The National Boxer by: Steve Scully Tue:17-Apr-07 Label: Beggars Banquet Year: 2007 WB rating 77 out of 100

Not many people sing like Matt Berninger, but those who do have made similar nicotine-stained, bourbon-drenched drones their trademark: Tom Waits’ growling vocals and artists such as Smog have incorporated the same melancholy monotone to great effect. Although his vocals are undoubtedly a draw card on Boxer, a possibly-unfair sense of derivation arises far too often when we’re confronted with Berninger’s husky tales of despair.

Derivation is a hallmark of The National’s sound. In fact, it seems they wear their influences heavily, and in shiny, bright colours, not merely on their sleeves, but on big, furry, over-sized top-hats that screams: ‘we grew up listening to Joy Division, New Order, The Smiths and early R.E.M.!’ With a voice like a tired, unenthusiastic Morrissey set to a New Wave beat and atmospheric, unassuming guitars, The National have developed their own little pastiche of styles encompassing both their ‘80s pop influences and a mix of subtler, more folkish elements.

Throughout Boxer, there is a sense that all of these influences are fighting for predominance, creating an album of two distinct halves: the first a very producer-inspired, dark, Interpol-esque ‘80’s retro-pop; the second approaching a mellower, guitar-driven, Dylanesque sound. It is surprising that when all of these influences are blended together the output has a charming, melodic and strikingly innovative feel.

The opening track of Boxer, ‘Fake Empire’ is one of the retro-pop tunes, but don’t let this detract from the fact that it is not only an excellent song, but a showcase for the band’s vast talent and musicianship. Beginning with a lovely, poppy piano progression, Berninger mumbles through his almost moribund fatigue the fitting lines “we’re half awake/In our fake empire.” Indeed, the song is as graceful as it is memorable. While the rhythm remains constant, snippets of brilliance ascribable to some understated guitar work are subtly woven through. The song is further lifted by the layering of horns towards the track’s conclusion and Berninger’s lyricism which is sometimes strikingly good, the simplicity of the opening lines: “Stay out super-late tonight/Picking apples/Making pie/Put a little something in our lemonade/Take it with us.”

‘Green Gloves’ is the first sign on Boxer that there is more to The National than pounding rhythms and ‘80’s retrospect. While the acoustic opening and simple, smooth guitar riff make for a pleasant change from the previous tracks, the most impressive quality on show is restraint. Whereas so many bands opt for the fist-pumping, chest-pounding, club-wielding, boar-killing, anthemic choruses, it is easy to forget how impressive it is when musicians do the opposite to great effect, allowing the chorus’s engraving on your subconscious to be a gradual, organic process. Through quiet harmonies and a simple melody, The National evokes the ‘80’s pop grandeur of U2, and the Killer’s plundering of that era and run it through their own sound, giving a sense that there might very well be, amidst all their apparent derivativeness, a very strong independence and individualism. 

The National continue to branch out as Boxer progresses. ‘Slow Show’ is a touching alt-country ballad in which Berninger’s dead-pan delivery of the lines: “You know I dreamed about you/I missed you for 29 years” belies the song’s obvious emotional core. ‘Start A War’ and ‘Ada’ hark back to a ‘70’s folk feel, with any listener sure to be entranced by the beautiful horns that permeate the chorus of the latter; the album-closer ‘Gospel’ would not seem out of place on Nick Cave’s often-underrated No More Shall We Part.

Peter Katis, acclaimed producer of Interpol and Australian band, The Grates, worked with The National again on this record, his relationship with the band going as far back as their 2002 record Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers. Katis’ influence is clear from early on in Boxer; the swirling instrumentation serves a contextual rather than substantive role, as the emphasis is placed heavily on the rhythmic drive to most of the songs. Only in the latter half of the album, as the quieter, acoustic tracks become more frequent, does The National step out of this producer-driven paradigm: they put the New Wave swagger to one side in favour of rather elegant, melodic, folk/pop balladry. Nonetheless, at every point on the album the production is utterly superb – the strings on ‘Squalor Victoria’, the horns throughout, and the gloriously full sound of ‘Fake Empire’ particularly so.

The National are now eight-years-old, and this record shows a growing maturity in their sound, as well as a desire to take risks with instrumentation and genre-crossing. Impressive and engaging, Boxer is a striking record from a very clean, tight outfit.