The National at the Moody Center 11/17/2023
The National are really great at coming up with a setlist and delivering it extremely well. At Austin’s Moody Center this past November, they played fan favorites and drew deep cuts from older albums such as 2005’s Alligator and 2011’s High Violet as much as they played songs off of their most recent pair of records. They played deep cuts, including songs from their early albums. The song “Available” from 2002’s Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers reminded Aaron Dessner of a story from around the time of touring for that record. He briefly shared it with the audience during their recent performance at the Moody Center in Austin. Apparently, they botched their performance of the song when they had first come to Austin to play at SXSW. It was an important performance for them at the time because of the presence of notable people in the audience. Matt Berninger mentioned that he had forgotten about that, stating something along the lines of “I guess that’s how trauma works” referring to the fact that we put traumatic events out of our heads. It’s this honest sense of humor about inner turmoil that must have come to Matt over time. Being able to laugh and look calmly at how ridiculous our struggles can be might have influenced some of The National’s recent music, including the title for their latest record, “Laugh Track”.
I can relate to reaching a point where although trauma and depression is ever present, you can find humor in it. Especially when they have less control over you. At this point I’m not referring specifically to what was said briefly on stage, I’m alluding to the broader presence of what The National’s presence can be as a whole. A way to transcend and grieve properly for those who are depressed and poetic, as cliche as it might seem. But how can anyone with some emotional depth and maturity not like at least one song from The National? Not only will other sad dads relate to the sad dads, but even young adults like myself can understand and relate. Plus, regardless if you relate to their lyrics, The National is always musically astounding.
The National can easily make a fan like me ecstatic about each and every song. My Dad turned to me at one point during the concert as I started singing along to “Terrible Love” and asked “is this your favorite one?”. I said “they’re all my favorite” because really, if I only like a few songs from a band (let alone one song) I’m not going to enjoy the show as much. I really have to feel as though they’re a band whose records I enjoy listening to in their entirety. Seeing them live was a truly transcendent experience, one that made me cry, laugh, scream, and sing along. I was almost surprised by my reaction, I knew I loved them but to the extent I was captivated was amazing. If you love The National, I wouldn’t hesitate to see them live.
Matt Berninger came down from the stage and walked through the crowd still singing remarkably well. It was a whirlwind of a moment to experience. Maybe not as amazing for the guy who had to hold the long ass mic cord. But I’m sure that team member (or team members) are used to it by now. As Matt put it in his lyrics for Graceless, he isn’t going to give up on “going through the glass again” as “there’s a science to walking through windows.” Matt breaking through into the crowd reminds you you’re there with the band, not just watching from a window. I was lucky enough to be on a seated side from which he climbed up the stairs and surprised the whole crowd by walking through the aisles right in front of us. It was a moment I won’t soon forget.
The Moody Center didn’t seem like the perfect place for them. It was obviously not a full house, despite drawing a massive crowd. It might seem like there were less people there than there really were, which kinda made you feel like you were in on a secret. Of course, The National have been around for about 25 years, are grammy winning artists, and have more recently collaborated with Taylor Swift. Yet it still feels like knowing about how special they are is somewhat of a secret, or that you’re at least part of something special. It still feels as though The National are overlooked in some regards, but I might be completely wrong about that. Considering that, in my view, they've reached another groundbreaking milestone in their music and Matt in his lyrics, it's surprising that these records have been slightly blown off by the media. Of course The National aren’t for everyone, but you don’t have to be a sad dad yourself to love them.
One final amazing quality about The National is who they choose as their opening acts. Proving that there is no toxic masculinity among the band members, they chose openers such as Soccer Mommy, The Beths, and Hand Habits. I was fortunate to see Hand Habits on their show in Austin, but I was still a little envious that I couldn’t make it to the other shows.