as a film musical, also called Cyrano, again starring Dinklage. For the film, Aaron and Bryce Dessner composed an instrumental score separate from the film's songs. The band also wrote two new songs for the film: "Every Letter", which is sung in the film by Haley Bennett, and "Somebody Desperate", which is performed by The National themselves over the end credits. 2022–present: First Two Pages of Frankenstein The band returned to touring and live performance in May 2022, playing their first show in two-and-a-half years at Baluarte in Pamplona, Spain on May 28, 2022. At the show, the band performed three new songs: "Grease in Your Hair (Birdie)", "Tropic Morning News (Haversham)" and "Weird Goodbyes" – then known as "Bathwater (Mount Auburn)". A fourth new song, "Ice Machines", was premiered in Paris; a fifth, "Space Invader (Threaded Gold)", was performed during the band's set at the Newport Folk Festival in July. In August 2022, Bryce Dessner said that the band was "discovering things" about their new material "in real-time" by playing it every night. On August 22, 2022, The National released "Weird Goodbyes" as their first single in three years. The studio version of the song features Bon Iver, as well as strings performed by the London Contemporary Orchestra. In January 2023, the band started to share teases of a forthcoming announcement – including a password-protected passage from Frankenstein shared on their website, edited to include references to Swift, Phoebe Bridgers, and Sufjan Stevens. A week later, the band officially announced their ninth studio album, First Two Pages of Frankenstein, which is set for release on April 28. The news came with the release of its first single, "Tropic Morning News". Bridgers, Swift and Stevens were also confirmed to featured on the album, as were the previously-performed songs "Grease in Your Hair" and "Ice Machines". Origin of the band name Regarding the band name, the National, Matt Berninger explained this way in a 2007 interview: Musical style Aaron and Bryce Dessner write and develop the music which Matt Berninger then responds to, building lyrics on the music Aaron and Bryce have written. Matt has said that the melody and the rhythm come first and then words and imagery will start to stick to a melody, stating, "I never sit and fill a journal with lyrics." Kitty Empire in The Guardian characterised the band as exploring "literate rock that presents at