Ohio indie rockers, The National, are taking over London's Eventim Apollo this week with a series of four sold out shows.
For a band with seven albums in their back catalogue and over fifteen years of touring history, it was perhaps a brave decision to start the concert with four songs from their latest release, Sleep Well Beast.
The group clearly know their fans, however, because each song was received like an old friend.
This trend continued as frontman Matt Berninger moved on to old classics such as Sea of Love and Bloodbuzz Ohio. Without (memorable) exception, the audience applauded and cheered for an extended period after each song, which is something I'd never seen before.
When a band has such a strong range of albums to choose from, clearly each song on the setlist resonated with a different member of the audience. I met two women who have been fans of The National for ten years and have been to the same number of concerts, and one of the pair was so overcome with emotion when Graceless was performed for the first time this tour.
When a band has such a strong range of albums to choose from, clearly each song on the setlist resonated with a different member of the audience. I met two women who have been fans of The National for ten years and have been to the same number of concerts, and one of the pair was so overcome with emotion when Graceless was performed for the first time this tour.
Irish singer Lisa Hannigan, who provided backing vocals on Sleep Well Beast, joined The National at multiple points during the night. Her enchanting vocals were sadly lost at first, but after a few adjustments she provided a haunting accompaniment to Matt's iconic baritone voice.
Matt's voice also reached new levels of emotion when it transcended into a guttural scream on certain songs.
Matt's voice also reached new levels of emotion when it transcended into a guttural scream on certain songs.
As the night drew to a close, Matt announced that they were to sing 'the most depressing song we've ever written' - About Today. Hailing from their 2004 EP Cherry Tree, this was a particularly special moment. The crowd fell silent and eyes were drawn once again to the incredible light show behind the musicians.
The National's lighting was attention grabbing, switching from vintage-style live footage of the band to bright lights that at moments reminded me of Aphex Twin's set at Field Day festival.
Having performed a cover of Talking Heads' Heaven, support act This Is the Kit and Lisa Hannigan joined the stage for a beautiful, bittersweet rendition of Born to Beg.
The icing on the cake of a beautiful two hour concert was the final song choice - Terrible Love. Matt walked through the crowd as we all sang in unison 'it takes an ocean not to break'.
My only regret is that we didn't get to hear Mr November, my favourite song.
My only regret is that we didn't get to hear Mr November, my favourite song.
The National can be depressing, and there's no denying I felt slightly melancholy this morning, but in today's world it is simply impossible - at least for me at least - to pretend that everything is going swimmingly.
We need music that examines our deepest emotions to prevent us from burying our heads in the sand. And with that being said, we need The National.
We need music that examines our deepest emotions to prevent us from burying our heads in the sand. And with that being said, we need The National.
