The National are five displaced Ohioans living in New York. They play smart, bracing, and beautiful rock music. Their self-titled debut was hailed throughout the US and Europe by publications ranging from the Village Voice and No Depression to Paris's Liberation. England's Kerrang! called it "the stuff underground legends are made of."

Their follow-up is a great leap forward, an omnibus of rock songwriting that is by turns upbeat and downcast, electric and acoustic, raging and atmospheric. Produced by Nick Lloyd, Peter Katis (Interpol), and Paul Heck (No Alternative; Red, Hot, and Riot!), Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers is a bold statement, a song cycle about men and women and all the ways things go wrong and right.

Upon release, critics grasped for superlatives in praising Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers. Publications like Uncut and The Chicago Tribune named it an album of the year, while Magnet hailed it as one of the year's "hidden gems." Billboard featured them as a "Hot Artist," CMJ named them a band "On the Verge."

Vinyl Color: N/A

Track Listing

Cardinal Song
Slipping Husband
90-Mile Water Wall
It Never Happened
Murder Me Rachael
Thirsty
Available
Sugar Wife
Trophy Wife
Fashion Coat
Patterns of Fairytales
Lucky You