Mick Jagger is doing a state of the nation address – via two brand new tracks rush released this week. The songs, Gotta Get A Grip and England Lost were urgent responses to what he calls ‘confusion and frustration with the times we live in.’

Mick says the songs were a result of "anxiety, unknowability of the changing political situation". He delivers a biting personal commentary across the two songs atop guitar drones and emphatic beats as he touches on everything from aggressive news cycles to holding those in power to account.

England Lost takes us back to a football match that he attended and uses the moment as an analogy for a country at a political crossroads. Gotta Get A Grip takes us with him as he rattles issues of war and political scandal around in his mind and defiantly spits them out.This is sound tracking a moment in time, the way only Jagger knows how and the result is electric, disruptive and thought provoking.

“I started writing these two songs in April and wanted them out straight away. Doing a wholealbum often takes a long time even after finishing it with all the record company preparations and global release set up. It’s always refreshing to get creative in a different fashion and I feel a slight throwback to a time when you could be a bit more free and easy by recording on the hoof and putting it out there immediately. I didn’t want to wait until next year when these two tracks might lose any impact and mean nothing” said Jagger commenting on the two songs he had written.

On ‘England Lost’ Jagger explains, "Ostensibly, it’s about seeing an England football team lose, but when I wrote the title I knew it would be about more than just that. It’s about a feeling that we are in a difficult moment in our history. It's about the unknowability about where you are and the feeling of insecurity. That’s how I was feeling when I was writing. It's obviously got a fair amount of humour because I don’t like anything too on the nose but it's also got a sense of vulnerability of where we are as a country. Right from the off when I started writing ‘England Lost’, I imagined having a British rapper on the track... Skepta stepped in at a moment’s notice and I just loved what he did”.

On ‘Gotta Get A Grip he stated “The message I suppose is - despite all those things that are happening, you gotta get on with your own life, be yourself and attempt to create your own destiny”.

Gotta Get A Grip – Mick Jagger

Video directed by Saam Farahmand, starring Jemima Kirke

England Lost – Mick Jagger

Video directed by Saam Farahmand, starring Luke Evans

Available in the following formats:

Double A side limited edition 12” vinyl and CD, digital download and via streaming services.