-led song serves as the fourth and final preview of the band’s ninth album ‘First Two Pages Of Frankenstein’, which is due for release on April 28 (pre-order here).
“Don’t you understand?/ Your mind is not your friend again/ It takes you by the hand/ And leaves you nowhere,” frontman Matt Berninger croons as Bridgers delivers a haunting backing vocal in unison.
Per a press release, the single “confronts the entanglements of the habitual mind and the overwhelming nature of scrutiny”, and emerged during a period of writer’s block for Berninger.
‘Your Mind Is Not Your Friend’ is accompanied by a nostalgic official video, which was directed by Bridgers’ brother Jackson. Filmed in Los Angeles, the clip stars Berninger’s brother Tom – tune in above.
Recently, Matt Berninger opened up about how the single’s title and lyrics had been inspired by the advice his wife Carin Besser had given him as he battled depression. She said: “This isn’t you, this isn’t real, this is just your brain right now, your mind is not your friend.”
The singer spoke candidly about his struggles with mental illness and writer’s block, and how he documented them on The National’s upcoming studio album, during an exclusive cover interview for the latest issue of Uncut.
“I’d been writing sad, depressing music for a long time, then when it really hits me, when it all really catches up to me, I didn’t want to write about it any more,” he said. “I just could not articulate the fog at all. I didn’t want to put words to it. It just all felt ugly and gross and all the thoughts in my head were small and bitter and fearful.”
This summer, The National are set to embark on a world tour that takes in dates in the UK, the US and Europe. Visit here for tickets and more information.
For further help and advice on mental health:
‘Am I depressed?‘ – Help and advice on mental health and what to do next
Help Musicians UK – Around the clock mental health support and advice for musicians
Music Support Org – Help and support for musicians struggling with alcoholism, addiction, or mental health issues
YOUNG MINDS – The voice for young people’s health and wellbeing
CALM – The Campaign Against Living Miserably
TONIC – Peer led support on mental health in the music industry
The Samaritans – Confidential support 24 hours a day
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