Duff McKagan is honouring Mental Health Awareness Month with today’s premiere of This Is The Song, a brand new, three-track EP available at all DSPs and streaming services. Produced by longtime collaborator Martin Feveyear (Mark Lanegan, Brandi Carlile), the EP’s title track is joined by an official companion video, which can be viewed below.

“This Is The Song was written in the middle of a panic attack,” Duff McKagan says in a statement about the EP. “I couldn’t breathe and couldn’t see straight, and lately, I have thankfully found my acoustic guitar as a refuge. If I just hold on to that guitar, play chords, and hum melodies, I can start to climb my way out of that hole. For those of you who have never experienced something like this, count yourselves blessed. To those of you who recognize what I am talking about: YOU ARE NOT ALONE!”

Read Duff's full statement here.

McKagan’s first new solo music in close to four years, This Is The Song follows his critically acclaimed sophomore solo album, 2019’s Tenderness.

In 2019, Duff McKagan moved into his own recording studio, allowing him a long-hoped-for opportunity to “finally explore songs that I may have written the night before or some of those old riffs from years ago. This is a big deal for me.” Along with This Is The Song, the new EP includes the soulful "It Can't Come Too Soon" (featuring guest vocals from Seattle, WA-based singer, songwriter, music educator, and community organizer Shaina Sheperd) and "Pass Me By", the latter inspired by distinctly modern confrontation with a gun-toting horsewoman while on a motorcycle trip through the Cascade Mountains.

Tracklisting:

"This Is The Song"
"Pass You By"
"It Can't Come Too Soon"

"This Is The Song" video:

Since 1949, May has been observed as Mental Health Awareness Month, a time when advocates and activists across the country draw attention to the mental health issues that affect as many as one in four Americans. Today, more people die from suicide in the United States than from traffic accidents or homicides, and we lose 22 veterans to suicide daily. Unfortunately, because of the stigma associated with mental illness, many people are too ashamed or embarrassed to seek the help they need for themselves or their loved ones. Mental Health Awareness Month is a time when we work together to break through that stigma. We express compassion for those who struggle with mental health issues, and we draw attention to the proven methods that can help change their lives for the better.

(Photo - Charles Peterson)