Alligator

Rating

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Album: Alligator
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Secret Meeting	More Info...	0:03
2)	Karen	More Info...	0:04
3)	Lit Up	More Info...	0:03
4)	Looking for Astronauts	More Info...	0:03
5)	Daughters of the Soho Riots	More Info...	0:04
6)	Baby, We'll Be Fine	More Info...	0:03
7)	Friend of Mine	More Info...	0:03
8)	Val Jester	More Info...	0:03
9)	All the Wine	More Info...	0:03
10)	Abel	More Info...	0:03
11)	The Geese of Beverly Road	More Info...	0:05
12)	City Middle	More Info...	0:04
13)	Mr. November	More Info...	0:04

Album: Alligator
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Secret Meeting	More Info...	0:03
2)	Karen	More Info...	0:04
3)	Lit Up	More Info...	0:03
4)	Looking for Astronauts	More Info...	0:03
5)	Daughters of the Soho Riots	More Info...	0:04
6)	Baby, We'll Be Fine	More Info...	0:03
7)	Friend of Mine	More Info...	0:03
8)	Val Jester	More Info...	0:03
9)	All the Wine	More Info...	0:03
10)	Abel	More Info...	0:03
11)	The Geese of Beverly Road	More Info...	0:05
12)	City Middle	More Info...	0:04
13)	Mr. November	More Info...	0:04

Performer Notes

The National: Matthew Berninger (vocals); Scott Devendorf (guitar, bass guitar); Bryce Dessner (guitar); Aaron Dessner (guitars, bass guitar); Bryan Devendorf (drums).
The National's debut for Beggars Banquet Records boasts eloquent production and some of frontman Matt Berninger's finest songs. The Brooklyn band's sound includes elements of folk and swirling indie rock, with Berninger's literate, emotive tunes drawing heavily on the tradition of melancholic singer/songwriters. On "Daughters of the Soho Riots," Berninger's baritone croon recalls Gordon Lightfoot, yet his lyrics are incisive, confessional, and decidedly contemporary. The combination of surreal imagery and genuine pathos in "Baby, We'll Be Fine" (expressed in the song's repeated refrain) is also representative of Berninger's craft.
Two pairs of brothers--Aaron and Bryce Dessner (guitars) and Scott and Bryan Devendorf (bass and drums, respectively)--keep things alternately chiming, churning, and appropriately atmospheric. The startling relationship sketch "Karen," for example, rides a light rock pulse dominated by piano and augmented by strings, making it one of the album's shining moments. "All the Wine" turns Berninger's usually dark self-exploration on its head with its semi-ironic self-aggrandizement. ALLIGATOR's 13 tracks testify to the National's standing as one of the more distinctive and absorbing bands around.

Professional Reviews

Uncut (p.94) - 5 stars out of 5 - "[B]uried in the richness of their music, there's a spare elegance unheard since The Triffids....They feed an energy more residual than that of The Rapture or The Strokes."

Magnet (p.53) - Ranked #10 in Magnet's "The 20 Best Albums Of 2005" - "Once inside, you're privy to literate songs about conflicted men, unhinged minds and worried heroes."

Mojo (Publisher) (p.108) - 4 stars out of 5 - "[The album] walks the same Cold War-era Bowery streets as Interpol but is not more than a half step away from lysergic brilliance."