Album Rating: 4.0

For what it’s worth, almost everybody writes their debut out of their discog, so you can give or take that one; it represents almost nothing of why most people love this band. If you want to go chronologically I’d recommend starting with Sad Songs or Alligator and going from there. High Violet is my favorite album of all time but I definitely think some kind of chronological order is advisable.

Album Rating: 2.5

Awesome, thx for the tip man. I’ll start with Sad Somgs.



Now I need to decide who I commit to next as far as listening to their discog: The Dear Hunter, The Antlers or The National. Currently on Mean Everything with Manchester but almost ready to move on to Simple Math.

Album Rating: 4.2

thanks Freddie but where your review at dawg?



Simple Math is still a near classic to me

Album Rating: 1.0

feel like this album could stand to lose matt

Album Rating: 1.0

p.s. love a big ol' love-in review!

I decided not to throw my pebble into the ocean so to speak lol

Album Rating: 2.0

i'm in love with this album tbh

Album Rating: 3.5

wow rowbro you got shared by the sad dads



congrats

Album Rating: 4.2

yo I just saw too wtf? wasn't even featured haha

Album Rating: 4.2

Berninger lowkey browsing sputnik I fucking knew it

Album Rating: 3.5

Nice

sad to see the trickle down of sowing hype ratings

Album Rating: 3.5

All ratings are fluid IMO... I'm always tweaking people usually don't notice or just don't say anything lol.

This is sliding for me, sad to say. Every time I listen it loses some of its luster. As of this moment it's still top 10 on the year for me though.

Album Rating: 4.0

“Hairpin Turns” is frustrating me; it feels on the verge of completely flooring me but hasn’t quite got there yet. Even more frustratingly, the album version is slightly different than the music video version, which has some extra piano towards the end which imo elevates the song; though that video itself is kind of terrible.

Album Rating: 2.0

Completely agree, Sow. I'm feeling the disappointment myself. This may become an honourable mention if that.

Album Rating: 4.0 | Sound Off

I so agree more with this score; where most say this drags, I say it flourishes. I haven’t loved a National album this much since TWFM and even before that album either. It’s fucking fantastic in every way.

Album Rating: 4.0

I’m glad you feel that way dude, I genuinely am. Just wish I was feeling it in the same way you are.

Album Rating: 4.0 | Sound Off

I expected to not like this based on singles and the Painting With album cover. But the singles have grown somewhat, but even they set aside, this is some of the most beautiful music they’ve ever done. I haven’t taken this thing off repeat since release

But your stance is understandable. You don’t like “The Pull of You” at all, and I consider that to be one of the strongest, if not the strongest on this thing.

Album Rating: 4.0

It’s a bit hard to describe but aside from a handful of moments this lacks that special magic the National have brought to almost every song in their discog up to now. It feels like every great element of them (Bryan’s intricate and nuanced drumming, Matt’s evocative melodies and lyrics, the Dessners’ arrangements and atmospheric touches and beautiful guitar work) has been dialed back without being replaced by anything else of particular import. I like almost every song, most of them quite a lot, but they feel like they need an extra bit of “oomph”. By any measure this is a very good album, it’s the burden of expectation that makes it a disappointment for me. But I may well get there with time; we’re still only 5 days post release and every National album has taken much longer than that to grow on me; several years in some cases.

Album Rating: 4.0 | Sound Off

Yeah and I’m having the inverse of that with SWB for me. I think I have it a 4.5 but it’s in need of a major revision. To me, I don’t understand how anyone can call this boring and not SWB. I don’t dislike it but I’m probably gonna knock it down a few notches. To me, this feels like listening to TWFM. I know it’s cliche based on the name and how like everyone says it’s not a sequel to that album, but I can’t help but feel it really is. This feels like the album I wanted SWB to be.

It’s not so much getting somewhere I suppose as it is refining their elements. For instance, Where Is Her Head is such a wonderful tribute to Graceless. Sure they may sound the same, but if I had to pick either of them, I’d go with Where Is Her Head. And maybe that is truly the downfall of this album; that it doesn’t evolve the band. But I ask whether we should evolve or not to fix what’s not broken?

I can see where people may be bored of the band at this point, but they’re one of my all-time favs and I love their dapper middle-aged aesthetic. Folks who don’t and never did will not like this and those who want evolution won’t either, but those of us who have always enjoyed them and look forward to their release with a glass of scotch will be more than pleased. Guess I fall into the latter category.