Review Summary: Don't you wanna be popular culture?
Quite simply, the most beautiful and arresting music I’ve ever heard. An album that found me at the exact right moment of my life to provide a narration, soundtrack and context for the last few years.
The National sung their way into my life in my early twenties and they’ve remained relevant (if not even more immediate) as I’ve reached closer to 30. I Am Easy to Find is an album that forces you to evaluate where you are and where you’ve been heading. The music confronts ghosts in your mind and tells them what you’ve been doing and has a sense of peacefulness and acceptance with the past.
“I’m still standing in the same place where you left me standing” speaks to a feeling of complacency. “I get so far so fast” suggests you’ve been running in a hurry and haven’t stopped to question the outcomes of your decisions. “It’s almost like you’re not afraid of anything I do” carries the fear in finding unconditional love. All these lyrics hit me when I heard them and continue to hit and hurt with every listen.
It’s an album that I want to have near me always to hear its warmth. It is built out of anxiety, paranoia, confusion and fear. But it hits those feelings with understanding instead of judgement. If you hear the words and they mean something to you, it is assurance you aren’t alone. Everyone is singing along.
