on 2009-03-26 mountaloha Said:

I enjoyed this album. I can't help but to think a National, Sufjan Stevens tour would be a perfect line-up.
Rating: 8/10

Review:

on 2008-06-01 Kaarlo Said:

It's no wonder after the success of The National's last LP, Boxer, that the band wanted to push for maximum gain. Nothing wrong with that I guess, after all it's not uncommon for bands to follow succesful albums with documentaries and collections of b-sides. The Rolling Stones have seemingly tons of different tour films and Modest Mouse has released about as many EPs as actual albums.This is no guarantee, of course, The Virginia EP might just as well be bad.

After a while, it's clear that Virginia was never meant to be for everybody. The songs provide more of a peek behind the scenes (just as the documentary does), rather than provide exciting new materiel. We hear a demo of "Slow Show" sans chorus, a Springsteen cover (Mansion on the Hill) and a handfull of other b-sides, demos and live tracks. Pacing is key, and the band evolves as the album progresses, with lyrics jumping songs and mutating. Virginia closes with three live cuts, that don't exactly add value, but act as a treat for those of us who have never had the chance to hear them live. The live closer, About Today, proves that there definitely was lots going on even before Alligator.

The sound replicates Boxer too easily at times, but instrumental flourishes seem ever the fresher on You've Done It Again, Virginia and Santaclara with Sufjan Stevens refeaturing on the first. (We hear Stevens play Racing Like A Pro on A Skin, A Night on piano formidably.) For a twelve song EP, however, Virginia is a bit of a let down: It is nothing on its own, merely a dressing for the near-flawless Boxer-meal. It points out that Matt Berninger and co. are still only human and prone to, well, not being perfect. At least we get to know where the line "Stay down champion, stay down" on the inside of Boxer came from: The lyrics for the demo of Tall Saint, of course.
Rating: 7/10