Aaron Dessner: Last News

The race for next week's Official Albums Chart Number 1 hasn't even started yet, and already the battle lines are being drawn! 

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Ed Sheeran has announced details for the “- Tour” (pronounced “Subtract Tour”), a special run of dates set to take place in theaters and auditoriums in 14 cities across North America. The shows, mostly with singer-songwriter Ben Kweller in support, will take place in between dates on his massive stadium tour — titled  “+ – = ÷ x Tour” (pronounced “Mathematics Tour”) — which was announced last fall. Sheeran is using Ticketmaster’s Verified Fan technology for the theater dates. Registration opens on Friday, April 28 at 10 a.m. ET and closes on Sunday, April 30 at 11:59 p.m. ET. The Verified Fan onsale is set to begin on Tuesday, May 2 at 10 a.m. local venue time.

The perfect partnership. Taylor Swift teamed up with The National on their latest album — and fans are already dissecting the heartbreaking duet following her split from Joe Alwyn.

The National have shared a lyric video for their new song with Taylor Swift, ‘The Alcott’.READ MORE: The National on pulling back from the brink: “It’s felt fragile before, but this time was different”The single is taken from their newly-debuted album, ‘First Two Pages Of Frankenstein’, which was released today (April 28), and sees the indie five-piece team up with pop icon Taylor Swift.Now, the band have shared an official lyric video for the emotional track, which also features in-studio footage of the band and Swift. Check it out below.Ahead of the release of their ninth studio album, The National spoke to NME about the inspiration behind the LP, and their long-running relationship with the ‘Anti-Hero’ singer — which first formed over a decade ago.According to the members, Aaron Dessner sent Swift the song shortly after it was written, and she responded within half an hour, making it into the track it is today.

There’s new Taylor Swift music out now!

Taylor Swift has addressed concerns about a potential on-stage injury during the Houston show of her ongoing Eras Tour, after she was spotted bleeding from her hand.The cut seemingly took place in the “era” costume change between 2020’s ‘evermore’ (which closes on ‘tolerate it’) and 2017’s ‘reputation’ (which opens on ‘…Ready For It?’), according to The Independent.The injury was then given a band-aid during the next costume change of the show, where Swift changes into a different dress to perform ‘Enchanted’ from 2010’s ‘Speak Now’.Taking to Twitter, Swift has assured fans that she was “totally fine” and the circumstances that lead to her hand being cut during the show were completely accidental.“For those asking how I cut my hand, I’m totally fine and it was my fault completely – tripped on my dress hem and fell in the dark backstage while running to a quick change,” she explained. “[I] braced my fall with my palm.

The National‘s Aaron Dessner has praised Taylor Swift‘s ‘Eras Tour’, calling it “the greatest show I’ve ever seen”.Dessner co-wrote and co-produced Swift’s surprise 2020 albums ‘Folklore’ and ‘Evermore’ alongside Jack Antonoff. He went on to work with the singer on the 2021 re-recorded versions of ‘Fearless’ and ‘Red’.Earlier this month, Dessner joined Swift onstage in Tampa, Florida to perform collaborative renditions of ‘The Great War’ (a track he produced for the ‘3am Edition’ of ‘Midnights’) and ‘Mad Woman’ from ‘Folklore’.During a new interview with NME, Dessner opened up about reuniting with Swift on The National’s ninth studio album ‘First Two Pages Of Frankenstein’, which is released this Friday (April 28).The pop star will feature on ‘The Alcott’, a song NME‘s Thomas Smith described as a “subtle duet” and “a back-and-forth conversation between frontman [Matt] Berninger and [Swift]”.After praising the singer’s work ethic and creative process, Dessner spoke about her current ‘Eras Tour’ in North America.“It’s just kind of… the greatest show I’ve ever seen,” the musician told NME.

Taylor Swift’s songs were originally intended to be released by The National.The news was revealed by The National’s own Aaron Dessner and Matt Berninger in a new interview yesterday (April 20). According to the members, the Taylor Swift songs ‘Willow’ and ‘Cardigan’ were handed over to the pop star after they struggled to make them come together.The first track, ‘Willow’, was released on Swift’s ninth studio album, ‘Evermore’, whereas the second, ‘Cardigan’ was released on 2020 LP, ‘Folklore’.“I’d taken a swing at [‘Cardigan’] and ‘Willow’ and a couple of others, and I wasn’t having a lot of luck, so Aaron sent them to Taylor,” Berninger recalled to The Telegraph.He also explained that the opposite has happened in the past, where the band have released tracks that were initially intended for Swift.

Taylor Swift welcomed special guest Aaron Dessner to the ‘Eras’ tour in Florida last night (April 14) – watch them give a live debut to ‘The Great War’ below.Dessner, who produced Swift’s lockdown albums ‘Folklore’ and ‘Evermore’, joined Swift for a song in the ‘surprise’ section of the set, where Swift plays a different track each night, often giving songs live debuts or dusting off rarities.On Thursday night in Tampa, Dessner joined her to play ‘The Great War’, a track he produced from the ‘3am Edition’ of Swift’s 2022 album ‘Midnights’.For the second surprise song, Swift gave another live debut to a track from ‘Midnights’, ‘You’re On Your Own, Kid’.See footage of both performances below.Taylor Swift com Aaron Dessner cantando "The Great War", bônus track do "Midnights"

The National have shared a new single featuring Phoebe Bridgers – listen to ‘Your Mind Is Not Your Friend’ below.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.

