The National

Anyone else catch "Mistaken for Strangers", the documentary ostensibly by Matt Beringer's brother Tom? Highly enjoyable.

In a way, aren't we all Matt Beringer's brother?

Its weird how they've basically become shorthand for indie's more insufferable tendencies. (Note: I might find this weird bcz I have never listened to a Ntl song)

I don't think the National or their tendencies are insufferable at all.

I was mistaken for a stranger the other day!

I listened to them and they weren't as good as Steve Reich, p insufferable

The documentary is great. I literally both laughed and cried during it. I wonder if people who don't have brothers would enjoy this movie as much as I did.

Good show in the rain last night!

drinking pink rabbits?

should have. Too much wine mixed with beer = worst hangover.

no rain on sunday night, and also not sold out so it was probably a little less crowded. this was the best of the three shows of theirs I've seen.

"Mistaken for Strangers" is one of the most honest and affecting movies I've seen in a long time.

Really?

thought it was crap tbh

Why? I thought it was a relatively unique glimpse of what it's like to live in the shadow of a successful older sibling, who happens to sing in a popular band. I found it interesting to watch the two work through their issues via the erstwhile band doc. Tom's incompetence is both funny and sad, but there are aspects of his personality that the movie hints at rather than hits you over the head with (problems with alcohol and depression), traits he may happen to share with his big bro, who respectively channels those things into the National. There's a nice theme of finding what you're good at and focusing on that; lots of people are sort of charmed or envious of Tom's guilelessness and general happiness, but because he's not as overtly successful as Matt, he has trouble seeing those traits as attributes, which leads to failure paralysis. A lot of narrative pieces sort of luckily fell into place here - an ostensible doc about a band with three sets of brothers, made by the one brother not in the band - though I suspect the project was probably saved by Berninger's wife, who knows a thing or two about editing. Regardless, a lot of accidental insight, like Tom literally clutching on to Matt's mic cord for dear life as Matt hurtles forward, Tom dragging behind ...

I dunno. I just found it , like I said, honest and affecting. I watched it with my wife, who doesn't listen to the National and usually doesn't like rock docs and even as the movie made itself clear, found it sort of painful to watch, but was ultimately surprised by its poignancy.

That description is not helping.

i thought it was great.

Josh, your description makes me want to see the movie now.

Yeah, I like The National but really had no interest in seeing this until I read Josh's description.

fuck this band

there are so many glimpses of good things and then it's just npr

okay

hey it's a baritone

Mistaken for Strangers was good. I didn't love it but it's solid and good.

New national album is good. I also don't love 100% of it but it's good.

I love seeing the National live. They're reliably entertaining and energetic and for a 'rock band' frontman who sings mopey songs Matt is really gerat on stage and his crowd-wandering stuff is always fun.

there are so many glimpses of good things and then it's just npr

npr: there are so many glimpses of good things and then it's just chris thile

npr: there are so many glipses of good things and then it's just kai ryssdal

I was under the impression that Brooklyn was some kind of artistic hotbed in the 00s, kind of a bummer that one of their most successful exports is a plain ole meat and potatoes moody rock band with bad singing

Sorry!

This is maybe gonna sound weird but my whole life I thought this band had both black and white members and I just looked at a picture of them for the first time ever and.... they're all white! OK I don't really know how I formed this misapprehension.

yeeaahhh me neither

pfffft, i a bet a bunch of people on this thread go into other threads and stan for fuckin' kanye

tfw u realize you've mixed up The National with TV on the Radio for 15 years

this band sounds like a glass of milk being poured

any tracks in particular?

The entirety of I Am Easy to Find, except it doesn't actually taste like milk.

this band sounds like a glass of milk being poured

― lumen (esby)

no, that sounds like something i'd actually want to listen to

for instance, here is the sound of an egg being fried for 12 minutes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3_7yhf1GiM

i certainly can't recommend the record on gustatory grounds

Why are they called The National? It's always rubbed me the wrong way.

National Front was taken haha

tfw u realize you've mixed up The National with TV on the Radio for 15 years

Oh I do think this is exactly what happened, it looks like both these bands came out around the same time and were from New York and made a bunch of indie-ish records I never heard, I did not exactly think they were the same band but maybe I thought one was a side project or offshoot of the other.

Amazon has an incorrect tracklist for the Belle & Sebastian album out Friday. I thought it was somebody's parody titles but googling tells me this is for the new album by The National (based on them playing two of these songs live). Have they announced a new album yet or should I start a new-album detective agency?

1 Once Upon A Poolside (feat. Sufjan Stevens)
2 Eucalyptus
3 New Order T-Shirt
4 This Isn't Helping (feat. Phoebe Bridgers)
5 Tropic Morning News
6 Alien
7 The Alcott (With Taylor Swift)
8 Grease In Your Hair
9 Ice Machines
10 Your Mind Is Not Your Friend (feat. Phoebe Bridgers)
11 Send For Me

Obviously Belle & Sebastian and the National have merged into one group, Belle & Sebastional.

The Boy With The Alligator Strap

looking forward to future dad rock staple, New Order T-Shirt

anyway, they are playing bottlerock in napa in May so I assume they have a new album on the way and that tracklist looks likely. glad to see Phoebe all over it.

glad that "weird goodbyes" apparently isn't on it because it wasn't very good

Phoebe seems to be everywhere.

There might still be other songs on the album (even "Weird Goodbyes"?). Somebody pointed out, given the way this leaked, that the 11 track limit might match the number of tracks on the B&S album this appeared under by mistake, not the full number on The National album.

1 Once Upon A Poolside (feat. Sufjan Stevens)
2 Eucalyptus
3 New Order T-Shirt

wtf

“once upon a poolside” has got to be the most national song title of all time

If you'd said "By the Poolside I Sat and Wept," maybe.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdU0qwZKLfU

leaked tracklist was accurate. album is 47 minutes long (thank god) (even though i liked the last one's sprawl)

not as good as their past two lead singles but it's decent

why do you feat. Phoebe Bridgers but With Taylor Swift?

Maybe she co-wrote the song with them, and the others are just featured on songs that the band wrote?

yeah possible