The National - Sleep Well Beast (September 8, 2017) Album • Page 57

end of the year

 

Fuck sake why is it so obvious now?
I was like, AOTY is Album of the year, so what’s the E mean?

 

Sometimes in my head it's "Everything of the Year" lol

 

My girlfriend also lets me talk about my top ten with her on Christmas Eve (that's just the tradition we started) every year. Bless her heart. So it's definitely a tradition for me. Part of the holidays.

 

I saw them live on Thursday night and they were so good.

They played:

Nobody Else Will Be There
The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness
Walk It Back
Don’t Swallow the Cap
Sea of Love
Empire Line
Turtleneck
I Need My Girl
This is the Last Time
I’ll Still Destroy You
Lemonworld
Conversation 16
Bloodbuzz Ohio
Guilty Party
Dark Side of the Gym
Day I Die
Sleep Well Beast
Fake Empire
Wasp Nest
Pink Rabbits
Mr. November
Terrible Love

 

now that's a setlist

 

Yes I was super happy with it! The night before they'd played The Geese of Beverly Road so I was a bit sad I missed that, but couldn't be too sad as I got Wasp Nest instead

 

Lemonworld and Conversation 16 back 2 back would kill me

 

Finally listened enough to form a reasonable opinion. I really dig the closing five-song run. Before that I find the album hit or miss. The opener doesn't do a lot for me -- I Should Live In Salt has a great chorus and the previous couple were epics, I just don't know what to make of Nobody Else yet. Day I Die is good but a little by-the-numbers. The interlude part in Walk It Back I find a distracting rather than adding much. System was a grower but I like it a lot now. Born to Beg might not be forgettable in general but it is to me, I can never remember it at all. Turtleneck is okay, a little out of place and I wouldn't want to hear the isolated vox but I don't hate it as much as others I've seen. Empire Line is when the album turns slower, and much better. But I don't like it as much as the next four tracks especially. That's a superb run and, not coincidentally, more in line with say Boxer than the work preceding it. I'll keep listening and hopefully more clicks. At this stage I'd place it just below TWFM.

 

Lemonworld is a top 10 National song and people sleep on it

 

im a big fan of turtleneck. huge

 

The hooks in that song are so good.

 

Around here I see a lot of praise for Lemonworld but when HV first came out I saw a lot of distaste for it. I don’t get it, what’s not to like?

 

Lemonworld is fantastic but I don't like anything else on that album nearly as much.

 

Well that's fucking weird cause Bloodbuzz Ohio and England are also on that album.

 

And Conversation 16 which is one of their catchiest songs imo

cuz iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiim eeeviilll

 

Man, I love High Violet. So many great tracks on there: Terrible Love, Sorrow, Afraid Of Everyone, Bloodbuzz Ohio, Conversation 16, Vanderlyle...only song on that album I'm not 100% sold on yet is Anyone's Ghost.

 

Anyone's Ghost is probably their worst song. High Violet has so many of their best though.

 

High Violet is still my least favorite of their post Alligator work but I bought it recently to play in my car and hope the more constant exposure will change that. Bloodbuzz Ohio, Terrible Love, Vanderlyle are all some of my favorites from there

 

Watch the National Cover New Order’s “Love Vigilantes” | Pitchfork

Could it be better than the Iron & Wine cover?

 

HV is my least favorite of the last 5 (6 if I'm feeling angsty). Still great though. Afraid of Everyone and Vanderlyle are top tier National tracks.

 

I kind of felt like HV was their big break. I know they'd gotten increasingly bigger but HV felt like another level of popularity, probably the peak at which they have since remained. I'd also consider Terrible Love their consensus best song if a poll were taken. More personally speaking Crybaby Geeks is my favourite closer of their catalogue apart from Mr November. Runaway is killer. Bloodbuzz might be my favourite National song overall because it helped me really 'get' the band. I struggle to find any flat spots with HV although obviously I like some tracks more than others. I like it better than TWFM and thought that was the general feeling until reading through this thread. Each to their own!

 

Terrible Love their best song? I don’t think that’s a very common opinion actually. I could certainly be wrong though. I personally don’t even think it’s their best song on that record.

 

Terrible Love doesn't really come to life until you see it live and then hooooly shit.

 

Not my fav either but I thought that or Fake Empire would be the top choice. I hadn't actually checked. Will do now...

Top National songs...
NME: Terrible Love 5th; Fake Empire 2nd (Bloodbuzz 1st)
Stereogum: No Terrible Love; Fake Empire 3rd (Bloodbuzz 1st)
The Guardian: Terrible Love 8th; Fake Empire 5th (no Bloodbuzz)
Paste: Terrible Love 2nd; Fake Empire 1st (Bloodbuzz 7th)
Indieheads: Terrible Love 6th; Fake Empire 1st (Bloodbuzz 2nd)

Well there ya go