The National 
The best album credited to The National is High Violet which is ranked number 121 in the overall greatest album chart with a total rank score of 10,339.
The National is ranked number 42 in the overall artist rankings with a total rank score of 34,838.
The National official website: http://www.americanmary.com
- Members: N.B. The member list may not contain a full list of members (and there may be notable omissions). If a member has never released a solo album, or their solo albums do not appear on BEA, they will not be able to be listed as a member. These omissions are not meant to cause offense to anybody. The member list is solely meant as an additional navigation aid to browse between the items listed on the site.
- Bryce Dessner
- Matt Berninger
- See also:
- Bryce Dessner & Alejandro González Iñárritu
- Bryce Dessner & So Percussion
- Bryce Dessner / Katia & Marielle Labèque
- Sufjan Stevens / Nico Muhly / Bryce Dessner / James McAlister
- EL VY
- Africa Express
- Bonnie 'Prince' Billy / Bryce Dessner / Eighth Blackbird
- Kronos Quartet & Bryce Dessner
- Bryce Dessner / Australian String Quartet / Sydney Dance Company
- Ryuichi Sakamoto / Alva Noto / Bryce Dessner
Listen & Collect
Complete your collection or upgrade your listening experience.
Listen to The National on YouTube
The National best albums
The following albums by The National are ranked highest in the greatest album charts:
The National bestography composition
The National best tracks
Include tracks from compilations & live albums | Exclude tracks from compilations & live albums The same track can appear on multiple albums, so excluding tracks from compilations and live albums helps to remove duplicates from this list.
The National ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 3 ratings for this artist. | Show all 196 ratings for this artist.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Artist ratings | Avg. artist rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 09/30/2026 13:29 | jnmayles | 39 | 80/100 |
| ! | 11/01/2025 03:29 |  LukasAntoine00s | 91 | 69/100 |
| ! | 10/24/2025 22:13 | habibi333 | 34 | 87/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some artists can have several thousand ratings)
This artist is rated in the top 2% of all artists on BestEverAlbums.com. This artist has a Bayesian average rating of 82.3/100, a mean average of 81.2/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 82.7/100. The standard deviation for this artist is 16.5.
The National favourites
Showing latest 10 members who have added this artist as a favourite | Show all 45 members
The National forum mentions
BestEverAlbums 4 days ago in Chart of the day (#5468): By bjorndedrijView latest topic →
paladisiac 08/29/2017 16:54 in What album are you listening to right now?View all forum mentions
The National comments
Top Comments First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Showing comments with any number of votes. Manage Profile)
HoldenM TOP 100 COMMENTER 06/01/2013 10:50 | #77847
One of my all time favorite groups. Not a weak album among their discography. I love, love, LOVE this band. I hope they never stop making music ever.
The gorgeous timbre of Matt Berenger's voice and their thickly atmospheric production make this band an enthralling experience if you have a taste for their sombre tone.
The only problem that I have with this band is that every album sounds the same. But the good thing is that every album is great
Refreshing vocalist, great tunes - not too direct, the kind that grows on you slowly. One of the best names in modern music.
Pure man angst.
The most exciting band of the last 5 years. Getting better with every album. Great songs - good lyrically, these guys can do no wrong.
