Rapid fire May is loco yo gig reviews 2: The National - The Olympia

My National fanboy credentials are impeccable. At the very least I've got a great deal of affection for everything that they've ever put out and I adore their 3 most recent audio releases. I'll also explain at great length to anyone who will let me how 2 of the most profoundly moving musical experiences I've ever had involved seeing The National live.

They were bad tonight.

I did not enjoy it at all.

Speaking to one of the people I was with who felt similarly let down afterwards he offered a number of possible reasons for the lacklustre nature of the gig. Phrases like "going through the motions" and "no attitude" were uttered and they may well be apt. But for me it comes down to a single sentence.

They sounded like shit.

The mix was an utter disaster. Perhaps it had something to do with where I was standing (directly in front of his amp) but Bryce Dessner's guitar was way too loud for most of the night but there were plenty of other problems that can't be explained away so easily; like how high Padma Newsome's vocals were in the mix, or how it was so difficult to hear the bass, and most unforgivably of all how low Bryan Devendorf's drumming (a.k.a. the thing that made Boxer brilliant more than any other contributing factor) was.

Oh and I get that they hired the 2 guys and want to get value out of paying their wages but if a song didn't need brass on the record it doesn't need it live either. I can happily live without the little added push that it gives the end of "Fake Empire" if it means I don't have to hear it on "Able".

In the interest of fairness I have no beef with Aaron Dessner's guitar volume.