Matt Berninger – Inland Ocean

The National’s frontman Matt Berninger continues his solo evolution with “Inland Ocean,” the opening track from his forthcoming album “Get Sunk,” which will be released on May 30 via Book/Concord Records. This marks his third single release from the project, following “Bonnet Of Pins” and the Hand Habits collaboration “Breaking Into Acting.”

Built around an echoing, staccato guitar riff and saxophone drenched in reverb, the track ventures into sunnier, new wave-adjacent territory that The National might not typically explore. The contemplative lyrics feature the telling refrain “God loves the inland ocean / Lost cause, I have no emotion,” continuing Berninger’s knack for poetic melancholy.

For this sophomore solo effort, Berninger partnered with Grammy Award-winning producer and engineer Sean O’Brien, who also co-wrote many of the album’s songs.

According to press materials, while “Get Sunk” isn’t strictly autobiographical, it follows a narrator processing their formation and identity. The album reflects Berninger’s realization “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.”

The project was partially inspired by Berninger’s relocation to Connecticut after years in Los Angeles, where he found creative renewal engaging with nature and rearranging “dust-covered items in his barn into strange and surreal works of art.” This period of artistic experimentation seems to have informed the album’s introspective tone, with Berninger noting he “was able to get the blurry picture as close to just right for me.”