Just released this past week, The National's "Bloodbuzz Ohio" persists their pensive, subdued, and burdened sound. It is great for when you just need to think something through, like a walk through the park on a gray day. No doubt, the song is in part about their original home in Ohio, though they are now from Brooklyn.
For me the hook in this song is the syncopated drums and piano that persist all the way through. As obvious as a cheap parlor trick, syncopation still entertains.
Sometimes a band or song takes some time to grow on you. You may completely not notice them the first time you hear them, or you may even think of them as dull and boring. After listening to them for a while, they grow on you and you start to question how you did not love them to begin with? How you could ever have lived without them? I had the experience with Arcade Fire earlier this year and I've had the same experience with Scotch and perhaps even with G.
My latest example of this phenomenon in my life is "The National". Everything I've read has told me that I should love this band. Yet at first I listened to the album "Boxer" (about 6 months ago) and thought them quite dull and underwhelming. I tried again a few months ago and no change. This past week though I decided I'd give them a serious try. I put the album on repeat and listened 3 times through. The next day I found myself wanting to listen to one of the songs again. Now, a week later, I find I am loving some of the songs, including this one "Mistaken For Strangers". As I have noted before, familiarity is a huge factor in what music you like or do not like, and perhaps I have forced it with The National and other bands before them, but does it matter? Perhaps it is even a good thing. An acquired taste once acquired can often be far more enjoyable than the sugar laced tastes that frequently lack longevity or depth.
Give "The National" a try. And then another …and another, and report back to me.
