Matt Berninger Get Sunk
Matt Berninger's Get Sunk stakes a claim as a vivid, often wistful portrait of midlife restlessness where isolation, recovery and memory swirl through consistently memorable songs. Across professional reviews, critics point to handfuls of tracks that crystallize the record's strengths: “Times Of Difficulty”, “Silver Jeep”, “Bonnet Of Pins”, “Inland Ocean” and “Frozen Oranges” emerge repeatedly as the album's best songs, combining woozy balladry, propulsive moments and lyrical specificity that cut through the album's more uneven passages. The collection earned a 70.58/100 consensus score across 12 reviews, a sign that reviewers generally found much to admire even when the record's ambitions falter.
Critics consistently praise Berninger's wry lyricism and immersive instrumentation: horn lines, organ swells and layered textures transform personal anecdotes into austere, affecting tableaux. Reviews highlight duets and collaborative touches on “Silver Jeep” and “Breaking Into Acting”, and single out the closer “Times Of Difficulty” as anthemic proof of regained momentum. Several writers note themes of domestic nostalgia, recovery from writer's block and middle-age reflection, with songs like “Bonnet Of Pins” and “Inland Ocean” balancing nervy, character-driven vignettes against gentler, folk-tinged passages.
Nuance threads through the consensus: some critics admire the record's looseness and textural experimentation, while others fault a loss of the sharp, specific detail that marked Berninger's work with The National. Still, reviewers agree that the best tracks on Get Sunk make the album worth seeking out—small, precise studies in melancholy and renewal that demonstrate Berninger's solo freedom and occasional return to earlier energy. Below, the full reviews unpack where Get Sunk shines and where it skims its own epiphanies, offering a clear map to the standout tracks and the album's emotional terrain.
Critics' Top Tracks
The standout songs that made critics take notice
Times Of Difficulty
11 mentions
"the impressive closer “Times of Difficulty”, which manages to be both soothing swayer and anthem"— Sputnikmusic
Silver Jeep
10 mentions
"“Silver Jeep” is absolutely pristine and a highlight of the album"— Sputnikmusic
Bonnet Of Pins
10 mentions
"Perhaps the album’s most striking cut is “Bonnet of Pins”, a ***ing bundle of energy"— Sputnikmusic
the impressive closer “Times of Difficulty”, which manages to be both soothing swayer and anthem
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
Inland Ocean
No Love
Bonnet Of Pins
Frozen Oranges
Breaking Into Acting
Nowhere Special
Little By Little
Junk
Silver Jeep
Times Of Difficulty
What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 14 critics who reviewed this album
Critic's Take
In her measured, literary register Celine Teo-Blockey singles out the best songs on Get Sunk with an eye for emotional precision. She finds “Silver Jeep” immediate and heart-grabbing, praising Kyle Resnick’s horns and Ronboy’s voice as a melancholic balm. “Bonnet of Pins” and “Nowhere Special” register as sublime moments where Berninger’s wit and propulsive beats enliven themes of aging and loss. The review argues these best tracks on Get Sunk redeem an otherwise uneven set.
Key Points
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“Silver Jeep” is the best song because it immediately grabs the listener and combines horns and a guest vocal to heighten melancholy.
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The album’s core strengths are its vivid evocations of memory and mortality and occasional sublime moments that mix wit with propulsive musical lifts.
Themes
Critic's Take
Matt Berninger's Get Sunk pins its best moments to vivid character pieces, and the reviewer singles out “Bonnet of Pins” and “Times of Difficulty” as the album's real peaks. The voice is alternately nervy and reflective, praising the propulsive grandeur of opener “Inland Ocean” while admiring the gorgeous drift of “Frozen Oranges”. Ultimately the review presents the best songs on Get Sunk as those that balance familiar sad-sack lyricism with fresh energy - the rockers and the quietly anthemic closer standing tallest. The tone is affectionate but wary, noting Berninger's knack for turning suburban ennui into compelling songs even when comparisons to The National loom large.
Key Points
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“Bonnet of Pins” is best because it returns urgent energy and feels like a restored studio-capable force.
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The album’s core strengths are strong songwriting, melancholy lyricism, and successful blending of rockers, chamber pop, and modest experimentation.
