THE NATIONAL with COLIN STETSON at Koolhaus (132 Queens Quay East), tonight (Thursday, May 21), 8 pm. $24.50. 416-870-8000.
It’s amazing how far dapper noir indie rock will take you. When the National played a sold-out gig at the Horseshoe back in September 2005, the feeling was that the NYC quintet had hit their high-water mark after three records and years spent slogging it out on the indie circuit.
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Fast forward to November 4, 2008. Barack Obama had just won the U.S. presidential election, making history and cementing his position as the most powerful man in the world.
Just before he gave his victory speech to hundreds of thousands of supporters in Chicago’s Grant Park (and millions more around the world), the National’s song Fake Empire blared through the park’s sound system. The song had been used in the background of one of his campaign videos. That’s a pretty good measure of the band’s success.
Currently, they’re at work recording a follow-up to Boxer, their 2007 critically acclaimed album. Tentatively titled Shine, it’s not due out till late 2009 or early 2010, but let’s hope they give some of the new songs a dry run when they touch down at Koolhaus.
Made up of two sets of brothers plus singer Matt Berninger, the band also finds time to support worthy social causes. Multi-instrumentalists Aaron and Bryce Dessner recently lent their production skills to Dark Was The Night, the 20th compilation from the Red Hot Organization, an international HIV/AIDS charity.
Released in February, that star-studded disc includes tracks by Feist, Arcade Fire, David Byrne, Yo La Tengo and others, plus a new National track entitled So Far Around The Bend.
music@nowtoronto.com
