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/
So far so fast
The National Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Make yourself impossible for me to leave
I remember a kid in the water, I remember a world on fire
I was just comin' out of it, it was so hot all summer
I get so far, so fast
I get so far, so fast
You went running right into it, away from me
We have friends in good houses, we have kids in the trees
Now I have nothing but sleepless nights, about everything
I get so far, so fast
I get so far, so fast
Don't you know someday, somebody will come and find you?
If you don't know who you are anymore, they will remind you
We don't see you around here anymore, it's okay
I will say your name out loud, and you will be home
There are so many things that drive me crazy
What you think I am, it's never been me
Hearing you talk always saves me
Can you get away and talk to me?
I get so far, so fast
I get so far, so fast
I get so far, so fast
The National's song "So far so fast" is a melancholic reflection on the passing of time and the deepening of relationships. The opening verse of the song sets up a powerful image of two individuals locked in an emotional struggle. The singer asks his lover to "lay down in the doorway in front of me" in order to make leaving impossible. This request, at once needy and desperate, is emblematic of the contradictions that often underlie our closest relationships. The singer then remembers a time when he was a child and the world was on fire. This nostalgic recollection adds a layer of emotional complexity to the song, as it suggests that the singer is not just grappling with his own present but also with the weight of his past.
The chorus, which is repeated throughout the song, contains the refrain "I get so far, so fast." This line is actually quite ambiguous, and could mean a number of things. It could be a reflection of the singer's experience of time passing too quickly; or it could suggest his tendency to retreat inward, even as he finds himself growing closer to those around him. Whatever the meaning, this repeated phrase serves to ground the song in a sense of longing and contradiction.
The song's final verses explore themes of isolation and loss. The singer mourns the absence of a loved one who has "run right into" a storm, a blackout, and a quiet sea. This sense of loss is reinforced when the singer notes that he is now plagued by "sleepless nights about everything." The song ends on a poignant note of hope, as the singer suggests that even those who feel lost and disconnected can be brought home by the power of connection.
Line by Line Meaning
Lay down in the doorway in front of me
Stay close to me and make it hard for me to leave
Make yourself impossible for me to leave
Make it hard for me to leave your side
I remember a kid in the water, I remember a world on fire
I recall a time when everything was overwhelming and different
I was just comin' out of it, it was so hot all summer
I was starting to settle into life, but it felt like it took forever
I get so far, so fast
I move quickly but sometimes further away than I'd like
The storm, the blackout, the quiet sea
The tumultuous experiences we've been through together
You went running right into it, away from me
You seemed to run towards challenges and away from me
We have friends in good houses, we have kids in the trees
We have a beautiful life that's slipping through our fingers
Now I have nothing but sleepless nights, about everything
Now I'm up all night worrying, my mind racing
Don't you know someday, somebody will come and find you?
You'll find someone else, even if you're not sure who you are anymore
If you don't know who you are anymore, they will remind you
You'll forget who you are, but someone will help you figure it out
We don't see you around here anymore, it's okay
We've lost touch, but that's alright
I will say your name out loud, and you will be home
I'll call on you and you'll feel like you're back where you belong
There are so many things that drive me crazy
There's a lot going on that's frustrating me
What you think I am, it's never been me
You're misunderstanding who I really am
Hearing you talk always saves me
Listening to you talk makes me feel better
Can you get away and talk to me?
Can we have some private time to talk?
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Aaron Dessner, Bryce Dessner, Matthew D. Berninger
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind