dreamgauze: on the national

dreamgauze 05.14.17	do any national fans here think alligator > boxer? should i just keep relistening or giving it time? is it a 'grower'?
Ryus 05.14.17	alligator>boxer yeah. alligator is a hard 5, but i still do like boxer. it doesnt have the same magic though
TheWrenKing 05.14.17	sad songs > alligator > boxer > hv > twfm > s/t
Satellite 05.14.17	band does nothing for me
dreamgauze 05.14.17	have you listened to alligator tho
Satellite 05.14.17	ages ago. it's just more boring mope-rock. i liked the song that was on portal 2 tho.
TheWrenKing 05.14.17	am i missing something with exile, did little for me
Satellite 05.14.17	oh and their version of the rains of castamere was pretty dope too
Dylan620 05.14.17	Yeah, Alligator is better than Boxer. So is Trouble. And so is Sad Songs. And High Violet is better than all of 'em.
dreamgauze 05.14.17	there was a national song in portal 2 what
Satellite 05.14.17	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-HijRw8THY
ianblxdsoe 05.14.17	TWFM > SSFDL > Boxer > Alligator (not by much to Boxer and Alligator are very close) > High Violet > S/T > Cherry Tree
ianblxdsoe 05.14.17	also the song in Portal 2 is fucking stellar
TheWrenKing 05.15.17	i feel conflicted, twfm no.1... but sad songs at no.2 redeems you
porcupinetheater 05.15.17	Boxer is beautiful, Man, so overcome with complacently desperate ennui Just take a bath in the Slow Show/Apartment Story 1-2 punch until it clicks tbh
theBoneyKing 05.15.17	Alligator is not better than Boxer. Alligator is the weakest of their big 4 and will soon be the weakest of their big 5.
theBoneyKing 05.15.17	To be fair I probably still love Alligator more than you do though.
dreamgauze 05.15.17	but That's where you're wrong tho
heck 05.15.17	High Violet's pretty good but band is overrated as fuck
porcupinetheater 05.15.17	The National don't have an overrated album Sad Songs is criminally underrated, though
Ocean of Noise 05.15.17	Agreed 100% on that, porcupine.
ianblxdsoe 05.15.17	fun fact: when you look up underrated in the dictionary, there's a picture of Sad Songs' album cover srsly though it's a good ass album. it's literally a 5 solely just because "Available" lol
guitarded_chuck 05.15.17	makes you think ps trouble and violet are their two best
Rowan5215 05.15.17	Alligator is one of the best albums of all time Boxer is just real good
dbizzles 05.15.17	Boxer got me into The National. However, the longer my fandom continues, the more I like other stuff by them. Not sure if I just overplayed Boxer, but lately I've been much more inclined to listen to High Violet and Trouble. Alligator is great too, but for some reason I haven't quite vibed with it as much. Sad Songs is also good, but I feel like they have grown so much since then. Not too keen on the debut or Cherry Tree in comparison to the rest of their discog. Have a feeling the new album with be as good as anything they've ever done. Crossing my fingers.
Ocean of Noise 05.15.17	Boxer is a classic but it's the weakest of their three classics.
dbizzles 05.15.17	What are their 3 classics in your opinion?
Ocean of Noise 05.15.17	Alligator Boxer High Violet
Ocean of Noise 05.15.17	Honestly I might 5 TWFM too someday though
dbizzles 05.15.17	I was wondering if Trouble fit into that for you. I'd have a hard time ranking these guys right now. Fucking solid group.
guitarded_chuck 05.15.17	troubles the only one ive considered 5ing so far
Boyaawitcheese 05.15.17	Such a good band. HV > TWFM > Boxer > Alligator and Exile / Vilify is in their top 5 songs for me. So so good.
RadicalEd 05.15.17	Boxer is the bestest you fools.
dbizzles 05.15.17	Is it though? IMO, thematically, Boxer was unrivaled before Trouble Will Find Me. Before Trouble, I was certain Boxer was their best, but Trouble seemed to out-do Boxer in overall execution and matched its consistency. With that in mind, I think it's easy to see why people may prefer Alligator, High Violet or even Sad Songs. They may not be as solid throughout, but they seem to have a better variety for better or worse.
RadicalEd 05.15.17	Nah TFWM is good and Humiliation is probably the best song ever, but it has a total dud (Fireproof) and two meh songs (I need my girl and Heavenfaced) while Boxer is just 5 after 5 after 5 after 5.
RadicalEd 05.15.17	Alligator has some very high highs (last 4-5 song run is mindboggling) but the middle part is kinda eeeeh (Baby we'll be fine, Friend of Mine, Val Jester) and I feel like they really upped the production on Boxer.
dreamgauze 05.15.17	but Baby thru Val is a really good run too. Friend of Mine is a great track. First half of the album is very ehh tho compared to everything else
onionbubs 05.15.17	alligator>boxer yeah but i dont listen to the band too frequently
porcupinetheater 05.15.17	Boxer > High Violet > Sad Songs > Trouble > Alligator All are at least 4.5
DoofusWainwright 05.15.17	Trouble [5] > Boxer [4.9] > High Violet [4.8] > Alligator [4.1] Alligator is scrappy but has its moments, Berninger isn't comfortable with his shiz on that one and there are some uncomfortable moments. Hokey stuff like Looking for Astronauts and Friend of Mine wouldn't make B-Sides now, let's be real. It's interesting hearing Matt scream on Abel but...yeah, glad he stopped. Trouble is absolute brilliance, some stuff is there primarily for tonal variety (Fireproof, Need My Girl) but nothing drops the ball. Heavenfaced is a bit of a mess, but parts of it I still really enjoy - that's probably the 'worst' song and it's no worse than the six weakest songs off Alligator.
dbizzles 05.15.17	'Trouble is absolute brilliance, some stuff is there primarily for tonal variety (Fireproof, Need My Girl) but nothing drops the ball. Heavenfaced is a bit of a mess, but parts of it I still really enjoy - that's probably the 'worst' song and it's no worse than the six weakest songs off Alligator.' Yeah, I agree. I actually like Fireproof and, to a greater extent, I Need My Girl, but I'd be lying if I said I ever pick those out to listen to individually.
DoofusWainwright 05.15.17	I'd also say I prefer Demons, Slipped, Humiliation, Pink Rabbits and This is the Last Time to anything off Alligator. Live in Salt, Swallow the Cap and Graceless aren't far behind either.
DoofusWainwright 05.15.17	Not sure anyone who isn't an egomaniac control freak like Corgan could have delivered a double album like Mellon Collie - you don't have to love the artist to appreciate the art
TheWrenKing 05.15.17	i need my girl is straight-up bad though