I Am Easy to Find (album)

Last updated
I Am Easy to Find
The National - I Am Easy to Find.png
Studio album by
the National
ReleasedMay 17, 2019 (2019-05-17)
StudioLong Pond (Hudson Valley, New York)
  • Earthstar (Venice, California)
  • Aaron's Garage (Brooklyn, New York)
  • Alna Chapel (Hudson, New York)
  • Delta (Paris, France)
  • Dreamland (Hurley, New York)
  • FuturePast (Hudson, New York)
  • Funkhaus (Berlin, Germany)
  • Marble Garden (Cincinnati, Ohio)
  • The Overlook (Berlin, Germany)
  • Public HiFi (Austin, Texas)
  • Reservoir (New York City)
  • Sonic (Dublin, Ireland)
  • Studio G (Brooklyn, New York)
  • Saint Germain (Paris, France)
Genre
Length63:35
Label 4AD
Producer
The National chronology
Sleep Well Beast
(2017)		I Am Easy to Find
(2019)		 First Two Pages of Frankenstein
(2023)
Singles from I Am Easy to Find
  1. "You Had Your Soul with You"
    Released: March 5, 2019
  2. "Light Years"
    Released: April 4, 2019
  3. "Hairpin Turns"
    Released: May 1, 2019
  4. "Rylan"
    Released: May 16, 2019
  5. "Hey Rosey"
    Released: October 8, 2019

I Am Easy to Find is the eighth studio album by American indie rock band The National, released on May 17, 2019, via 4AD. [1] The follow-up to the band's 2017 album, Sleep Well Beast , it was supported by the lead single, "You Had Your Soul with You", and accompanied by a short film of the same name, directed by Mike Mills and starring Alicia Vikander. [2] [3] Vikander is also featured on the album cover. A trailer was released for the companion film along with the announcement of the album. [4] A tour promoting the album began in June 2019. [5]

Contents

Background

The bulk of the album was recorded at Long Pond studio in Hudson Valley, New York. Parts were recorded in other cities, including Paris, Berlin, Dublin, Cincinnati, Austin, and Brooklyn. [1] The album and film, while having influenced each other, were essentially made separately. A press release stated that the album "is not the soundtrack" for the film; the idea for the album itself came after the film was shot. [1]

The album features female vocalists including Lisa Hannigan, Sharon Van Etten, Mina Tindle, Gail Ann Dorsey, Kate Stables, and the Brooklyn Youth Chorus. [4]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.7/10 [6]
Metacritic 81/100 [7]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [8]
And It Don't Stop A− [9]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [10]
The Independent Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [11]
Mojo Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [12]
NME Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [13]
Pitchfork 7.6/10 [14]
Q Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [15]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [16]
The Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [17]

I Am Easy to Find was met with universal acclaim, receiving a score of 81 on Metacritic, the review aggregating site. [7] Reviewing in his Substack-published "Consumer Guide" column, Robert Christgau said that "almost every track is open to substantive female input on a musical whole that feels consistently interactive and empathetic and also not so glum—even when you can’t pin down exact meanings, it makes love sound possible." [9] More negative critics, such as The Observer 's Phil Mongredien, complained about the album's flatness and inaccessibility. [18]

Year-end rankings

Year-end rankings for I Am Easy to Find
PublicationAccoladeRankRef.
The A.V. Club Top 20 Albums of 201920 [19]
Gothamist Best Album of 20197 [20]
Louder Than War Top 50 Albums of 201911 [21]
Magnet Magazine Top 25 Albums of 20199 [22]
MusicOMH Top 50 Albums of 201914 [23]
The Skinny Top Ten Albums of 20196 [24]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Matt Berninger and produced by Aaron Dessner, unless noted otherwise.

I Am Easy to Find track listing
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."You Had Your Soul with You"Carin Besser
3:26
2."Quiet Light" 
  • A. Dessner
  • B. Dessner
4:15
3."Roman Holiday"  3:34
4."Oblivions"
  • Berninger
  • Besser
  • A. Dessner
  • B. Dessner
4:13
5."The Pull of You"
  • Berninger
  • Besser
 3:58
6."Hey Rosey"Besser 4:14
7."I Am Easy to Find" 
  • A. Dessner
  • B. Dessner
4:30
8."Her Father in the Pool"InstrumentalB. Dessner1:02
9."Where Is Her Head"
 4:41
10."Not in Kansas"  6:44
11."So Far So Fast" 
  • A. Dessner
  • B. Dessner
6:36
12."Dust Swirls in Strange Light"MillsB. Dessner3:18
13."Hairpin Turns"
  • Berninger
  • Besser
  • A. Dessner
  • B. Dessner
4:27
14."Rylan"  3:43
15."Underwater"InstrumentalB. Dessner1:21
16."Light Years"  3:33
Total length:63:35

Notes

Personnel

Short film

Director Mike Mills developed a short film based on early clips of the songs featured on the album. As the two projects developed concurrently, the final songs used in each differ from one another.

Mills chose the title for both the short film and the album from a lyric in the song of the same name. The song was originally titled "Washington" before Mills insisted on altering it. [26]

Cast

Charts

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References

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  3. ↑ ""I Am Easy To Find" - A Film by Mike Mills / An Album by The National". YouTube . May 13, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2019.
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