Great album openers get the listeners to keep on listening. They can do this in any number of ways. Some openers set the tone by easing us in. Others jump right in and blow our minds from the very beginning. A great album opener isn’t an easy thing to create. More than a great song, it’s all about the sequence. Track 1 has to be the perfect starter. This month, I’m highlighting my favorites. #AlbumOpeningSongs
I discovered Alligator and Boxer at the same time when The National finally crossed my radar. Hearing both albums I was struck by the way the band got into a zone between the two records. While Alligator is still a favorite of mine, Boxer was clearly an output written and recorded by a band that knew their unique identity. They embraced it, ran with it and carved out a sound that no one else can claim. “Fake Empire” was the lead track — but, in many ways, it was also the centerpiece.
“Fake Empire” existed on a grand scale, both musically and lyrically. Considered one of The National’s finest, its structure of revealing various musical layers like an onion sounded more like an orchestra than a rock band. Backed by a syncopated rhythm of piano chords, snare hits and a horn section flourish. the rhythmic delay tied ingeniously to Berninger’s monotone delivery: “We’re half awake in a fake empire.” Lyrically, the song featured some of the band’s most memorable lyrics. While “Fake Empire” is about the mundaneness of life, there is, with absolute certainty, nothing mundane about the song itself.
“Stay out super late tonight. Picking apples, making pies. Put a little something in our lemonade and take it with us.”