Album Review Friday

Well folks, I’m out of ideas. I know. It happened almost two months later than I thought it would too[1]. As many of you know, I’ve chosen to live my life by what I’ve learned from the sitcoms of the late 1980s and early 1990s. And these sitcoms have taught me that when you’ve run out of ideas you’ve got three options to try and rejuvenate the ole’ girl:

a.) You bring in a precocious[2] child with an annoying[3] voice[4].

Hi, I ruined your favorite sitcom. Have a great weekend.

b.) You bring in a rapping granny, who usually has a bit of a potty mouth[5].

c.) You review something!

Since the other two options are out, I thought I’d review High Violet the new album by the National. I should warn you, I tend to ramble[6], so feel free to ask questions if something doesn’t make sense.

High Violet by The National

1.) Terrible Love

2.) Sorrow

3.) Anyone's Ghost

4.) Little Faith

5.) Afraid of Everyone

6.) Bloodbuzz Ohio

7.) Lemonworld

8.) Runaway

9.) Conversation 16

10.) England

11.) Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks

12.) Walk off (bonus track)

13.) Sin-eaters (iTunes pre-order bonus track)

Before I go further, I feel that I should preface this entry with the following statement: The National is probably my favorite band right now, and they are one of the few bands whose album I will purchase no matter what[7]. I should also say that I’ve been largely unimpressed with the new albums that I’ve purchased this year[8], so I wasn’t quite certain what to expect with this album. And I feel that I should also say that their last album, Boxer, was (in my opinion) utterly perfect: the rare album that you can listen to without ever having to press the “next” button on your iPod.

When one first hears this album, it seems to be a bit… underwhelming. Most of the songs seem to be down-tempo, navel gazing affairs with seemingly nonsensical lyrics[9] about topics such as being carried to Ohio by a swarm of bees or living on a world comprised entirely of lemons with your sister. However, upon repeat listens, one realizes that this album revels in the quiet moments. The opening track, Terrible Love[10] seems to explain why T believe this album is a celebration of the quiet moments in four minutes and forty seconds. The muddy production of the song seems to scream to the listener “underestimate us!”[11]

Note: I couldn’t find a studio version of the song, but I think this is a pretty good representation of the song.

Little Faith is, probably, my favorite track off of the album. The song begins with this beautiful bit of synthesized dischordia and then goes proceeds to go into this tom heavy drum riff that the band is known for. The song is about these two people who have become so used to “ordinary” life that they are constantly searching for newer and more dangerous ways to feel alive[12]. Other highlights of the album include Bloodbuzz Ohio[13], Lemonworld, Runaway, and Conversation 16[14], and Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks.

That being said, the album is far from perfect. Sorrow and Anyone’s Ghost are your typical, straightforward break-up songs about how we never completely get over our first love, because we don’t want to do so[15]. I should say that Anyone’s Ghost is interesting, because it is a about this guy who finds out that his lady is stepping out on him, so he goes into this introspective place where he begins to feel as if he were so over bearing that being with he was like a ghost haunting her. He feels badly about this, but he doesn’t know what to do because he doesn’t want anyone else, but he doesn’t want to be a burden to her. It’s not a bad song, but it’s far from the best song on the album.

All told, it’s far from a bad album (it’s actually a really good album), but I was just expecting another Boxer[16]. That said, I give it four California Raisin’s out of five. Go buy or download the album. It’s worth it.

Ya’ll stay classy… wherever ya’ll is…

Blakely A-dam Sumner

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[1] If you’re keeping score at home, I’ve been writing this thing I call a “blog” for about two months now.

[2] Yet adorable

[3] Yet still adorable

[4] This is not a viable option for me, as I have no children, nor the technological capacity to somehow force said child from the real world and onto the Internet.

[5] This is also not a viable option for me, because I would only allow Bea Arthur to be said rapping granny. Unfortunately, Bea has gone to meet her maker and I don’t have the power to raise the dead (yet) so I can’t use her as my rapping granny. R.I.P. Bea, and thank you for being a friend.

[6] Like the 19^th century wordsmith and faux redneck Mark Twain once said “The journey is the important thing”. What’s that you say? Twain never said that? O.k., I must be thinking of the time he said that”The true flavor is in the details.” What? He never said that either? Fine. I’m sure he thought something along those lines once, and if he didn’t, he should have.

[7] The others being (in case you cared): Death Cab for Cutie, The Avett Brothers, The Hold Steady, Ryan Adams, and Mike Doughty.

[8] Yes, I’m referring to you Spoon and Vampire Weekend albums.

[9] In case anyone cares, the best example of music that is a “down-tempo, navel gazing affair” is And then nothing turned itself inside out by Yo La Tengo. This album is the aural equivalent of a coma. This may sound like a bad thing at first but is, in fact, the exact opposite of a bad.

[10] A song about being in an unhealthy relationship, but somehow being unable to pull yourself out of that relationship – to that point that you can’t sleep at night. At least I think that’s what the song is about.

[11] I read that the album version of the song was actually an unchanged first recording of the demo. The band loved the way the song sounded much that they didn’t want to change anything about it.

[12] This is also the plot to Fight Club, in case you were interested. Now you don’t need to read the book.

[13] I think this song is about how you can’t go home again, but it could literally be about being abducted by bees that take you to Ohio against your will. Stranger things have happened.

[14] It’s a song about zombies!

[15] By the way, I think that’s pure and utter crap.

[16] Which I should say is wrong of me, because I wanted the band to just keep turning out the same album with different lyrics… and not let them grow into their next phase. Or something like that.