Random 30 2013: The National - I Need My Girl

Trouble Will Find Me, The National’s latest album, is shaping up to be one of my favourite albums of 2013, and I can scarcely believe some of the poor reviews it received upon release earlier this year. It really wasn’t the barren snorefest some critics claim it was, and I'm still enjoying it six months on.

‘I Need My Girl’ was one of album’s stand-outs; a beautifully crafted song dealing with the twin themes of loss and hope … so good, it’s difficult to fathom quite how its reach could ever be anything less than universal. Vocalist Matt Berninger’s rich but gentle baritone is the perfect supplement to the restless sense of longing in the music, and it has to rate as one of the band’s best tracks (of any year).