Music (On TV): The National + Band Of Horses On Austin City Limits Saturday

While tuning in to the KLRU-produced Austin City Limits is always a good idea, this week's episode holds an especially big place in our hearts. Saturday's show features a co-bill of The National and Band Of Horses, bands that have each grown from playing SXSW sets in the volleyball pit at Pok-E-Jo's (Band Of Horses, circa 2006) and matinees at Ruta Maya (The National, 2005) to deserving, full-bore festival headliners over the last half-decade.

At October's taping from The National, the band showed their legendary intensity mixed with a new arena-rock polish, albeit one often interrupted by frontman Matt Berninger's screams - there are points where he's so wrapped up in the song and the performance that he simply doesn't seem able to just sing the lyrics any more.

The set focused heavily on material from 2010's High Violet and 2007's Boxer, albums that both work a widescreen vision of cold nights, bruised feelings, and carrying the weight of the world. The music ranged from majestic ("England") to frightening ("Conversation 16") to a modern-day take on Leonard Cohen ("Fake Empire"). While known for purposefully noisy and shambolic live shows, The National exhibited precision and control during the taping, showcasing a distinctly moody and powerful range that simply isn't like much else in popular music today.

Amidst the dark music, the band showed a deadpan humor that gave the room some much-needed levity. Among the quips from the band:

• "Sometimes even we are crushed by the emotional weight of our own music."
  
• "With these jokes, we're ruining our whole brand right now. We really are miserable, just for the record."
  
• "How many of you guys have super uncool kids? Doesn't it suck?"
  
• "This is about marriage and eating people. It's like a love song version of Soylent Green."
  
• "We've heard that this is one of the last tapings here at the Studio...so we've decided to just steal all of The Black Keys' food from the green room and load it into our bus. "
  

All told, the taping was perhaps the best ACL we've ever attended - much like 2010's Spoon episode, viewers on Saturday will see a band at the apex of their craft, telling sad tales and giving the audience everything they can conjure. The final months at Studio 6A were filled with excellent performances...and while we're biased, this one might just be the best.

The National Austin City Limits Setlist (note: not all songs will air) -
Runaway, Anyone's Ghost, Bloodbuzz Ohio, Slow Show, Squalor Victoria, Afraid Of Everyone, Available, Conversation 16, Apartment Story, England, Fake Empire, Terrible Love, About Today, Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks, Mr. November.

Austin City Limits airs on Saturday at 7pm on KLRU in Austin. For other markets, check with your local PBS affiliate.