Their self-titled debut album"The National" (Brassland 2001) was recorded and released before they had played even a single show. They cut the album with engineer Nick Lloyd and formed a label with writer Alec Bemis, so those recordings could be released. Kerrang! magazine gave it four Ks, calling it "the stuff underground legends are made of."
The National made a second album, "Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers" (Brassland/Talitres 2003). The staff was the same, though Peter Katis, who produced "Turn on The Bright Lights" and "Antics" by Interpol, helped produce and mix, and Australian composer Padma Newsome from Clogs collaborated on arrangements and strings.
Following the first session of several for Bernard Lenoir on France's Radio Inter, an in-between EP was released, Cherry Tree, containing what would become the blueprint for the sound on their next record and the session of Sad Song's standout Murder Me Rachael. After these accolades and being impressed by their live show, Roger Trust signed them to Beggars Banquet.
A show at their favorite bar became a van ride to neighboring cities, became a plane ride to Europe, became two summers overseas. Their ties to those good jobs slackened. And they continue on their own path, moving out even further out in Brooklyn to Ditmas Park, where there is space and familiar suburban streets and even Geese on Beverly Road. Their album, "Alligator", much of which was recorded at their homes in Ditmas Park, was engineered by Paul Mahajan, who has worked with the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and TV on the Radio. Padma Newsome camped out for a month with the band, and Peter Katis added more production and mixed the record at his house in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
Berninger's potent baritone still intones about matters fraught and funny and sad; about record collections, missing persons and medium-sized American hearts. But the record's not simply gothic or miserablist -- more like the plays of Tennessee Williams, it's full of peculiar intimacies and awkward grace. Alligator's heroes are reckless and possessed seducers, but they are apologetic ones. In The National's imaginings, in songs alternately lush and spare, there is something twighlit and dreamy worked out in the basement of our brains.
"Abel," "Secret Meeting," and "Lit Up" were released as singles.
On May 22, 2007, The National released their follow-up to Alligator, Boxer, on Beggars Banquet. Taking advantage of the fact that nobody had heard their first album and earliest demos, Matt proceeded to steal lyrics and melodies from them and give them the attention they deserved while keeping the intimacy that made them special. They even managed to convince new friend Sufjan Stevens to lay down some piano tracks for them, and recorded the album in a scant 6 months after coming off the long post-Alligator road.
"Mistaken for Strangers", "Fake Empire" and "Apartment Story" have been released as singles. The band have just finished touring North America and are on a large European autumn/winter tour after playing high slots at several large festivals. In their Dec. 07/Jan. 08 issue, Paste magazine named Boxer best record of 2007.
The band's fifth album, High Violet, was released on May 10, 2010 by 4AD Records. "Bloodbuzz Ohio", "Anyone's Ghost" and "Terrible Love" were released as singles.
In 2013 their sixth studio record Trouble Will Find Me was released and named "Best New Music" by Pitchfork. The album contained the single "I Need My Girl". In 2015, the album outtake "Sunshine On My Back" was released.
Four years after Trouble Will Find Me, marking the longest timespan between albums in their career so far, they released their seventh album Sleep Well Beast on September 8th, 2017 and were yet again met with great critical success.
The National homepage: http://www.americanmary.com/
The National blog http://tntl.tumblr.com
The National on Twitter http://twitter.com/TheNational
The National on Instagram http://instagram.com/TheNational
Brassland homepage: http://brassland.org/
Beggars Banquet homepage: http://www.beggars.com/
Hard to Find
The National Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can see them every night
Really not that far away
I could be there in a day
I wonder if you live there still
I kinda think you always will
If I tried, you'd probably be
Hard to find
What I feel now about you then
I'm just glad I can explain
You were beautiful and close and young
In those ways, we were the same
There's a lot I've not forgotten
When I let go of other things
If I tried, they'd probably be
Hard to find
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
I don't know why we had to lose
The ones who took so little space
We're still waiting for the ease
To cover what we can't erase
I'm not holding out for you
I'm still watching for the signs
If I tried, you'd probably be
Hard to find
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
The lyrics to The National's Hard to Find convey a sense of nostalgia and yearning. The singer reminisces about someone from their past, someone they may have lost touch with, and contemplates whether they are still living in the same place. The haunting melody and Matt Berninger's deep voice create a sense of longing, especially during the chorus when he repeats the refrain "if I tried, you'd probably be hard to find". The line "I don't know why we had to lose the ones who took so little space" expresses the feeling of regret and confusion when someone important to us is no longer around. The song also touches on the idea of memory and letting go of certain things, yet still holding onto the hope of finding what is lost.
Overall, the lyrics to Hard to Find are open to interpretation and can be relatable to anyone who has experienced a sense of loss and nostalgia. Berninger's introspective and emotive lyrics are complemented by the band's atmospheric instrumentation and production, resulting in a beautiful and introspective song.
