rumbleHUM

I first experienced the band, the National, while scanning a list of live concerts posted on National Public Radio’s All Songs Considered podcasts.  I discovered listed there a number of concerts performed by bands who were obtaining exposure through various websites and other media but who still remained obscure at least to me.  You can find find the website here: www.npr.org/series/live-in-concert/.  With roots in the mid-west, the band gelled in New York City, which agrees with their sound and message oozing from their songs.  The band begs comparisons with Joy Division, its melancholic sadness, played quietly and softly, the lyrics crooned by the baritone Matt Beringer, so subtle that the profound words might escape unnoticed if you fail to pay attention, the strange atmospheric music bass laden but also fringed with a distant guitar, calling from the distance.  These elements taken alone make the National a proficient band, capable of not just composing a...