I have been searching for some of the live recordings of the new songs that The National played at their NYC show a week ago. I searched endlessly with no luck, but finally there is a god. Onethirtybpm was awesome enough to post two of the new tracks that they played; “Karamzov” and “Wake Up Your Saints”. Both songs displays The National’s ability to create atmosphere through Matt Berninger’s haunting vocals. “Karamzov” has a really dramatic tone to it. It stars with some strong vocals from Matt over a soft piano and some brass instruments. Very slowly it builds into something special. I will say it again, Matt’s vocals are magical they really give the National a definitive sound. “Wake Up Your Saints” features Matt crooning about “Walking the streets I Love” over a jumpy piano line. The song almost has a bouncy feel to it, if anything it adds a sense of urgency.

Both tracks are fantastic, and I can only imagine how great they will sound in the studio. The National are unstoppable right now. Their next album will probably see a release in 2010 which is a long ways away but as long as they take time to craft more albums with the same quality as “Alligator” and “Boxer” all music fans will be pleased.

[mp3] : The National – Karamazov (Live)
[mp3] : The National – Wake Up Your Saints (Live)