The National (band)
The National is an American rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio, formed in Brooklyn, New York City in 1999.[1] The band consists of Matt Berninger (vocals), twin brothers Aaron Dessner (guitar, piano, keyboards) and Bryce Dessner (guitar, piano, keyboards), as well as brothers Scott Devendorf (bass) and Bryan Devendorf (drums). Carin Besser, the wife of Matt Berninger, is not a band member but has written lyrics for the band alongside her husband since its 2007 album Boxer.[2]
The National
Founded by Matt Berninger, Aaron Dessner, Scott Devendorf and Bryan Devendorf, the National released their self-titled debut album, The National (2001), on Brassland Records, an independent record label founded by Aaron and his twin brother, Bryce Dessner. Bryce, who had assisted in recording the album, soon joined the band, participating as a full member in the recording of its follow-up, Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers (2003).
Leaving behind their day jobs, the National signed with Beggars Banquet Records and released their third studio album, Alligator (2005), to widespread critical acclaim. The band's fourth and fifth studio albums, Boxer (2007) and High Violet (2010), increased their exposure significantly. In 2013, the band released its sixth studio album, Trouble Will Find Me, which was nominated for a Grammy Award. In 2017 the band released the album Sleep Well Beast, which won the band a Grammy Award. Their eighth studio album, I Am Easy to Find, was released in 2019. Their ninth studio album, First Two Pages of Frankenstein, was released on April 28, 2023 and featured appearances from Sufjan Stevens, Taylor Swift, and Phoebe Bridgers. It reached No. 1 on the Billboard charts in the AAA & Rock categories.
Five of the band's albums were nominated by music writer Laura Snapes for inclusion on NME's 2013 list of the NME's The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
History[edit]
1991–2006: Formation and early years[edit]
Matt Berninger and Scott Devendorf met in 1991 while attending the University of Cincinnati College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP) graphic design program,[3] where they also met Mike Brewer, Casey Reas and Jeff Salem.[4] Together, the five of them formed the lo-fi garage band Nancy, named after Berninger's mother, aspiring to sound like Pavement.[5] The band was together for five years, and released one album, Ruther 3429, on Wife Records before breaking up after Berninger, Devendorf, Reas and Salem moved to Brooklyn.[6] Bryan, Bryce, and Aaron were childhood friends who played in several bands together over the years. When their last effort, Project Nim, broke up in 1998, they joined Matt and Scott in Brooklyn by way of the Devendorf relationship.
When the band was formed in 1999, it was called "The National", although the domain name of the band's website is americanmary.com because, according to Matt Berninger, "it's a song off our first record. We never thought of changing the (website) name, although we should have."[7] Several of the members continued to work day jobs, including being involved in New York's dot-com boom, while performing free Sunday night shows regularly at Lower East Side venue Luna Lounge.
Their first album, The National, was eventually released in 2001 on Brassland Records, a label founded by band members Aaron and Bryce Dessner, along with their friend Alec Hanley Bemis.[8] When reviewing the album, Jason MacNeil of No Depression wrote, "...The National has created nearly a dozen picture-perfect Americana bar-soaked gems with its debut album. From the opening notes of 'Beautiful Head', the delicate line between polished roots-oriented pop and alt-country has rarely been walked so deliberately with the payoff so favorable."[9]
The National's second album Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers, released in 2003, was the band's first collaboration with record producers Paul Heck and Peter Katis,[10] who would later also produce the band's albums Alligator and Boxer. After the French release of the album on the French label Talitres, renowned DJ Bernard Lenoir invited them to perform on his Black Sessions twice on France Inter. Publications such as Uncut and the Chicago Tribune named it an album of the year.[10] In 2004, they released the Cherry Tree EP. The EP featured "All the Wine", a song that would appear on their next record. The release of the EP garnered further success and landed them on a successful tour with The Walkmen. In the same year, the band quit their day jobs and signed to a new label, Beggars Banquet Records, because the process of running their own label was becoming "too complicated".[11]
Their first album on Beggars Banquet, Alligator, was released in 2005. The album was met with much critical acclaim and featured highly in "Album of the Year" charts in the Los Angeles Times, Insound, Uncut, and many other publications.[12] The album allowed the band increased exposure. NME and Pitchfork ranked Alligator as a top album of the 2000s.[13] Alligator brought the band increased attendance at concerts, including sold-out shows at The Troubadour in Los Angeles and Webster Hall in New York. They also played at numerous festivals including the 2006 Pitchfork Music Festival, Reading and Leeds Festivals, Pukkelpop, and more.
