There are a lot of artists that produce a fantastic first record, but unfortunately the follow-up release doesn’t quite meet the hype or expectation. The National however, have been growing stronger and more prominent in the international music scene.
Since works such as ‘Fake Empire’, ‘Mistaken For Strangers’, and just about everyone’s favourite ‘Bloodbuzz Ohio’, the five-piece have yet to produce anything short of exceptional. After a brief visit to our shores in 2013, the brood-rockers were back to treat Australia audiences once again.
Up first were Melbourne-born, Brooklyn-based Luluc, who were notably sweet and pleasant. Within the breaks between songs, they very humble and thanked headliners The National for bringing them on a national tour – a fantastic opportunity that wasn’t lost on the underground acoustic duo.
Zoe Randall’s vocals were near identical to her speaking voice. The frontwoman opted for a more relaxed storytelling approach rather than vocal gymnastics, scaffolded by delicate acoustic guitar in conjunction with Scott Hassett’s multi-instrumentation over the course of their half hour set.
With an ever-growing crowd rife with anticipation for the American legends, it was time for the headliners to take the stage. The five-piece rockers didn’t embellish the stage in over-the-top decor; instead, their focus was on music and music alone.
The crowd was split half-half in standing and sitting areas, which wasn’t too much of an unreasonable situation. Assuming no one was there to dance or mosh, it seemed as though the more hardcore National fans tried hard to make their way to the front couple of rows, with those behind and seated simply happy to view a solid show.
The crowd members who had seen the band before, be it at their Splendour In The Grass set or a sideshow, knew to expect a vast number of quality songs. The National aren’t known to be a group with “that song”, or to have only one single that truly defines them. Rather, they have an array of fantastic tracks that they’re able to pluck out of their discography and put into their setlist in any order.
This was absolutely true of the Adelaide leg of their tour. The band opened with a couple of tracks from their latest album Trouble Will Find Me, being ‘Don’t Swallow The Cap’ and ‘I Should Live In Salt’, followed by a variation of tracks from High Violet including ‘Sorrow’.
The Brooklyn group kept on playing song after brilliant song. While it might seem like the most fundamental thing that any band could do at a show, it felt like such a different method of performance to anyone who had played at Adelaide’s Thebarton Theatre before them.
From ‘About Today’ off the fantastic EP Cherry Tree, to a cover of Perfume Genius’ ‘Learning’ and so, so much more in between, the band covered a range of tunes. Their set was incredibly long, however the majority of the crowd never grew weary, and certainly never stopped singing along.
There’s serious doubt that anyone who strolled out of Thebby’s doors did so unsatisfied. Much like their similar set on the same stage just two years ago, it’s only a matter of time before The National release yet another killer album and tour Australia once again – but we’ll just have to be patient.
