John Lydon and his band Public Image Ltd have just released the third single leading up to their forthcoming record End of World, this new track titled ‘Car Chase.’ The band has also released a music video to accompany it, which features behind the scenes of the song’s production and hand-written lyrics from Lydon himself.

On the new single, the former Sex Pistols frontman said “Typical PiL, unpredictable to the last. It’s a fantastic smash-and-grab of a song. It’s about someone who cleverly breaks out of the mental institution every night, unbeknownst to his owners. It’s based on having to go to shopping malls at night for cigarettes and wine and seeing the vast carpark space and lighting surrounded by a little village and a lot of dark trees and country lanes. It’s a really creepy scenario, what if somebody creeps out of there, like a mad lunatic?” 

Fans of Public Image Ltd will note a return to form with ‘Car Chase’ compared to the previous singles from End of World that the band released. ‘Hawaii’, which the band performed at Eurovision earlier this year, was comparatively much more subdued, a romantic ode to Lydon’s late wife Nora. Lydon would describe their next single ‘Penage’ as “something of a medieval Viking epic,” indeed characterized by roaring chants and viking-themed lyrics. But ‘Car Chase’ feels more like the straightforward punk the band is known for, a jaunty baseline and rushing distorted guitars almost enough to make you nostalgic.

Watch the video for ‘Car Chase’ below and see for yourself.