Musical style[edit]
Aaron and Bryce Dessner write and develop the music which Matt Berninger then responds to, building lyrics on the music Aaron and Bryce have written.[85] Matt has said that the melody and the rhythm come first and then words and imagery will start to stick to a melody, stating, "I never sit and fill a journal with lyrics."[86] Kitty Empire in The Guardian characterized the band as exploring literate rock that presents at first as artily sombre, and eventually as one of the most nuanced 21st-century iterations of what used to be known as "college rock".[52]
The National has been compared to Joy Division, Leonard Cohen, Interpol, Wilco, Depeche Mode, Radiohead, and Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds.[87] The band's lyrics have been described as "dark, melancholy and difficult to interpret."[88]
Other ventures[edit]
As individual artists, the National has embarked on several musical projects outside of their work together as a band.
In 2018, Aaron Dessner collaborated with Justin Vernon, lead singer of indie folk band Bon Iver on the song "Big Red Machine," which was featured on the Dark Was the Night compilation album benefiting the Red Hot Organization. That same year the duo officially formed a band of the same name, Big Red Machine.[89] Aaron has also produced music for Ed Sheeran,[90] Michael Stipe,[91] Gracie Abrams,[92] Frightened Rabbit,[93] Ben Howard,[94] and Taylor Swift's album Folklore, which he won a Grammy for Album of the Year in 2021.
In 2018, Bryce Dessner's collaboration with pianists Katia and Marielle Labèque formalized into the group, Dream House Quartet, with the addition of guitarist and composer David Chalmin of La Terre Invisible.[95] Dessner is a producer and composer, having worked with Philip Glass, Steve Reich, Alejandro Iñarritú,[96] Paul Simon,[97] Sufjan Stevens,[98] Caroline Shaw, and Taylor Swift.[99]
Bryan Devendorf released his debut solo album, Royal Green, in 2020.[100] Prior to his solo project he released albums with Pfarmers, a supergroup consisting of himself, Danny Seim of Menomena and Lackthereof, and Dave Nelson of Sufjan Stevens and St. Vincent. Pfarmers released the albums Gunnera in 2015 and Our Puram in 2016.[101] Devendorf also released projects with his brother Scott, Ben Lanz, and Aaron Arntz in the group LNZNDRF.[102]
Matt Berninger released his debut solo album, Serpentine Prison, in 2020.[103] He previously formed a duo with Brent Knopf of Ramona Falls and Menomena, called EL VY. EL VY released the album Return to the Moon in 2015.[104]
In addition to his work in LNZNDRF, Scott Devendorf is a part of the DJ duo group DJead Night with Conrad Doucette. DJead Night's shows often feature live art from Michael and Dan Goodwin.[105]
Charity[edit]
Political support[edit]
The National supported both of Barack Obama's presidential candidacies in 2008 and 2012.[106][107] In July 2008, the band designed and sold a T-shirt featuring Obama's image above the words "Mr. November," a reference to both their song from Alligator and the month of the U.S. presidential election. All proceeds were donated to Obama's campaign.[108] On October 16, 2008, the band played a rally for Barack Obama on Fountain Square in their hometown of Cincinnati with The Breeders.[109] Buses for early voting were available before the show to take voters to the Hamilton County Board of Elections.
On September 28, 2010, the National played in front of over 25,000 people before a speech by President Obama at a rally in Madison, Wisconsin.[110] On September 1, 2012, the band opened for the President at a campaign rally in Urbandale, Iowa in front of a crowd in excess of 10,000 people.[111] In October, the band traveled to Ohio where they played two free shows and visited university campuses as part of Barack Obama's GottaVote campaign to encourage young adults to register to vote and to cast their vote for Obama.
In November 2016, the National played a concert for presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.[112]