Themes
Critic's Take
Matt Berninger's Get Sunk finds its best songs in the intimate, vividly written moments like “Bonnet of Pins” and “Nowhere Special”, which marry regretful lyricism to uncluttered, graceful arrangements. The reviewer's voice revels in the melodrama of “Breaking Into Acting” and the folk-tinged tenderness of “Little by Little”, insisting these are among the best tracks on Get Sunk because they restore urgency and engagement. Even when the album dips late, songs such as “Times Of Difficulty” and “Junk” redeem the run with cinematic, affecting closures that keep the record from feeling tired.
Key Points
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“Bonnet Of Pins” is the standout for its graceful, radio-ready songwriting and some of Berninger's best recent lyrics.
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The album's core strengths are vivid lyricism, rejuvenated vocal performances, and intimate, cinematic arrangements.
Themes
Critic's Take
Matt Berninger's Get Sunk often sacrifices the sharp, dry humor and specific detail that made his work with The National compelling, yet a few songs stand out. The duets “Breaking Into Acting” and “Silver Jeep” open his lyrics up, while the closer “Times of Difficulty” emerges as the album's clearest triumph, folkier and endearing. Alex Robert Ross writes with wry disappointment—he sees promise in moments of lyric specificity but otherwise faults the record for skimming epiphanies rather than excavating them. For listeners searching for the best songs on Get Sunk, those three tracks are where Berninger's regained voice feels most alive.
Key Points
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The folkier closer "Times of Difficulty" is called the album's best song for its organic charm and memorable mantra.
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Get Sunk's core strength lies in occasional lyric specificity and duets that open Berninger's voice, but overall it sacrifices his trademark detail.
Themes
Critic's Take
Matt Berninger's Get Sunk finds its best moments in songs that feel lived-in and quietly emphatic, notably “Bonnet Of Pins” and “Little By Little”, which show his craft at its most stirring. The reviewer's voice lingers on the mournful sweep of “Silver Jeep” as perhaps the album's most moving track, while the valiant “Times Of Difficulty” and the spoken-word “Nowhere Special” further demonstrate why fans ask about the best songs on Get Sunk. Even when a track missteps, as with “Breaking Into Acting”, the record's consistent imagery and songwriting keep it compelling and among Berninger's best work to date.
Key Points
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“Silver Jeep” is highlighted as possibly the most moving track due to its mournful arrangements and understated vocals.
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The album's core strengths are vivid Midwest imagery, introspective songwriting, and consistent, measured craft.
Themes
Critic's Take
Matt Berninger sounds more liberated on Get Sunk, the record where he finally stretches his legs as a solo artist. The review highlights the best tracks as the choir-driven opener “Inland Ocean”, the freewheeling lead single “Bonnet of Pins”, and the sumptuous duets “Breaking Into Acting” and “Silver Jeep”; these songs show him freer to experiment than with The National. There is still room for classic, reflective Berninger - the wistful “Frozen Oranges” is singled out as quintessential. Overall, the pared-back sessions with producer Sean O’Brien make these standouts feel marvellous rather than scattershot.
Key Points
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The best song(s) are the standouts that showcase Berninger's newfound freedom, especially the freewheeling “Bonnet of Pins” and the choir-driven “Inland Ocean”.
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The album's core strengths are pared-back production, focused songwriting, and successful collaborations that let Berninger experiment.
Themes
Critic's Take
Matt Berninger leans into domestic nostalgia and refined malaise on Get Sunk, and the review’s pick of best tracks lands squarely on “No Love” and “Silver Jeep” as the clearest emotional centers. Dolan’s voice lingers on the lachrymose clarity of “No Love” and the way “Silver Jeep” slides from existential panic to quotidian domestic detail, making them the best songs on Get Sunk. He also singles out gentler moments like “Bonnet of Pins” and “Breaking Into Acting” as lovely, lonely tunes that crystallize the album’s tasteful, tortured alt-rock. Overall, the critic frames these best tracks as small, precise studies in midlife yearning rather than grand gestures, which is exactly why listeners seeking the best tracks on Get Sunk will find them rewarding.
Key Points
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“No Love” is best for its reflective, lachrymose clarity and quoted lyric that anchors the album's emotional core.
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The album's core strengths are tasteful, subdued arrangements and literate, midlife lyrical introspection.
