The National

One of the few bands I've come across that sounds both refreshing and comfortingly familiar all at once. Their Sound is mellow and dark, with a pounding and yet subtle tempo. Faint traces of a violin or a trumpet sound out and blend together amid all the organized chaos of the drums and guitars. This band really knows what the soul sounds like. The highlight of it all is lead vocalist Matt Berninger's baritone voice. Jeez this guy will give you the chills he is so good. His voice is what will pull you in, but its their blending of every sound into their cohesive discography that will hook you for life. Their lyrics, their sound, both are so artistically and emotionally aware that you feel like your watching a really good art house movie that you never want to end and fortunately, never will.

Their most recent album Boxer is pure music magic. Every track is good. And believe me, I know how rare that is to find. A few of my favorites are Slow Slow, Green Gloves, Ada...who am I kidding? I like them all!

If you're a fan of Lollapalooza or of live stuff, go here to listen to their performance at the festival just a few weeks back.

Check out this music video for their single "Fake Empire".





Another non-musical plus: These guys designed Obama t-shirts and are selling them online to go towards his november campaign. Way cool in my eyes!

"Were it not for music, we might in these days say, the Beautiful is dead."

~Benjamin Disraeli