The National brought their mini-tour to a sold-out show at Beacon Theatre on Monday, April 22. Dubbed “A Special Evening with The National,” the gig gave fans a taste of their soon-to-be-released new album I Am Easy to Find, along with a screening of its accompanying short film. In between, there was also a brief Q&A with bandmates Matt Berninger and Bryce Dessner, filmmaker Mike Mills and host Julien Baker. From the screening to the encore, there were plenty of show-stopping moments:
Alicia Vikander delivers a poignant performance in the I Am Easy to Find short film
The film was shot in black and white, but was broken up by colorful title cards that also re-appeared during the performance. In the video, Alicia Vikander starred, playing a woman from birth to death – although her appearance uncannily stayed static despite those around her growing up and getting older. The heartrending movie featured all the moments in the circle of life: joy, despair, love, betrayal. It was soundtracked by The National’s new album, although occasionally dialog melded with the music. “The strength of the songwriting is strengthened by women’s voices,” Dessner said in the Q&A after. The panelists also noted that arrangements of the songs were designed specially for the film and would diverge from the live performance that evening.
In one especially memorable shot, Vikander (as a child) cheerfully ran down a dusty road; in a later scene, she had become a mother and was following her young son down a similar path. The film brilliantly tugged at the heartstrings up to the final title cards, which read “An Unexpected Illness” and “Her Son’s Hands” as Vikander’s character faded into death.
The National telling the crowd how they really feel about their first album
Three audience members got to ask the band questions during the Q&A portion, and the third fan asked, “Why do you pretend like the first album doesn’t exist?”
After a big laugh among the panelists and the audience, Berninger responded, “We don’t pretend it doesn’t exist; most other people do.”
The singer likened their eponymous debut to “zitty prom photos with corsages, long necks and greasy skin – none of us are ashamed of it, though.” He recalled how the band was still discovering their sound and how to perform together.
Dessner also added that since the new album material is still so fresh, this was the closest fans would get to seeing an unrefined version of the National, like in the early ‘00s: “The paint is still drying.”
Getting to hear the new album before most of the world
Throughout the evening, the band performed all 16 new tracks from the album, which is set to be released next month. The National welcomed a rotating cast of musicians to join them for certain songs, adding to the complex interplay of sounds yet never veering into cacophony. On standout track “Where Is Her Head,” Baker return to the stage to lead on vocals for the energetic romp. And a robust strings section made their presence felt throughout the set, like on the dramatic, swelling end of “The Pull of You.” There was also power in the quieter moments of the set, like the simple piano backing Berninger’s vocals on tracks like “I Am Easy to Find” and “Light Years.”
The Brooklyn Youth Chorus providing backing vocals
Starting with the track “Oblivions,” The National welcomed the Brooklyn Youth Chorus to the stage to provide even more backing vocals with the addition of 15 (!) more singers. (“That’s ‘Oblivions’ with an ‘s’ because they keep happening,” Berninger quipped.) This raised the total of folks onstage to over 30. The chorus’ cherubic backing vocals provided a strong contrast to Berninger’s sonorous voice. On the pretty choral interlude of “Her Father in the Pool,” the hushed theater was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
The band letting loose in the encore with some old classics
For the main part of the set, the band mostly stood within the back half of the stage that was enclosed by a rectangle of ever-changing neon lights. Berninger strafed among the many musicians onstage and the Dessner brothers occasionally shuffled by the edge of the lighting rig, but for the most part this portion of the show felt self-contained and focused on the craft of the new songs.
When the band returned for the encore, it felt like the band was finally able to shake loose. The audience responded in kind, standing up for cuts like “The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness” and “Fake Empire.” On the former, Berninger danced up to the front of the stage, getting within arms reach of bobbing arms of fans. And on the latter, the Dessner brothers both triumphantly raised their guitars overhead to unleash one final riff to an enthusiastic standing ovation.
