I wouldn\u2019t ever care to sound as depressed as The National, and I mean that as a compliment. A virtually humorless rock band can put you in a better mood, assuming that you\u2019re looking for melancholy that exceeds your own. I don\u2019t listen to Boxer<\/i> during fast, easy, or fun living. <\/p>\n
This is not to say one should approach Boxer <\/i>expecting to hear whiny bullshit. Lead singer\/songwriter Matt Berninger, a distinguished baritone, is more pensive and mysterious than maudlin, but his lyrics concern human conditions that many would sweep under a rug in order to avoid discomfort. His stories are hazy and provocative. There are multiple interpretations for any given track, but the songs have the familiar odor of life and struggle. <\/p>\n
The National has a distinct sadness ingrained in its sound \u2013 precisely why the horn outburst in \u201cFake Empire\u201d is ironic and uplifting (there\u2019s not another moment quite like this on Boxer<\/i>, sweet and long gone after the first track). But one band member doesn\u2019t resemble the others: drummer Bryan Devendorf. I would argue his driving and dynamic style makes The National more listenable than they would be otherwise. Without Devendorf, a listener might get bogged down in the darkness.<\/p>\n
But Devendorf does play a smaller role on a few tracks. In fact, you won\u2019t hear him during \u201cRacing Like A Pro,\u201d the most powerful song on the album (thanks in no small part to Sufjan Stevens\u2019 beautiful piano, which also graces \u201cAda\u201d). \u201cRacing Like A Pro\u201d is a rumination on loss of youth (\u201cOne time you were a glowing young ruffian\u201d) and ennui (\u201cSometimes you go la-di-da-di-da-di-da-da \/ \u2019Til your eyes roll back into your head\u201d), with a heartbreaking refrain (\u201cYou\u2019re dumbstruck, baby\u201d). The song is a depressing tour de force, and I love every part of it. <\/p>\n
Another brilliant song, \u201cSlow Show,\u201d is characterized by a moody Western tone. One of its lines is notably blunt: \u201cCan I get a minute of not being nervous \/ And not thinking of my dick?\u201d Berninger\u2019s delivery is particularly mumbled throughout \u201cSlow Show,\u201d suggesting that the song is a drunken confession. <\/p>\n
In Boxer<\/i>, Berninger\u2019s characters are fighting through life. Perhaps these stories should urge us to keep getting up ourselves, but even if we don\u2019t, having such miserable company is underrated decadence. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":73,"featured_media":30524,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"artist":[8657],"rating":[5646],"class_list":["post-42190","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-the-national","rating-rating-a"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/42190","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/73"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42190"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/42190\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42190"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42190"},{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=42190"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=42190"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}