See the Avett Brothers Perform New Song ‘Tell the Truth’ on ‘Fallon’

The Avett Brothers performed their new song “Tell the Truth” on Monday on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Scott Avett took lead on the mid-tempo electronic, piano ballad, with his brother Seth joining in unison during the song’s chorus.

“Tell the truth to yourself,” Scott sings, “and the rest will fall in place.”

“Tell the Truth” is a song from the band’s new album, Closer Than Together, which the Avetts say is their attempt at something approaching a political record. But “Tell the Truth” is a typically inward-looking original from the group, exploring themes of regret, remorse, and inner turmoil, unlike more explicitly socially-aware songs like “We Americans,” which traces, among other things, the centuries-long pillage of Native Americans and “Bang Bang,” which tackles gun violence.

“If you’re being responsible with your sharing, you know what’s sort of senselessly button-pushing, and what is just fair game in terms of artistry and in terms of making something and sharing it,” Seth Avett recently said of his band’s socio-political statements on the new album.

“We didn’t make a record that was meant to comment on the sociopolitical landscape that we live in,” the Avett Brothers wrote in a statement accompanying Closer Than Together. “We did, however, make an album that is obviously informed by what is happening now on a grander scale all around us…The Avett Brothers will probably never make a sociopolitical record. But if we did, it might sound something like this.”

The Avett Brothers’ fall tour will begin October 24th in Southhaven, Mississippi.