4AD Schallplatten & CDs

Review: It's fair to say that when The National release an album the Cincinnati originating supergroup garner the same type of attention that Radiohead once drew. With some futuristic production techniques creeping its way into the band's engineered sound, a new expressionism in the group's sound on "I Am Easy To Find" makes its way into the open, if only subtly. With the opening passages of "You Had Your Soul With You" sounding something like Battles' "Atlas", the music breaks down into a fanfare of traditional yet supercharged folk instrumentations; with drums, spoken word, strings in all their various forms, and the familiar smokey drawl of Matt Berninger's voice sitting snugly on top of subtle drum machines and synthesisers. Super ballads and sincerity.

Review: Here is a CD version of The First Two Pages of Frankenstein, the ninth studio album from The National and as impressively put together as ever. Across the 11 songs contained here, recorded in New York and featuring an array of top notch guests such as Taylor Swift, Phoebe Bridgers and Sufjan Stevens, it marks new territory of sorts with its more emotional melodic content and denser lyrical offerings.