Themes
Critic's Take
In a conversational, self-aware tone the reviewer frames Matt Berninger's Get Sunk as a vividly observed record where songs like “Inland Ocean”, “Junk” and “Times Of Difficulty” act as the clearest maps through his recent life and struggles. The piece emphasises Berninger's visual, painstaking lyric process - writing on baseballs - and how that slow, tactile method makes tracks such as “Inland Ocean” and “Junk” feel more deliberate and alive. There is an undercurrent of hard-won optimism, the idea that the album is about being reborn from depression while still steeped in ghosts, ash and water. The reviewer writes in a chatty, anecdotal voice that highlights personal details and small domestic images, which is exactly what makes the best tracks feel intimate and lived-in.
Key Points
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The best song is best because it was one of the long-gestating 'seeds' that crystallises the album's visual, tactile lyricism.
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The album's core strengths are its vivid, domestic imagery and the deliberate, slowed-down songwriting process that yields intimate, lived-in songs.
Themes
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Critic's Take
Matt Berninger's Get Sunk is at its best when the instrumentation carries the weight, and those moments make the best songs on Get Sunk truly sing. The reviewer's voice lingers longest over “Breaking Into Acting” and “Times Of Difficulty”, praising how the former pairs Berninger's heavy vocals with Meg Duffy's harmonies and how the latter finally lets the album's layered textures cohere. There is a patient, intimate tempo throughout, so the best tracks - chiefly “Breaking Into Acting” and “Times Of Difficulty” - reward attentive listening rather than instant gratification. The album's small, stunning shifts in instrumentation turn strong songs like “Junk”, “Little By Little” and “Inland Ocean” into centerpiece moments that justify repeat plays.
Key Points
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The best song is 'Breaking Into Acting' because its vocal pairing and honest delivery are described as 'beautiful' and standout.
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The album's core strength is its measured, exquisitely layered instrumentation that creates an intimate yet grand soundscape.
Themes
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Critic's Take
In his characteristically observant, plain-spoken way Andrew Gulden finds the best songs on Get Sunk in the small, telling moments: “Inland Ocean” and “Times Of Difficulty” emerge as centerpieces, the former’s slow build and Midwest imagery and the latter’s Booker T organ and group-voice climax giving the album its emotional peaks. Gulden lingers on the nostalgia of “Frozen Oranges” and the rueful fiddle of “No Love”, arguing that these tracks illuminate why the best songs on Get Sunk feel like trips home that alter perspective. The review reads like a lived-in conversation - frank, slightly mournful, and ultimately warmed by small consolations found in these standout moments.
Key Points
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The best song is "Times Of Difficulty" for its Booker T organ, group-voice climax, and emotional payoff.
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The album’s core strengths are its nostalgic lyricism, intimate storytelling, and understated musical builds.
Themes
Critic's Take
Matt Berninger's Get Sunk finds its best moments in intimate, quietly arresting songs such as “Frozen Oranges” and “Silver Jeep”, which the reviewer highlights as standouts for their surreal imagery and sleepy bossa-nova duet. The piece notes a return to a more laid-back, R.E.M.-tinged and country-tinged mood, with “Nowhere Special” supplying familiar propulsive echoes of his day band while slower tracks deliver the album's emotional ballast. The closing “Times Of Difficulty” is singled out for its message of mutual support, cementing why these tracks answer the question of the best songs on Get Sunk.
Key Points
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The best song is "Frozen Oranges" for its beautiful surrealism and evocative imagery.
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The album's core strengths are its subdued, R.E.M.-tinged arrangements and emotionally supportive closing moments.
Themes
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Critic's Take
Matt Berninger returns with Get Sunk, a record that trades the hush of his debut for the kinetic push of early National, and the best songs prove the point. The driving, New Order-indebted “Bonnet Of Pins” is the clearest standout, vivid and surreal yet delivered deadpan until pent-up frustrations burst through. Swoonsome “Frozen Oranges” leans into Boxer-era grandeur, while Ronboy duet “Silver Jeep” sits with his woozy ballads as one of the album's tender high points. Closer “Times Of Difficulty” supplies a neurotic, arena-ready anthem that cements why listeners ask about the best tracks on Get Sunk.
Key Points
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The best song, “Bonnet Of Pins”, is the album's driving standout with vivid surreal lyrics and pent-up emotional release.
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Get Sunk's core strengths are its return to early-National energy, sharp deadpan lyricism, and affecting, woozy ballad moments.