The National and Bon Iver have released the new song “Weird Goodbyes.” The single features string contributions from the London Contemporary Orchestra, orchestrated by the National’s Bryce Dessner. Take a listen below.

In a statement, the National’s singer Matt Berninger said that “Weird Goodbyes” is “about letting go of the past and moving on, then later being overwhelmed by second thoughts.” The band’s Aaron Dessner added of the single’s creation:

“Weird Goodbyes” was one of the first new songs we made. I was misusing drum machines, as usual, and stumbled onto this beat that got stuck in my head—it felt like something only [drummer] Bryan [Devendorf] could naturally play. We built the song around the beat. Matt’s melody and words felt so elegant and moving from the beginning—mourning a loss of innocence and motivation, holding onto memories and feelings that inevitably slip away and the grief we all suffer in weird goodbyes.

The National and Bon Iver issued their most recent studio albums—I Am Easy to Find and i,i, respectively—in 2019. The National are currently on a North American tour that wraps up in late September.

Justin Vernon and Bon Iver will head back out on the road in October. Earlier this year, Vernon teamed up with Ethan Gruska, Rob Moose, and Blake Millsa for a single called “So Unimportant.”

Revisit “On the Scene at Bon Iver’s Oil Pipeline Protest Show” on the Pitch.