THE NATIONAL, the outstanding Brooklyn based rock band, are coming to Galway to play the Galway Arts Festival Big Top in the Fisheries Field in July.
The National have come to prominence over the last eight years for their intense, emotionally charged, sophisticated, yet driving, energetic rock, and equally for the rich, deep, baritone of their charismatic frontman Matt Berninger.
Apart from Berninger, the band features two sets of brothers - Aaron (guitar and keyboard ) and Bryce Dessner (guitar ), and Scott (bass ) and Bryan Devendorf (drums ).
The National first came to attention with the albums Alligator (2005 ) and Boxer (2006 ), which showcased their dense, tough, rhythmic, yet elegant and intelligent music, and Berninger's emotionally open lyrics.
High Violet (2010 ) was a major breakthrough for the band with 'Bloodbuzz Ohio' gaining much airplay. The opening track 'Terrible Love' was featured on a TV advert in Ireland, while 'Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks' featured at the climax of the second season of the SyFy Channel's Warehouse 13.
2013 saw the release of the band's masterpiece – Trouble Will Find Me – which has been nominated for a Grammy, rode high on the charts in the US, Britain, Ireland, Canada, and Australia. As Pitchfork said: “A culmination and refinement of everything the National have done over the past decade, Trouble Will Find Me couldn’t be granted a more fitting mission statement.”
The band have an enviable reputation as a high energy, exciting live act, having stolen the show at Electric Picnic 2010. They have also played the Reading and Leeds festivals, the Roskilde Festival, and Austin City Limits.
Tickets are available at www.roisindubh.net, the Ticket Desk at OMG Zhivago, Shop Street, and The Róisín Dubh.
