5.0 classic

Adam Knott CONTRIBUTOR | July 14th 09

Some days I'm not sure whether The National's Boxer might be just as good as Alligator, but I always come to two conclusions. The first of those conclusions is that, however good its follow-up is, Alligator is a basically flawless record, and the second conclusion is that I should stop thinking about it and listen to it. Baritone indie-rock, whatever you want to call it, has never been done this well; the imagery, the flow, the downbeat melodies, are all sublime. This is my fallback record when I don't know what to listen to, it's my hangover record, and it's all the album I do most of my thinking to. City Middle, Mr November and Lit Up are standouts but every single track is part of a whole that never fails to astound. 1 Bumps | Bump

4.5 superb	Jips66 | October 30th 09
anyone else get an Arcade fire, badly drawn boy vibe from this..? Karen is a great track... still listening for other standouts... Bump

5.0 classic	Nate Sniffen | February 19th 08
i won't fuck us over Bump

4.5 superb

Andrew Hartwig STAFF | January 10th 07

Like all of the greatest albums, Alligator is one of those records that works beautifully as a unit, yet still has 4 or 5 near-perfect standout tracks. The third full-length from New York band The National, Alligator is 13 tracks of varied, clever and emotional indie-rock. Highlights include the melodic opener "Secret Meeting", the anthemic "Lit Up", the soft and subtle "Daughters of the Soho Riots", the furious uptempo track "Abel" and the gorgeous "The Geese of Beverly Road", which features orchestral arrangements. Quite possibly the best album of 2005, Alligator comes painfully close to perfection. Bump