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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
On their third recording, the National strikes a delicate balance between light and dark, fast and slow, American and British. While their sound is undeniably tinged with darkness, it isn't gloomy or depressing. This impression is mostly due to Matt Berninger's deep baritone, which brings to mind such sensitive, but manly Brit vocalists as Scott Walker and Stuart Staples of the Tindersticks. The National, however, are American. Formed in Brooklyn in 1999, the quintet hails from Cincinatti and doesn't sound much like a New York Band (Interpol, the Strokes, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, etc.). Instead, they could be Midwestern or even Canadian in the way they combine alt-country, chamber-pop, and post-punk angst, like Toronto's Royal City or Montreal's Arcade Fire. Often compared to Nick Cave, Leonard Cohen, and Tom Waits, the National's music is actually faster-paced and has a lighter, almost jaunty touch. In other words: they rock. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Review
Bring us your tired, bring us your sad and bring us your weary. David Ryan Adams may have crooned that he started his country band because punk rock is too hard to sing, but don't believe a word the man says. Country music is the last great refuge of the song; it's a far better home than Rock 'n' Roll will ever be.
How curious it is though that the true torchbearers of traditional Country come so far from Nashville. Holed up in Ohio, The National must have been raised on all Cash and no Kenny. Saved from a life of big hat music, their music is almost defiant in its lack of polish. Maybe it's the desire for the plaintive and the true that fills every Wilco gig with bar-hugging 30-somethings?
Tales of drying deltas and stolen record collections make an uneasy soundtrack for shopping at Sainsbury's but is the perfect accompaniment for an evening reading Steinbeck.
On their third record Alligator, The National has clearly kept the studio radiators on full blast to maintain the muggy atmosphere. Unfortunately the songs themselves are rather undercooked. The melodies are almost translucent. What draws me in is the slurred drawl of Matt Berninger, who has a touch of the Triffids in his booming baritone. 'I know you put in the hours to keep me in sunglasses' he sings with all the joie de vivre of a pallbearer.
It's been argued by afficionados that within Leonard Cohen's melancholic work is a thick vein of comedy. Any wise man in the autumn of his years must realise and savour life's surreal quirks. Berninger also sounds suitably comfortable as the bemused outsider as he quips 'I'm a perfect piece of ass' on the standout "All The Wine".
This record is aural wallpaper par-excellence, a wash of arpeggios and gently lulling piano. In that it is sweet and utterly inoffensive. There are however relatively few rousing refrains or truly memorable moments. --Chris Hilliard
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Recommended,
By Mike Mantin (Swansea, UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Alligator (Audio CD)
With New York offering little in the Great Bands department last year after 2003's NY explosion, it's refreshing to see one of the year's gems straight outta Brooklyn. This, however, is no hype-fuelled hipster workout. 'Alligator' is the National's third album, their first on a major label and hopefully the one which will throw them into the mainstream, and deservedly so. It should float the boats of fans of dark, brooding post-punk (opener 'Secret Meeting) and introspective Americana (the beautiful 'Daughters Of The Soho Riots) alike. There's even a bit of welcome shouting thrown in, on fantastic single 'Abel'.Matt Berninger provides deep, soothing vocals reminiscent of Ian Curtis and, more recently, Interpol's Paul Banks, which slot in perfectly with the high-pitch guitar noises. But the range of styles and oblique lyrics suggest there's far more on offer here than moody alt-rock. Berninger turns alt-country strummer 'Karen' into a medium for his deepest thoughts and sexual confessions. You'll notice the breezy tune first and the interesting lyrics ("Karen, put me in a chair, f**k me and make me a drink" and even more disturbing, "It's a common fetish for a doting man to ballerina on the coffee table, c**k in hand") second, giving the album substantial replay value. Almost every track on this mini masterpiece is intriguing and listenable and there are highlights in abundance. 'Abel' boasts a great sing-along chorus of "My mind's not right!" amidst simple indie-rock verses, while closer 'Mr November' documents their (clearly failed) rush to get the album completed before the November elections with its line "The English are waiting and I don't know what to do/ In my best clothes" before just about getting away with saying "I'm the new blue blood, I'm the great white hope", because it might just be true. 'Val Jester' and 'Daughters Of The Soho Riots' are both gorgeous slower songs unafraid to delve into strange personal love experiences and fantasies. Tuneful and poetic, 'Alligator' is truly an album to cherish.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"I want to go 'gator around the warm beds of beginners",
This review is from: Alligator (Audio CD)
The title of this review is a line from the twelfth song on this album, City Middle, which is also where the album title comes from.The best thing about The National is Matt Berninger, vocalist and lyricist. He has a deep voice, often compared to Nick Cave's but much more melodic, though hardened by years of heartbreak and nicotine addiction. His lyrics are bleak poetry, of lost loves and frank sexual admissions. For example in "Baby, We'll Be Fine", he recounts "I pull off your jeans and you spill Jack and Coke in my collar". The guitar work between the two guitarists (one of the two sets of siblings in the band) is subtle and skilled, while not overwhelming the focal point of the band which is Berninger's unique voice. There is some sublime string arrangement on this album too, without it being like a country fiddle type sound, or taking over the songs. The strings just add another layer to the music, and a certain beauty also. Percussion is unusual. Often off-beat and strange rhythms, it always seems to strangely fit with the music, although a simple four beat rhythm would be much simpler. It is this added ambition which puts this record ahead of The National's eponymous debut and the EP Cherry Tree. Though I personally believe Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers is their finest hour, Alligator certainly comes close.
20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This band definitely deserve a listen,
By
This review is from: Alligator (Audio CD)
I bought this a couple of months ago on the back of it being listed in my 'recommendations' on Amazon. Must admit that some of the stuff recommended is a bit duff (remarkably yesterday I was recommended 'Closer to the Edge' by prog rock dinosaurs Yes on the back of liking The Stranglers' 'Black and White'), however on this occasion Amazon came up trumps. I hadn't even heard of The National when I bought this, but reading customers' reviews convinced me to give it a try. I am so glad that I did. 'Alligator' is a remarkable album. Hard to pin down the exact genre of music this is but if you like Eels, Arcade Fire and anything like that then I'm sure that you'll like this. Someone below said it sounds like Joy Division.....hmmmm. Not really Ian Curtis, yes I can see that National singer Matt Berninger sounds a bit down but not in the same way that the suicidal Curtis did. I also don't get the comparisons with Nick Cave. Again I like Cave but this is not the same at all. Alligator is beautifully written both lyrically and musically, Berninger's deep voice perfectly accompanied by well-worked indie-type guitar music on most tracks, but some tracks also have superb string and keyboard arrangements. Standout tracks - 'Secret Meeting, 'Karen', 'Val Jester' and 'All the Wine'. This band definitely deserve a listen and this album is perfectly accessible to anyone with an ear for good music. Go buy it. (9.5/10)
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