The Benja-man Is Verbose

 [Listens #1 and #2 posts originated as e-mails to my brother, hence the especially casual tone and my freeness with rhetorically addressing musicians I don't know and who are probably perfectly decent guys as "you hipster twat."]     The National (2001; listened to "2021 Remaster" version), listen #1 - You're really going to start with a song called "Beautiful Head?"  Is making the audience feel dirty your whole thing? - On the one hand, the guitar work of the first few songs is appealing.  On the other hand, the first 3-4 tracks all take the same basic repetitive-riff + speak-singing vocals approach that gets old pretty quickly. - Way too many relationship songs in a row that take a sneering tone.  some people just shouldn't date.  I actually prefer when they do more weirdo cryptic poetry, songs like "'Bitters & Absolut" at least sound like they're about something - Everything sounds so crisp!.  Maybe it's to

I occasionally like to challenge myself to write about things that interest me.  When writing such e-mails to family, I regularly found that I was more doing it to entertain myself than due to anyone else actually caring.  It occurred to me that whether or not anyone else other than me was entertained by my mumbling into the void, might as well actually mumble into the void.   Basic agenda here:  I will write about things I feel like writing about - probably mostly music, although we'll see - when I feel like it, as frequently or rarely as I feel like.     For the time being, this will be a dumping ground for a project in which, in response to my brother talking up the band [The] National, I decided I'd listen to their entire discography and rave and/or snark about it as appropriate.  I am not coming in as a fan of the National, I could not have named a song by the National prior to starting this, so I have no preconceived notions about the National whatsoever and do not know h