If only The National referenced a particular beer while holding a particular cat. I could really get down to that. That edit to the lyric would make the song super special to me as I can relate to drinking beer with my cat. Third Eye Beer, please. No Rhinegeist, unless you want me to make a bitter beer face all night long.
Today, The National has unveiled “New Order T-Shirt,” the second pre-release track from its ninth studio album, First Two Pages of Frankenstein, due April 28, 2023 on 4AD. Accentuating the album’s layered meditations on the rupturing of connection, “New Order T-Shirt” is a warmly hypnotic track that shifts between singer Matt Berninger’s brightly detailed memories of someone he misses and heavy-hearted resolution (“How we wove through the cones walking home / To the place on Atlantic you shared with your hilarious sister / Kicking off your black flats, demolished and laughing / I keep what I can of you”). “To me the line ‘I keep what I can of you’ means something about everyone I’ve ever known or loved,” Aaron Dessner says. “There’s a simplicity to ‘New Order T-Shirt’ that reminds me of our earlier records, but with the full maturity and experience we have now. It feels like a really important song for the future of our band.”
The band have also partnered with New Order on a limited ‘New Order T-Shirt’ available at
. “Together with New Order, we will be donating a portion of the proceeds of this item to a charity of their choice.”
The 11-song First Two Pages of Frankenstein was produced by The National at Long Pond Studios in upstate New York and features guest appearances by Taylor Swift, Phoebe Bridgers and Sufjan Stevens. Pre-order for the album is available now HERE and at americanmary.com.
After two back-to-back albums and several busy years of touring, First Two Pages of Frankenstein channels the group’s revitalized chemistry into a body of work that beautifully balances elegant musicality with The National’s more idiosyncratic impulses. Tracks such as “Grease in Your Hair” and “Ice Machines” were road-tested in 2022 before they were recorded, allowing the band to hone the material in real time. “To me the power of this record has to do with the intentionality and structure of the music meeting with a lot of accidental magic,” Aaron Dessner adds.
The National will begin a 2023 world tour with a May 18-21 stand in Chicago. The itinerary also includes the band’s first show at New York’s Madison Square Garden on August 18 with very special guest Patti Smith and her band. Other shows feature opening sets from Soccer Mommy, The Beths and Bartees Strange. Tickets are on sale now; more information can be found at AmericanMary.com.
Formed in New York in 1999, The National has scored five top 10 albums on The Billboard 200, with 2017’s Sleep Well Beast earning the Grammy for Best Alternative Album.
First Two Pages of Frankenstein track list:
- Once Upon A Poolside (feat. Sufjan Stevens)
- Eucalyptus
- New Order T-Shirt
- This Isn’t Helping (feat. Phoebe Bridgers)
- Tropic Morning News
- Alien
- The Alcott (feat. Taylor Swift)
- Grease In Your Hair
- Ice Machines
- Your Mind Is Not Your Friend (feat. Phoebe Bridgers)
- Send For Me