Line by Line Meaning
I can see the glowing lights
I can see the lights that show a better future
I can see them every night
I always envision the bright lights that shine hope
Really not that far away
The light is closer than I think
I could be there in a day
I could reach that light in such a short time
I wonder if you live there still
I always think if that light still exists within you
I kinda think you always will
I believe that light will never fade away in you
If I tried, you'd probably be
Hard to find
Though that light is shining in you, it would be difficult to reach you
What I feel now about you then
The way I feel about you now compared to the past
I'm just glad I can explain
I'm grateful that I can articulate my emotions
You were beautiful and close and young
You were an exquisite youthful being that I held close to my heart
In those ways, we were the same
We were alike in those qualities
There's a lot I've not forgotten
There are many things about you that I still remember
When I let go of other things
When I release other memories
If I tried, they'd probably be
Hard to find
It's challenging to remember some things in my past
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
Those things can vanish without notice
I don't know why we had to lose
I do not understand why we had to lose some people
The ones who took so little space
Those who had a small footprint in our lives
We're still waiting for the ease
We're still waiting for comfort to come
To cover what we can't erase
To conceal what we cannot get rid of
I'm not holding out for you
I'm not waiting for you
I'm still watching for the signs
However, I'm still looking for clear indications
If I tried, you'd probably be
Hard to find
Finding you requires a lot of effort
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
All those individuals can go away without a trace
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Bryce Dessner, Matthew D. Berninger
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@archilarjevanidze
["Hard To Find" Lyrics]
I can see the glowing lights
I can see them every night
Really not that far away
I could be there in a day
I wonder if you live there still
I kinda think you always will
If I tried you'd probably be
Hard to find
What I feel now about you then
I'm just glad I can explain
You're beautiful and close and young
In those ways we were the same
There's a lot I've not forgotten
I let go of other things
If I tried they'd probably be
Hard to find
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
I don't know why we had to lose
The ones who took so little space
They're still waiting for the east
To cover what we can't erase
I'm not holding out for you
I'm still watching for the signs
If I tried you'd probably be
Hard to find
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
@matthewgarnier7701
I can see the glowing lights
I can see them every night
Really not that far away
I could be there in a day
I wonder if you live there still
I kinda think you always will
If I tried you'd probably be
Hard to find
What I feel now about you then
I'm just glad I can explain
You're beautiful and close and young
In those ways we were the same
There's a lot I've not forgotten
I let go of other things
If I tried they'd probably be
Hard to find
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
I don't know why we had to lose
The ones who took so little space
They're still waiting for the east
To cover what we can't erase
I'm not holding out for you
I'm still watching for the signs
If I tried you'd probably be
Hard to find
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
They can all
Just kiss off into the air
@PrinceOfPersia8888
I am mind blown there's a video for this after 7 years. This is my favourite song from my favourite band. This song touches me on a spiritual level. Not only does it perfectly embody a deeply ethereal sense of longing, but I would listen to it every evening right after TWFM came out in a special place. I was staying on Ometepe volcano island in Nicaragua, working at a farm co-op, and I would have to return from the cafe down the road before dark fell and I couldn't find my way safely back (there were no street lights). So every night I would play this song, walk back along the dirt road as the sun set over the volcano, the Nicaraguan schoolchildren would run past in their uniforms, and stray pigs and donkeys would amble casually beside me. It was, and is, the perfect song.
@aldopadron1520
Es muy chido cuando una canción te puede hacer eso 👌🏻
@PrinceOfPersia8888
Aldo Padrón - Sí, nunca lo olvidaré. Escuché esta canción todos los días porque el álbum era el único que tenía en mi iphone, pero no hubiera querido que fuera diferente.
@maxwelldewinter
Cyrus LOl! Really?
@ilhammagribi
I'm with you
@maxwelldewinter
Ilham Magribi Who cares about personal accounts relating to a song. The guy should write himself a letter and post it to himself!😂😃
@Mmxxaamm
I honestly believe this is one of the greatest bands in the world, not as a fanboy or anything, honestly from my heart think they are.
@Jacob32905
Yeah man. The National is top tier in my book too. In terms of creativity, lyrics, and overall musicianship they are some of the best doing it.
@Jaayn
They are. :)
@genghis_connie
This is one of very few bands I share songs with fellow musicians. I'm probably annoying about it. "Hey. Check out this time signature/lyric/harmony/assonance... "
Beyond all of that - Good grief, do most songs give a great nudge to one part of my noggin or another, and/or my soul thingamajig- even when the lyrics are just there to be lyrical or not intended to be relatable (like audio vereion of Pollack's art if Pollack wasn't mostly lazy and lucky).
See? I'm insufferable!