Eden Sessions concert: The National plus This Is The Kit

The National formed in Brooklyn, New York City in 1999. The five-piece are comprised of vocalist Matt Berninger alongside two sets of brothers – twins Aaron and Bryce Dessner and Scott and Bryan Devendorf.

The Eden Sessions announcement follows the release of Laugh Track, their surprise second album of 2023, in September. Laugh Track was received with critical acclaim and follows nine previous studio albums, beginning with their 2001 self-titled debut.

The National’s last five albums have all reached the top five in the UK charts, with 2017’s Sleep Well Beast, which was named Best Alternative Album at the Grammy Awards, hitting number one. In the US, The National have scored five top 10 albums on the Billboard 200.

Band members have collaborated with some of the biggest stars in the music world, with Aaron and Bryce Dessner co-producing Taylor Swift’s Evermore, an album on which The National also featured as a band.  

Aaron Dessner also produced Swift’s Folklore, which won Album of the Year at the 2021 Grammy Awards and was named the best album of 2020 by Billboard, Rolling Stone and Time. Other artists for whom Aaron Dessner has produced include Ed Sheeran, Michael Stipe and Ben Howard.

The National’s ninth studio album, entitled First Two Pages of Frankenstein and released in April this year (2023), featured collaborations with Swift, as well as Sufjan Stevens and Phoebe Bridgers.

The National have been nominated for three Grammy Awards, three NME Awards and one Brit Award.