Listen to The National's new single "The System Only Dreams In Total Darkness"

The record is the group's seventh in total and their first since 2013's exceptional Trouble Will Find Me. It's produced by Aaron Dessner with co-production by brother Bryce Dessner and Matt Berninger.

Casey Reas directs the visuals for dramatic lead single "The System Only Dreams In Total Darkness".

The National have been away a fair while, with all the members pursuing other projects - Matt Berninger's EL VY, Bryce Dessner's orchestral work, Invisible Bridge, plus Scott and Bryan Devendorf's LNZNDRF expedition to name just a few. The National as a unit have also dropped a few morsels into the ether, such as the mammoth A Lot Of Sorrow and Sharon Van Etten collab "Sunshine On My Back"; they also contributed to last year's Grateful Dead tribute and this year's titanic Bob's Burgers release

Back in 2014 the band's Scott Devendorf told us a bit about their plans for their seventh LP: "There's been chatter about working like we did on [third album] Alligator... [but] we have no desire to repeat and do anything again. It's for our own interest partly, and we also want to develop as musicians, people and a band."

The band's Bryce Dessner is currently gearing up to release collaborative LP Planetarium with Sufjan Stevens, James McAlister, and Nico Muhly. We've got five pairs of tickets to give away for an exclusive listening party in London next week - find out more.

The National have also announced a mammoth world tour, with shows across Europe, the UK, and North America scheduled for this autumn/winter - including four nights at London's Hammersmith Apollo. Get the full details.

Tracklist:

1. Nobody Else Will Be There
2. Day I Die
3. Walk It Back
4. The System Only Dreams In Total Darkness
5. Born to Beg
6. Turtleneck
7. Empire Line
8. I’ll Still Destroy You
9. Guilty Party
10. Carin At The Liquor Store
11. Dark Side of the Gym
12. Sleep Well Beast