The National

By now I’ve had quite a while to sit on The National’s new record, High Violet – but due to a crazy month of various other responsibilities I haven’t been able to get my feelings about it down until now. It’s a bit late in internet terms, and doubtless many of you have already fallen for the album, but here’s my thoughts anyway…

It’s been hard to pin down exactly what it is I love about The National – by all accounts they’re a pretty nuts and bolts rock band. There’s Matt Berninger’s rumbling baritone, and then there’s the fact that these guys are undeniably brilliant musicians with an uncanny ability to build and release tension. But it was while listening to High Violet that I realized something special about this band – and it’s the fact that they’re no rock stars. If you look at the bulk of those making this kind of music (today or ever really) it’s overwhelmingly dominated by two kinds of people: the youth and the rock stars. The youth are innovative and often relatable (we’ve all been there), but they’re also often limited by their experience – this love really will last forever! or, breaking up really is the end of the world! The rock star is arguably older and more experienced – but no matter how good they are at expressing their thoughts on life, the fact just is that their life experience is very different from most… and tends to diverge more and more as their rock-stardom increases. But Matt Berninger, throughout The National’s albums, has been able to consistently make music from the everyman’s perspective – singing about toiling at dead-end jobs, working to pay off debts, and living in real relationships (both succeeding and failing). And somehow he imbues these experiences with the kind of dramatic importance we all feel, because it’s our life.

High Violet not only touches on all these things again, but it does it with a confidence that they haven’t attained before. Not only is this one of The National’s best albums, but it is simply one of the best records I’ve heard all year.

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