It feels like Matt Berninger and Phoebe Bridgers should have made something together by now, doesn’t it? Their styles are seemingly compatible, and they’ve shared the stage before. Well, now it has happened: The pair teamed up on “Walking On A String,” a new slow-burner that they were briefly seen performing during the Between Two Ferns movie. Now, they have shared the full version of the song.
A press release notes that Between Two Ferns: The Movie producer/writer/director Scott Aukerman told Berninger could make whatever kind of song he wanted as long as it “would sound right at home being performed in a bar scene set in the heartland of America.” The result was a duet between Berninger and Bridgers, and two versions were recorded, “presented in both soaring, lush pop glory and as hushed, chilled-out Americana.” The song was co-written with Berninger’s wife and collaborator Carin Besser, as well as musician Mike Brewer, and it was recorded with Bridgers and The Walkmen’s Walker Martin and Matt Barick.
Berninger’s appearance in the movie isn’t exactly unexpected, as he and Aukerman have a pre-existing working relationship: Berninger has guested on multiple episodes of Aukerman’s Comedy Bang! Bang! podcast, as well as on his TV show of the same name.
Watch the “Walking On A String” video above.
