Courtney Barnett conquers writer’s block with ‘joyful’ new album, ’Creature of Habit’

Courtney Barnett will release a new album called Creature of Habit on Friday. While known for her clever and witty lyrics, Barnett found herself hit with a case of writer’s block going into putting Creature of Habit together.

“I felt like I had forgotten how to write a song, to be honest,” Barnett tells ABC Audio. “It took me a little while to kind of remember how it worked.”

That may be why Barnett urges “please be patient” in the bouncy opening track, “Stay in Your Lane.” That theme then returns in a later song called “Mostly Patient.” 

“I was struggling a little bit with the lyrics, and finishing songs and finishing lyrics,” Barnett says. “I felt like there was some sort of writer’s block that I was battling with, so that idea of patience kept kind of popping up.”

Barnett eventually powered through by challenging herself to write a new song each morning. While there are songs that reference her writer’s block, Barnett doesn’t think Creature of Habit feels weighed down by it.

“Once I got past all the struggle with the writing, and I finally finished it and was really, really proud of it … it feels really joyful,” she says.

You’ll also find some classic Courtney Barnett turns of phrase on Creature of Habit. On the aforementioned “Mostly Patient,” Barnett sings, “Outside it’s raining, precipitating,” which may remind you of the “I’m emphysem-ing” lyric from “Avant Gardener.” That lyric, Barnett says, came from something her dad would say.

“Instead of saying it was raining, he’d say it was precipitating, and he thought it was really funny,” Barnett says. “So it was just this kind of joke to myself, but it fit really well.”