7 products
Boxer
Regular price $29.00 Save $-29.00The follow-up to 2005's "Alligator" is filled with lush arrangements and sees the band incorporating new instrumentation and expanded musical elements such as piano, trumpet, and more prominent background vocals. "... churning grooves and shambling new wave rips, turning up depressed guitar poetry that's both elegantly wasted and kinda murky" - Rolling Stone. "The National traffic in poignant moments of heartbreak and regret, but pain has rarely sounded so beautiful" - Spin.
Cherry Tree
Regular price $22.00 Save $-22.00Twenty years on from the release of their 2001 self-titled debut album, The National are reissuing it along with 2003's follow-up Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers and 2004's Cherry Tree EP. With all three records having been remastered at Abbey Road Studios, the 2021 represses stay faithful to their original artwork while their stunning new masters help make these much-loved records sound as vital as ever, further emphasizing the early signs of the sound that would go on to make them one of the finest and most beloved alternative bands of their generation.
Released a year before The National broke through with their third album Alligator, the Cherry Tree EP is a thrilling record which - thanks to its collection of delicate ballads and anthemic crowd-pleasers - sums up what they do best in under 30 minutes. Now a firm fan-favorite, among Cherry Tree's seven tracks are now National classics "About Today" and "All The Wine," plus a thrilling live version of "Murder Me Rachael" that reminds of the band's fearsome early live performances.
Cherry Tree can be seen as the record that marks the moment when The National had truly found themselves, a bridge from what went before to a band ready to conquer the world. And with this new master, it's never sounded better!
First Two Pages Of Frankenstein (Indie Exclusive, Red Vinyl)
Regular price $26.00 Save $-26.00First Two Pages of Frankenstein is The National’s ninth studio album. This 11-song collection signals a new chapter in the band’s discography. Anchored by evocative melodies and an enthralling lyrical narrative, First Two Pages of Frankenstein finds The National sounding more creatively energized than ever and poised to earn them even more fans. The album was produced by the band at Long Pond Studios in upstate New York and features guest appearances by Taylor Swift (""The Alcott""), Phoebe Bridgers (""This Isn't Helping"" and ""Your Mind Is Not Your Friend"") and Sufjan Stevens (""Once Upon a Poolside""). Indie Red Vinyl.
Laugh Track (Indie Exclusive, Clear Pink Vinyl)
Regular price $50.00 Save $-50.00
The surprise companion to The National’s April release First Two Pages of Frankenstein, Laugh Track is the band’s most freewheeling, all-hands-on-deck album in years. If Frankenstein represented a rebuilding of trust between group members after 20+ years together, the vibrant, exploratory Laugh Track is both the product of that faith and a new statement of intent. Reveling in the license to radically upend its creative process, The National honed most of this material in live performances on tour, and captured those invigorated versions in impromptu sessions at producer Tucker Martine’s Portland studio. Two nights later in Vancouver, the nearly eight-minute album closer “Smoke Detector” was recorded during soundcheck, completing a body of work bristling with spontaneity and vintage rock energy that makes a perfect complement to the songs found on its more introspective predecessor.
1. Alphabet City2. Deep End (Paul’s in Pieces)3. Weird Goodbyes (feat. Bon Iver)4. Turn off the House5. Dreaming6. Laugh Track (feat. Phoebe Bridgers)7. Space Invader8. Hornets9. Coat on a Hook10. Tour Manager11. Crumble (feat. Rosanne Cash)12. Smoke Detector
Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers
Regular price $25.00 Save $-25.00Twenty years on from the release of their 2001 self-titled debut album, The National are reissuing it along with 2003's follow-up Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers and 2004's Cherry Tree EP. With all three records having been remastered at Abbey Road Studios, the 2021 represses stay faithful to their original artwork while their stunning new masters help make these much-loved records sound as vital as ever, further emphasizing the early signs of the sound that would go on to make them one of the finest and most beloved alternative bands of their generation.
The National's second album, Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers proved a leap forward from 2001's eponymous debut, showing a band adept at delivering warm embraces and gut punches in equal measure. With word of mouth now spreading on the band, critics proved equally enthusiastic. Pitchfork in their glowing review called it a "Gorgeous train wreck" that "Lives up to its blunt title (with) Matt Berninger's self-effacing barbs matched by the band's equally potent hooks," while Uncut also became early champions saying the album was "A genuine treasure... Livid as a bruise, this is brave, desperate, beautiful music."
No longer a secret among those that know, Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers is an important record in The National's discography with this new remaster showing that it's more than standing the test of time.
Sleep Well Beast (white vinyl)
Regular price $30.00 Save $-30.00The National's elegant seventh full-length album Sleep Well Beast follows-up 2013's Trouble Will Find Me and their 2015 Ragnar Kjartansson collaboration A Lot Of Sorrow. Produced by band member Aaron Dessner with co-production by Bryce Dessner and Matt Berninger, the 12-track collection was mixed by Peter Katis and recorded at Aaron's Hudson Valley, New York studio, Long Pond, with additional sessions having taken place in Berlin, Paris and Los Angeles. The album comes preceded by the urgent lead single "The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness" complete with a freewheeling Aaron Dessner guitar solo which sounds heavily influenced by his recent Grateful Dead tribute project Day of the Dead. Pressed on 2 x 12" standard weight colored vinyl LPs with accompanying folded poster and 2 inner sleeves.