The National – 'Lit Up' (Beggars Banquet)
3/5
By: Thomas Hannan
For a few moments here this really could be the Bad Seeds, such is its deft combination of woe and anthemia. The National have apparently been doing this for six years over the course of four albums. That the present is their time is still in doubt, as you quite possibly even now haven't heard of them. But little secrets are always more fun to indulge in than worldwide obsessions anyway.
Whilst it shares common ground with them, it's less difficult than the Secret Machines, less highly strung than Editors, and momentarily as rewarding as either can be. It sounds huge, ominous, clanging. The tune's a remarkably strong one, but the only thing lacking is that it doesn't quite feel as if it's entirely theirs yet. That they haven't stamped something singularly of their ownership on it after this long might be cause for worry, but then again there is that old saying about the construction of Rome, contrary to popular belief, actually being rather time consuming. They're looking in the right places when asking where to go next. We got time, let's give them a little.
We couldn't find a sleeve-image of this release. So here's a monkey.
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