Pitchfork

Despite the unease lurking in their shadows, the National are comforting. That doesn't sound very rock'n'roll, but it's a compliment. And it might explain why Pitchfork's Stephen M. Deusner wound up rightly equating their third album, Alligator, with the term "grower" in his review of 2007's Best New Music-ized Boxer. Like a roof over your head or a cold beer, the National's amber-waves grandeur and singer Matt Berninger's stoic baritone are the kind of simple pleasures it's too easy to take for granted.

Not as many people are taking them for granted anymore. Two of the songs the National play in this Daytrotter session come in answer to a petition, the now Brooklyn-based Ohioans say by way of introduction. A likely example is levelheaded breakup song "Lucky You", the poignant finale from 2003's Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers. After renditions of Boxer's somber "Gospel" and urgent "Slow Show", the National exhibit a bit of out-of-context nostalgia with a cover of the Psychedelic Furs' 1981 hit "Pretty in Pink", a tune that has also been performed by everyone from Social Distortion to Dresden Dolls. Jessica Alba may adore LCD Soundsystem, but Molly Ringwald's vote hasn't been counted yet.

MP3:> The National: "Lucky You" / "Gospel" / "Slow Show" / "Pretty in Pink"
[Daytrotter Session]