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THE NATIONAL: I NEED MY GIRL

Matt Berninger, the oaken baritone singer of The National, is like the Neil Diamond of indie rock.
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The National is one of my favourite bands. On the top 5 of my personal list of 13 Cult Bands You Must Worship Before You Die—well, I guess they’re no longer so cult. They won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in 2017. Meaning they’re already pretty mainstream, right? They’re still ultra cool, though.

To me, they are like the adult contemporary version of Interpol. The National are part of the indie rock aristocracy.

I was supposed to go see them in Perth in March. But then the apocalypse happened—fuck you, COVID.

I first watched The National in Singapore in 2010 or 2011. After the beautiful show, I became even more obsessed with. them. Slick, sophisticated, elegant, and refined. Matt Berninger is like the Neil Diamond of indie rock. Or, as Pitchfork said, a Cary Grant interpretation of Leonard Cohen.

The National in 2001 | Graham McIndoe

The song here, “I Need My Girl”, is one of my favorite songs among many of their amazing creations. It was released as a single in November 2013 (UK) and January 2014 (US). Listen to Berninger’s deep, rich, oaken baritone. Every time I hear his voice, I get chills.

“The National,” wrote MEMAAustixTX, “have been one of the most critically acclaimed bands of the last decade. Touring worldwide and releasing album after album of challenging, intricate music, they have steadily risen to become among the most prominent voices in modern rock.”

💧 You might also like LIAM MCKAHEY: SO LONG, MARIANNE.

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Featured image via Coup de Main.

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Rudolf Dethu

Rudolf Dethu

Music journalist, writer, radio DJ, socio-political activist, creative industry leader, and a qualified librarian, Rudolf Dethu is heavily under the influence of the punk rock philosophy. Often tagged as this country’s version of Malcolm McLaren—or as Rolling Stone Indonesia put it ‘the grand master of music propaganda’—a name based on his successes when managing Bali’s two favourite bands, Superman Is Dead and Navicula, both who have become two of the nation’s biggest rock bands.
Rudolf Dethu

Rudolf Dethu

Music journalist, writer, radio DJ, socio-political activist, creative industry leader, and a qualified librarian, Rudolf Dethu is heavily under the influence of the punk rock philosophy. Often tagged as this country’s version of Malcolm McLaren—or as Rolling Stone Indonesia put it ‘the grand master of music propaganda’—a name based on his successes when managing Bali’s two favourite bands, Superman Is Dead and Navicula, both who have become two of the nation’s biggest rock bands.

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