Ed Sheeran has debuted at Number 1 on the Official Trending Chart with his brand new single, Eyes Closed.

Aaron Dessner has taken to social media to pay tribute to Sharon Van Etten’s iconic album, ‘Tramp’, which he claims is the first record he ever produced. An anniversary edition of the album and a previously unreleased song have also been launched.The producer took to Facebook yesterday to celebrate 11-years since the release of Sharon Van Etten’s ‘Tramp’ album.Alongside sharing two images, Dessner also wrote a moving caption, explaining how the album impacted his career and stating that it still “remains so special” to him.“Tramp was the first record I produced,” he said.

Ed Sheeran has released his latest single ‘Eyes Closed’ along with its official music video, which serves as a metaphor for the themes of loss and grief contained in the song’s lyrics.Directed by Mia Barnes, the video shows Sheeran being followed by a blue monster, symbolising grief, which grows bigger and bigger as the song progresses.Originally written several years ago as a break up song, the track took on new meaning following the death of two of Sheeran’s friends – SBTV founder Jamal Edwards in February last year, and cricketer Shane Warne a month later.“This song is about losing someone, feeling like every time you go out and you expect to just bump into them, and everything just reminds you of them and the things you did together”, says Sheeran. “You sorta have to take yourself out of reality sometimes to numb the pain of loss, but certain things just bring you right back into it”.On the video, he adds: “When I was thinking of concepts for the ‘Eyes Closed’ music video, I wanted to make a video inspired by movies like [1950 film] ‘Harvey’, where the main character has an imaginary friend who’s a giant rabbit that no one can see”.“There’s also a book I read my daughters where sadness is encapsulated by an imaginary creature”, he continues.

Ed Sheeran has a very nice problem for his upcoming album, - (Subtract)...he thinks the critics might actually like this one.

Ed Sheeran has shared a preview of an upcoming new track, ‘Eyes Closed’ – check out the posts below.The song will appear on the singer-songwriter’s fifth studio album ‘-‘ (‘Subtract’), which is due for release on May 5 via Asylum/Atlantic (pre-order/pre-save here).Taking to TikTok this week, Sheeran posted a series of videos of himself performing an as-yet-unheard piece of music. The first upload saw the star play two repeated guitar parts in a split screen format.“Wanna hear the lyrics to this as well?” he wrote as the caption along with the hashtag #NewMusic.

Naman Ramachandran British musician Ed Sheeran has previewed his new single “Eyes Closed” exclusively on TikTok. Live now, the single is from Sheeran’s final album in the mathematical album era, “Subtract.” The six-day TikTok preview features Sheeran performing an acoustic performance of “Eyes Closed.” The single will drop March 24. The album, which will release on May 5, was produced and written with Aaron Dessner of the National and follows his latest release “F64,” which dropped Jan. 19 and memorialized his friend and SBTV founder Jamal Edwards, who died last year at 31. “Subtract” was written against a backdrop of grief and hope. “As an artist I didn’t feel like I could credibly put a body of work into the world that didn’t accurately represent where I am and how I need to express myself at this point in my life. This album is purely that. It’s opening the trapdoor into my soul. For the first time I’m not trying to craft an album people will like, I’m merely putting something out that’s honest and true to where I am in my adult life,” Sheeran said in a message about the album.

The National took to The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to perform their new single ‘Tropic Morning News’ late last night (March 3) – check out the footage below.Earlier this year, The National confirmed details of their ninth studio album ‘First Two Pages Of Frankenstein’.Set for release April 28, the album will feature collaborations with Taylor Swift, Phoebe Bridgers and Sufjan Stevens.Alongside the album announce, the band also shared lead single ‘Tropic Morning News’ which they performed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last night. Check it out below:Co-written with frontman Matt Berninger’s wife Carin Besser, the track takes its title from a phrase Besser invented to describe the regrettably routine practice of doomscrolling.“The idea of referring to the darkness of the news in such a light way unlocked something in me,” said Berninger.

Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift have done one another a bunch of favours over the years.

Aaron Dessner has opened up about his experience of working with Ed Sheeran on the latter’s upcoming fifth album, ‘-‘ (‘Subtract’).Sheeran announced the 14-track record earlier this week, saying that it reflects his “deepest darkest thoughts” against a backdrop of personal turmoil.“It’s opening the trapdoor into my soul,” the singer-songwriter explained. “For the first time I’m not trying to craft an album people will like, I’m merely putting something out that’s honest and true to where I am in my adult life.”The National’s Dessner teamed up with Sheeran on writing and production for the LP.

NME have announced the full line-up for the C23 Live showcase at SXSW Festival.The event will take place at Inn Cahoots in Austin, Texas on March 16 to celebrate the release of C23 and feature artists from the mixtape. The full ‘Bose x NME: C23’ mixtape will be released the day prior (March 15).The mixtape features exclusive tracks by 15 of the world’s most exciting and innovative emerging artists, creating an unmissable collection that will offer a definitive audio showcase of the future of music.

Ed Sheeran announced today that his fifth studio album, pronounced Subtract but styled as “-”, will be released on May 5.