Matt Berninger has announced details of his second solo album, ‘Get Sunk’. Check out the lead single ‘Bonnet Of Pins’ below.
The new record is set for release on May 30 through Book/Concord, and marks the second solo album from the National frontman, following on from his 2020 debut ‘Serpentine Prison’. Visit here to pre-order it.
The record is set to feature a combination of rich sonic landscapes and poignant lyrics, as well as a close look at the intricate complexities of human experience. It features contributions from Meg Duffy (Hand Habits), Julia Laws (Ronboy), Kyle Resnick (The National, Beirut), Garret Lang, Booker T Jones and more.
Today (March 11), Berninger has teased the upcoming album by sharing the first preview of the Sophomore record. This comes in the form of lead single ‘Bonnet Of Pins’ – a tongue-in-cheek look at some of the harsher aspects of life.
According to a new description, the track gives insight into the artist’s “knack for world-building, pointing to the tiny details that make it all palpable”. Check it out below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adtqj7XxvtQ
As for the record as a whole, the tracklist was born out of “a long period of writer’s block and self-disgust” that Berninger overcame after 2020, and sees him hone in on themes of changing identity and self-worth. “Our hearts are like old wells filled with pennies and worms,” he explained. “I can’t resist going down to the bottom of mine to see what else is there. But sometimes you can get yourself stuck.”
It also grows from the world Berninger laid out on his debut solo album, and continues to explore how he came to be the person he is now.
“Berninger is an expert in what it feels like to lose all bravery, and ‘Get Sunk’ points to an undulating reflection in the water,” reads a new description. “It’s about realising that you are not yourself without a thousand others: parents, friends, siblings, spouses and exes, college roommates, childhood best friends, cousins, kids and even strangers.”
Check out the tracklisting and album artwork below.
The ‘Get Sunk’ tracklist is:
1. ‘Inland Ocean’
2. ‘No Love’
3. ‘Bonnet of Pins’
4. ‘Frozen Oranges’
5. ‘Breaking Into Acting (feat. Hand Habits)’
6. ‘Nowhere Special’
7. ‘Little by Little’
8. ‘Junk’
9. ‘Silver Jeep (feat. Ronboy)’
10. ‘Times of Difficulty’
As well as confirming details of his sophomore solo album, Berninger has also announced a series of live shows taking place later this year.
These kick off with a series of North American shows this spring, commencing in Seattle on May 19. Other shows include stops in Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York and more. From there, the artist picks up the remainder of the tour this summer, making stops in Dublin, Glasgow, Manchester and London in August.
The shows wrap up with a series of European dates, including gigs in Antwerp, Paris, Berlin, Oslo, Copenhagen and more.
Matt Berninger’s 2025 solo tour dates are:
MAY
19 – Seattle, WA – The Showbox
20 – San Francisco, CA – Bimbo’s 365 Club
21 – Los Angeles, CA – Palace Theatre
23 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
24 – Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall
26 – Toronto, ON – Concert Hall
28 – Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer
29 – Washington, DC – Lincoln Theatre
30 – New York, NY – Webster Hall
AUGUST
23 – Dublin, Ireland – Vicar Street
25 – Glasgow, UK – SWG3 Galvanizers
26 – Manchester, UK – Albert Hall
27 – London, UK – Troxy
28-31 – Nr Tolland Royal, Wiltshire, UK – End Of The Road Festival
31 – Utrecht, Netherlands – Tivoli Vredenburg
SEPTEMBER
1 – Antwerp, Belgium – Olt Rivierenhof
2 – Paris, France – Elysee Montmartre
4 – Berlin, Germany – Huxleys
5 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Vega
6 – Oslo, Norway – Rockefeller Music Hall
Tickets go on sale this Friday (March 14) at 10am local time. Visit here to buy UK tickets and here for international tickets.
Speaking about going solo back in 2020, Berninger told NME: “Most of my songs are love songs to myself or that champion me. They’re cheerleading songs for my own soul. I’m writing things that I suspect Carin would like to say to me. You know, ‘I hope my daughter understands me’, ‘My mother will know this is about her’. They’re not just about me; they’re about the people that made me… me.”
Then, in September 2023, NME spoke to Berninger again, this time about his writing process and its interaction with his mental health. “I don’t believe in ghosts,” he said, “but I believe in the power of the belief in ghosts. It’s the same thing with God. I don’t really believe in it, but I believe in its power.”
Speaking about the difficulty of the lockdown period and the absence of touring, Berninger added: “I was coming out of a long period where I’d just dried up and was in a depression. I just couldn’t write and that triggered a panic of never being able to go back and do this thing. It’s the thing I love to do and I’m better at it than anything else. When I couldn’t do that, it was pretty terrifying.”
“I tried to reboot myself physically, mentally and everything. Everything burned down. My brain burned to the ashes and I had to slowly rebuild it up again somehow,” he added. “It was sobering to realise how fragile I was. Looking back, I was sick as hell. It was a whole physical thing triggered by real things and mental things. It was a total emotional and physical paralysis. I’ve learned to just respect it and respect how fragile everyone is.”
Watch that interview in full above.
