The National’s Matt Berninger is fond of imposing metaphors. In “Bloodbuzz Ohio,” he was carried in a swarm of bees. Deeper into the song, the floors are falling for everybody he knows. The metaphors continued when Taylor Swift joined The National on “The Alcott,” when she sang, Everything that’s mine is a landmine.
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Using language figuratively offers protection. It can be grand, yes, but it also acts like the last line of defense before too much exposure. “I Need My Girl” is the opposite of this guarded approach. The National’s sixth album, Trouble Will Find Me, is their most accessible, and the album’s biggest single, whose meaning we try to define below, is a clear example of the band’s new directness.
The previous album, High Violet, continued the group’s upward climb, and landed on many year-end lists of favorite albums. But it came with a cost. The National was feeling the weight of self-inflicted pressure. High Violet was famously difficult to make, and something needed to change. They planned to take time off after touring to support the album, but guitarists Aaron and Bryce Dessner’s demos inspired Berninger to begin writing. With a freeing new approach, they weren’t obsessing like on the previous album.
Keep It Simple
Guitarist Aaron Dessner opens “I Need My Girl” with a rolling guitar figure. It’s repetitive and simple. Simplicity was key in creating a framework of mobility for the band. The repetition of Dessner’s guitar might lull you to sleep if you weren’t so drawn in emotionally. Berninger reacted to Dessner’s riff with his most unswerving lyric yet.
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Trouble Will Find Me sounds self-assured. In removing the wall, their strengths become visible. Berninger’s baritone sounds clear and musical, supported by the ambitious production of Aaron and Bryce. Bryan Devendorf rivals The War on Drugs’ Charlie Hall for the most creative drummer in indie-rock, completing a dynamic rhythm section with his brother, Scott.
The National isn’t where you go for instant gratification, but Trouble Will Find Me is a statement worth waiting for. If you’ve never heard this band, “I Need My Girl” would be an excellent place to begin.
A Sad Dad
Acting as an apology, Berninger writes a lament for a loved one. Reflecting on his life in one of America’s biggest bands, he acknowledges he’s been absent as a husband and father. It takes courage to claim this publicly, where most people hide or explain away the worst parts of themselves. It takes someone searching for redemption to hand a song over to an arena of fans to sing back at you. It’s the opposite of a private confessional booth. In Berninger’s reality, thousands sing his words in communal penance.
At the surface, “I Need My Girl” is as simple as missing a partner. But relationships are never simple or easy. Berninger admits to only being present less than half the time.
I’m under the gun again
I know I was the 45-percenter then
I know I was a lot of things
The band has consumed Berninger’s life since 2001. His life on the road is a constant jolt of self-esteem buoyed by perpetual adoration. The need for affirmation is evident when the artist takes the stage. It’s saying out loud, I need you to love me. Can domestic life satisfy an ego built up by years under this spotlight? The comedown usually leads to depression.
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Even with the most literate indie bands, there’s a crudeness to tour life. The road is a grueling reality that places primal instinct against reason or better judgment. An artist with a weak constitution will find the gutter good and hard if they aren’t careful. Berninger sounds like a man on the floor, wrestling with his demons. He doesn’t feel like he belongs here. He’ll instead call his wife.
There’s some things that I should never
Laugh about in front of family
I’ll try to call you from the party
It’s full of punks and cannonballers
I need my girl
I need my girl
Swift Era
With Berninger letting down the metaphorical wall, he made space for a greater connection. The open-book confession of “I Need My Girl” is a lyric Taylor Swift might have written. She became The National’s most famous fan. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Swift approached Aaron Dessner to collaborate on new music. Dessner eventually produced Swift’s earthy and luminescent album Folklore.
The Ohio band wrote a confessional song in the language of Swift, and she—one of the world’s best confessional songwriters—responded.
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