The National

"Their music has a capacity to fuse itself into the fabric of our daily lives more than any other, moving gently at first, in such a way that you don’t initially notice the depth behind each song. But they’ll tell you themselves that the melodies that stand out on the first listen won’t be there on the tenth listen. That’s the way they work, composing with the challenge of refining each song with unprecedented complexity. In the beginning there’s an obvious melody line, in which each musician offers something particularly special. Then Matt Berninger arrives with his unique poetry, allowing the music to unravel into rare heights. The difference between the songs on these videos and the ones on their upcoming album is pretty striking."