Two years after releasing their most recent album, End of Suffering, Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes are back with the new single “My Town”. The song features guest vocals from Joe Talbot of fellow UK punk act IDLES.
The album cycle for End of Suffering didn’t quite go as planned for Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes. Carter was involved in a serious car accident in the fall of 2019, forcing the band to postpone their North American tour. And then, like every other music act, they were forced off the road in 2020 due to the pandemic, but did perform a “By Request” livestream show in November.
“‘My Town’ is a bruising metaphor for ‘our collective mental health falling apart,’” Carter said of the new song in a press release. “It’s easy to dissociate when it’s someone else’s problem but we are each responsible for keeping the streets clean, looking out for our fellow neighbors and acting with kindness and respect as we walk through life. We can look into this town and see the seedy underbelly, the dirt, the disdain, the undercurrent of hate and despair.”
He continued, “And then we are reminded that ‘My Town’ looks just like yours, and no one gives a f**k at all and if we don’t start looking after ourselves soon then we are all going to be in big trouble.”
As for his good friend Talbot’s guest spot on the track, Carter said he was moved to tears when he first saw IDLES perform in concert and that “they had a tremendous effect on me.” IDLES just announced a fall U.S. tour, which kicks off October 7th in St. Paul, Minnesota.
The new song was produced by guitarist Dean Richardson, who along with Carter is the only other permanent member of Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes. An accompanying music video depicts Carter and Richardson taking on the roles that Carter mentioned in his aforementioned description of the song. Talbot also appears in the clip, singing alongside Carter.
Check out the video for “My Town” below, followed by our 2019 conversation with Frank Carter and Dean Richardson at a cat cafe in New York City.
