[4] Bright Eyes went on an unofficial hiatus as members Conor Oberst, Mike Mogis, and Nate Walcott each pursued different projects.

Walcott also worked as a touring member of other musical groups, including Broken Bells and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

[7][6] In the November 2016 issue of Uncut, Oberst expressed doubt as to whether or not The People's Key would be the band's final album and revealed that Bright Eyes "still talk about doing another record.

[5] The album also features contributions from drummer Jon Theodore (The Mars Volta, Queens of the Stone Age, One Day as a Lion) and Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea.

The band scheduled performances in Tokyo in March, Los Angeles in May, New York City in June, and at England's End of the Road Festival in September.

[5] On February 18, 2020, Bright Eyes announced a North American tour for May–June 2020, supported by Lucy Dacus, Lavender Diamond, and Japanese Breakfast.

[25][26][27] "Mariana Trench" was released as the fourth single on June 22, 2020, and was performed the same day by Bright Eyes on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

[34] Fred Thomas of AllMusic wrote that "it continues Bright Eyes' evolution without skipping a beat, and manages to be one of their stronger records in the process.

"[35] Bud Scoppa of Uncut gave the album a 9/10, praising the "opulent orchestrations and chorales rendering Oberst's tremulous outpourings that much more existentially fraught.

"[44] Tom Doyle of Q praised the album's "smart audio trickery and intriguing atmosphere" as well as Oberst's vocals for being "less nervy and whiny and more restrained and affecting".

[42] Tom Hull was less impressed, giving the album a B-plus and finding its extensive musical accomplishment ostensibly significant but not entirely worth exploring.