The National/ High Violet

The National
High Violet
(4AD)

Brooklyn’s The National have never really made much of an impact on these shores. Achieving critical rather than commercial success they have constantly received excellent reviews and have made several ‘lists of the year’. While back home they are fairly well known (partly due to their song ‘Fake Empire’ being used by Barack Obama on his campaign trail), somehow in the UK they have failed to turn that praise into record sales.
Sounding like the tougher, harder big brother of the Tindersticks, the American indie rockers are back with this, their fifth LP.
Self-produced and recorded in the band’s own studio in Brooklyn, 'High Violet' is pretty much as you’d expect. With the rich orchestration that seems to effortlessly fill the room and vocalist Matt Berninger’s trademark baritone voice, the album is made up of 11 well produced and highly polished tracks, including forthcoming single ‘Bloodbuzz Ohio’ and the absolutely gorgeous ‘Runaway’. Generally more of a continuation of previous work than a groundbreaking change in direction, ‘Congratulations’ this is not. But then why fix something that isn't broken?