Band
The National

The National is an indie rock band formed in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1999 and currently based in Brooklyn, New York. The band's lyrics, which have been described as "dark, melancholy and difficult to interpret", are written and sung by Matt Berninger, a baritone. The rest of the band is composed of two pairs of brothers: twins Aaron (guitar and keyboard) and Bryce Dessner (guitar) and Scott (bass) and Bryan Devendorf (drums). The National has been co ... mpared to Joy Division, Leonard Cohen, Wilco and Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds. The name of the band was chosen because it "didn't mean anything" and was "benign and meaningless". In 1991, Matt Berninger and Scott Devendorf met while attending the University of Cincinnati, where they also met Mike Brewer, Casey Reas and Jeff Salem. Together, the five of them formed the lo-fi garage band Nancy, named after Berninger's mother, aspiring to sound like Pavement. The band was together for five years, but only released one album, Ruther 3429, on Wife Records before breaking up after Berninger, Devendorf, Reas and Salem moved to Brooklyn. Bryan, Bryce and Aaron were childhood friends who played in several bands together over the years. When their last effort, Project Nim, broke up in 1998, they joined Matt and Scott in Brooklyn via the Devendorf relationship. When the band was formed in 1999, it was called The National, although the domain name of the band's website is americanmary.com because, according to Matt Berninger in an interview with Better Propaganda, "t's a song off our first record. We never thought of changing the (website) name, although we should have." Several of the members continued to work day jobs while performing free Sunday night shows regularly at the highly regarded NYC Lower East Side venue, Luna Lounge, throughout the early years, including being involved in New York's dot-com boom in the late 1990s. See more [+]

I Need My Girl |||||

I am good, I am grounded Davey says that I look taller But I...

The Rains Of Castamere |||||

And who are you, the proud lord said That I must bow so low?...

Pink Rabbits |||||

I couldn't find quiet I went out in the rain I was just soak...

29 Years |||||

Could you tell the enchantment and say goodbye I met a girl ...

Graceless |||||

Graceless Is there a powder to erase this? Is it dissolvable...

Humiliation |||||

I survived the dinner and the air went thinner I retired to...

Don't Swallow The Cap |||||

Dull light breaks behind the houses I don't see what's stran...

Fireproof |||||

You keep a lot of secrets And I keep none Wish I could go ba...

Weird Goodbyes |||||

Memorize the bathwater, memorize the air There'll come a tim...

Hard To Find |||||

I can see the glowing lights, I can see them every night Re...

Heavenfaced |||||

I could walk out, but I won't, In my mind I am in your arms....

The System Only Dreams In Total Darkness |||||

Maybe I listen more than you think and I can tell that someb...

I Should Live In A Salt |||||

Don't make me read your mind You should know me better than ...

Slipped |||||

I'm in the city you hated, my eyes are fallen Counting the c...

This Is The Last Time |||||

Jenny I am in trouble Can't get these thoughts out of me Jen...

Nobody Else Will Be There |||||

You said we're not so tied together What did you mean? Meet ...

Demons |||||

When I think of you in the city The sight of you among the s...

Sea Of Love |||||

Will you say you love me Jo? How am I supposed to know? When...

This Is The Last Time |||||

Oh, when I lift you up you feel like a hundred times your- s...

Rylan |||||

Rylan, you should try to get some sun. You remind me of ever...

Terrible Love |||||

It's a terrible love and I'm walking with spiders It's a ter...

Think You Can Wait |||||

I was drifting, crying I was looking for an island I was sli...

Runaway |||||

There's no savin' anything Now we're swallowin' the shine of...

Peggy-o |||||

As we rode on out to Fennario, As we rode on out to Fennari...

Bloodbuzz Ohio |||||

Stand up straight at the foot of your love I'll lift my shir...

Sunshine On My Back |||||

Tina lies on the ground She lies there forever She likes the...

Carin At The Liquor Store |||||

I was a worm, I was a creature I get on the ground the secon...

Exile Vilify |||||

Exile. It takes your mind again. Exile. It takes your mind a...

Fake Empire |||||

Stay out super late tonight picking apples, making pies put ...

I Should Live In Salt |||||

Don't make me read your mind You should know me better than ...

Oblivions |||||

It's almost like you're not afraid of anything I do How I wa...

Quiet Light |||||

I used to fall asleep to you talking to me I don't listen to...

Secret Meeting |||||

I think this place is full of spies I think they're onto me ...

The Geese Of Beverly Road |||||

We'll take ourselves out in the street And wear the blood i...

Anna Freud |||||

Everyone is watching But nobody is watching for you I don't ...

Ashamed Of The Story I Told |||||

Was it nothing I said? It's so attractive to be so silent It...

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