The National Biography

The National is an indie rock band that encloses the members Matt Berninger, Aaron Dessner, Bryce Dessner, Bryan Devendorf and Scott Devendorf. Berninger and Scott met each other in college and played in a band before. The other three members knew each other since childhood and also played in bands together.

Early Releases

The National came to life in 1999. Their self-entitled first album appeared in 2001. It was released through a label founded by the Dessner brothers together with Alec Hanley Bemis. In 2003 they issued Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers, an album that was critically acclaimed. The Chicago Tribune chose this album as album of the year. Berninger and his band really began to shine after the album Alligator in 2005. The album was praised by critics and garnished more attention for The National.

Further Career

They didn’t disappoint when they released the next album Boxer. With singles like “Mistaken for Strangers” and “Fake Empire”, the album received an 86/100 rating from Metascore. “Fake Empire” was used in the series Hung, Chuck and Southland. Their success streak continued with the album High Violet (2010). The album topped charts and spawned the iconic hit “Bloodbuzz Ohio”. The band gained new fans after recording a version of “The Rains of Castamere” for the tv series Game of Thrones. The 2013 album Trouble Will Find Me contained songs that again made it into tv series and movies soundtracks. The National teased their new album with the single “The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness”. Sleep Well Beast will be out on 8 September 2017.

Photo credit: ToneDeaf