Album Review: The National - High Violet

Ohio-bred, Brooklyn-based band The National has only been active for around a decade. The subject matter of their songs and the overall quality of their music tellingly reveals a confidence through experience and a world weary maturity beyond their collective’s years. Over a career spanning their upcoming fifth full length and a scattering of EP’s and extra releases, The National has honed their flair for emotion and drama.  They have found moments to experiment within their conspicuous sound, but stay disciplined without straying from the band’s fundamentals. There is no mistaking a National song, but their distinction comes from the band’s pioneering their own trail off the superhighway of straight up American rock. The influences are present without sounding derived. There is that indie flair, but it is coupled with a mainstream accessibility; it is a dynamic that is purely their own.

The newest offering of The National entitled High Violet is another sprout of a new branch for the band, implanting the understated running theme of losing someone, both lyrically and musically, throughout the LP. Although the subject pining for lost love is common, The National employ a teeth-gritting tension, can’t-get-out-of-bed heartache and internal struggle is not often woven together in the words and re-emphasized in the music. High Violet’s first track, “Terrible Love”, sets the tone. Stating that you are “walking with spiders” seems uncomfortable and creepy; achingly singing it over heavily reverb guitar shows us a man who cannot sleep, eat or sit still over his terrible situation. The next track “Sorrow” is an extension of the first, the next stage of denial in the narrator’s grief. It takes the repressed anger of “Terrible Love” and ups the ante, giving up out of exasperation to his future where everything looks, feels and tastes sad. Coupling Matt Berninger’s achy lyrics with the intense hi-hat taps and acoustic guitar strums makes “Sorrow” one of High Violet’s standouts and one of those weepy tracks the heartbroken will put on repeat.

The National are never short on intensity and are at their best when the music matches up with the lyrical furious twists. Their first release “Bloodbuzz, Ohio” already drew my attention:

"His (Berninger’s) lyrics are a snapshot; "lay my head on the hood of your car" sketches his memory of a loss that is as intimate as his lover's heartbeat. As many poets, he invents his own language when he is searching for the right word. Tonight, he is on a bloodbuzz with bees humming in his ears, propelled by more than liquid courage. Berninger's strength has always been in repetition, punching each point he makes, pushed by barroom piano, thumping bass and that awesome drumbeat."

Another solid track that I wrote about earlier is the ode to paranoia “Afraid Of Everyone”:

“Afraid Of Everyone has an achy, dark yearn as the burning slowly spreads to strings, woodwinds and an insistent drumbeat. The chorus is a surprising sing-a-long despite the dark tone and fearful lyrics. By the end, the drums are the approaching footsteps of phobia and eventually overtake the songs as it descends into a dissonant fadeout.”

The biggest payoff on High Violet comes at the end with “England”, a grandiose finale sent to his love half a world away. Shades of classical music pop in as the song builds; tom toms hit like kettle drums, strings push through as the light breaks, then, finally, the coronets burst in to signal a better day. From the rough road we were on at the beginning of High Violet where hope was so distant, we have finally reached that point where someone can finally dust themselves off, stand up straight and get back to everyday life. It is their anthem for giving in and moving on, a triumph over depression and loss. It is the song everyone should have to recognize that achievement.

It is a shame that the album didn’t finish there. The final song “Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks” is as awkward as the song title, standing out from the other tracks in theme and quality. Nevertheless, High Violet not only lifts The National to new heights, but stretches their repertoire to include a front to back conceptual element to producing great songs and albums. Great visual artists such throughout history have worked in the conceptual framework, exploring each dark corner of their theme and then pushing the boundaries to include their own considerations. The National have made one of the great breakup albums, but made it a story about them that others can comprehend.

For those who want to read more, check out the comprehensive New York Times article about The National.

Purchase the vinyl album here or the CD here. 

The National - Bloodbuzz, Ohio


The National - Afraid Of Everyone


The National -England