Single Review: The 1975 – Frail State of Mind

After the massive departure of last single ‘People’ - with its heavy riff and Marilyn Manson inspired video - The 1975 have taken a safer option with new single ‘Frail State of Mind’.

Although sonically polar opposites, the two tracks are loosely linked. When asked earlier this year if forthcoming album ‘Notes On A Conditional Form’ would be an ‘emo’ record, lead singer Matty Healy replied ‘kind of yeah’.

Thematically, the two singles aren’t a million miles apart. Both touch on social anxiety, with Healy in ‘People’ singing that ‘I don’t like going outside’ and the new track opening with ‘Go outside? Seems unlikely’.

If ‘People’ was an emo record in the 00s sense of screaming pop-punk, the new single is much more the Drake-inspired emo of the 2010s.

The Manchester band have returned to their more conventional aesthetic with this new track. Matty Healy’s vulnerable tone and the lo-fi nocturnal production make this pretty much a guaranteed open net with their fan base.

While this may put many fans at ease who were worried about the stylistic left-turn of ‘People’, the pay-off is that ‘Frail State of Mind’ isn’t as experimental and therefore not quite as exciting.

If the new album is a balancing act between the desire to please and the need to experiment, it’ll be a difficult task. However both singles show promise for the new record, which is set to be released on 21st February 2020.