The National's Latest Project Might Be Its Most Ambitious Yet

The National has always been an ambitious band. There was the one time it played its song "Sorrow" for six hours straight at MoMA PS1 in New York City. Then there are band members, and twin brothers, Aaron and Bryce Dessner who've scored films and curated music festivals. But The National's latest project might be the band's most ambitious. It's a collaborative album and short film directed by Mike Mills (director of Beginners, and 20th Century Women.) It's called I Am Easy To Find and it tells the story of one woman's life from birth to death, starring Alicia Vikander. And that's just the movie!

The album sees the band in new territory asking a question many have been curious about: What if a woman fronted The National? Sharon Van Etten, Kate Stables, Gail Ann Dorsey and others perform throughout the album. Our World Cafe guests Matt Berninger and Aaron Desner talk about the women's contributions, plus what goes into making an album and short film that tie together.

They start this session with a studio performance of "You Had Your Soul With You." Hear it all in the player.

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