When The National takes the stage at the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago on Friday, July 15 it will mark the beginning of the group’s first North American tour since 2019.
Fans love the band for their poetic straight-to-the heart lyrics, complex compositions, driving rhythms and relatable examinations of life’s major moments and passing heartbreaks. The National is a favorite band of countless music lovers and Matt Berninger, Aaron Dessner, Bryce Dessner, Bryan Devendorf and Scott Devendorf know what it’s like to be on the other side of that fandom as they frequently pay tribute to their own favorite bands, songs and albums with their releases.
As fans count down the days until the Pitchfork Music Festival takes over Union Park on July 15-17, here’s a look at five times The National showed their love for other artists with the lyrics of their songs.
The National Song – Hard To Find
Lyrics – “They can all/Just kiss off into the air”
Artist Honored – Violent Femmes
When Gordon Gano sings, “You can all just kiss off into the air,” on the Violent Femmes’ iconic track “Kiss Off” the lyric comes off as cool, detached and above it all. Gano’s sardonic tone lets listeners know that he is AOK, come what may.
On “Hard To Find,” Berninger’s rendition of the slightly-altered lyric is much more somber and reflective. The once flippant phrase suddenly becomes heavy under the weight of painful memories.
Berninger explained how he came to use the Violent Femmes’ lyric in a 2013 interview with Under the Radar, saying in part, “If I’m blocked I’ll sing other people’s lyrics. Occasionally, I can’t come up with anything better, and occasionally it’s a quote from somebody in a different context that creates a whole different feeling and imagery, and that, specifically, is one where that phrase sounded so sad and beautiful in that context.”
The National Song – Pink Rabbits
Lyrics – “You were staring down the street cause you were trying not to crack up/Bona Drag was still on”
Artist Honored – Morrissey
This lyric is a pretty straight forward reference to Morrissey’s 1990 album, Bona Drag. Like many Morrissey fans, Berninger seems to have taken issue with The Smiths frontman’s recent far-right leanings. Back in 2018, a Morrissey fan page noted that Berninger changed the lyric in the live setting to “You were staring down the street cause you were trying not to crack up/Oh, f*ck that man, he was good for a while.”
The National Song – Don’t Swallow the Cap
Lyrics – “And if you want to see me cry/Play Let It Be or Nevermind”
Artist Honored – The Beatles and Nirvana
Let It Be and Nevermind are among the best albums of all time. While their brilliance can induce tears on their own, the fact that John Lennon, George Harrison and Kurt Cobain are all no longer with us makes each masterpiece that much more poignant.
The National Song – Not in Kansas
Lyrics – “I’m listening to R.E.M. Again/’Begin The Begin,’ over and over”
Artist Honored – R.E.M.
Along with highlighting R.E.M. and their Lifes Rich Pageant tune “Begin the Begin,” The National also shouts out The Strokes later in the song as Berninger sings, “The sequel was incredible/Like The Godfathers or the first two Strokes.”
The National Song – Roman Holiday
Lyrics – “Patti wasn’t lonely, Robert wasn’t lost”
Artist Honored – Patti Smith (and Robert Mapplethorpe)
In a 2019 interview with Pitchfork, Berninger explained the inspiration behind the lyric. “I am a huge fan of that book [Just Kids], but I was actually looking at Judy Linn’s book of Patti Smith photos. A lot of the imagery in it is of Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe when they were really young, just hanging out in their apartment: dressing up, taking pictures of each other, looking cool. It’s such a beautiful portrait of pals, such a romance. And then there’s also a line I took from Patti Smith’s Instagram, a comment she sent to somebody who had just lost someone to suicide: ‘Please think the best of him.’ I found it incredibly moving. I was just obsessed with her kindness and her wisdom in the face of so many sad things.”
Click here to pick-up tickets to see The National perform at the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago on July 15 and head over to Pitchforkmusicfestival.com for the full three-day lineup and more information. The National can be found at Americanmary.com.