"Apartment Story" showcases the gauzy insight of Bernringer's lyrics, painting a portrait of a battered, down-but-not-quite-out relationship with acute detail. "Start A War" isn't a political screed as you might expect from the title, but another perfectly chiseled moment of heartbreak – "walk away now and you're gonna start a war," Berninger murmurs. Indie-pop icon Sufjan Stevens turns up to play piano on the ethereal "Ada," with its wry, catchy refrain of "Ada don’t talk about reasons why you don’t want to talk about reasons why you don’t wanna talk."
Usually the press releases that come with new albums for review are filled with clichés, but one phrase used in material that came with Boxer leaps out – The National calls their music "'a euphoric disconnection,' the lovely delusion that sets in after too much dulling reality, too much time away, and losing touch with friends." I like that.
The melancholy that haunts Boxer may keep it from being the sort of album that grabs you instantly, but the fervent heart and melody lets it sink into your head and grow roots.
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