As previously opined here on RowThree, Horehound, the debut album from The Dead Weather is quickly becoming one of my favorites of 2009. Track five, “Treat Me Like Your Mother” got the video treatment by director Jonathan Glazer and premiered on Cinemax a few nights ago. Since I don’t have Cinemax and since I missed their performance at the legendary First Ave. on Monday night, I have to settle for the YouTube version – which I gotta say is simplistically awesome.

Watch Jack White and Alison Mosshart duel it out with fully automatic machine guns as they walk towards one another in a “Terminator-esque” sequence. The rhythm of the song mashing with the gun caps is pretty killer – no pun intended. Bloodied and exhausted, the two part ways once the clips have been emptied. It is the definition of cool; admittedly in part because of Glazer’s style and tone of the video. Check it out below. Then go buy the album.

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While The National was performing good music across the street, this is as close as I got to the action at the Target Center: Beyoncé’s bike.

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Last night while 15,000 people were watching Beyonce do her thing at Target Center in Minneapolis, a smaller (but I’m sure more devoted) crowd gathered across the street at First Avenue and were treated to an enthralling set by The National. Opening with the tenatively titled “Runaway” (see “National Week Part 1″), the show started with this new, slow burning material and was followed by tracks largely drawn from the bands last two releases, Boxer and Alligator. An increasingly animated Matt Beringer was a treat to watch culminating in his singing from the upper tier of stairs during “Mr. November”. Padma Newsome added some terrific flourishes of violin (and other instruments), while the two man horn section proved themselves absolutely indispensable. The National prove that this is a band hitting it’s stride after five (six?) records, and are only on the way up.

Kudos to the sound board helmsman as the mix and volume level in the legendary First Avenue club was absolutely pitch perfect. The aforementioned musical additions to the band were inserted wonderfully without ever missing a beat or a sound cue. The music enveloped the crowd phenomenally but sans the ringing ear (tinnitus) syndrome as the exits filled.

Before said exit, the band really brought the house down with an exceptional encore. Typically when a band plays unreleased material as their encore the crowd leaves with a vague sense of disappointment at not getting the opportunity to sing along and really rock out for the final minutes of their experience. Not so with The National as they took to the stage with their new tune “Ohio” and finished up with a much more intense version of “About Today.”

Killer show.

SET:
The Runaway (new song) / Start a War / Mistaken for Strangers / Brainy / Secret Meeting / Baby, We’ll Be Fine / Slow Show / Squalor Victoria / ?? (new song) / Abel / All the Wine / Racing Like a Pro / Ada / Apartment Story / Green Gloves / Fake Empire

ENCORE: Blood Buzz, Ohio (new song) / Mr. November / About Today

I thought it appropriate to dedicate this week to The National as they’re coming to town for a First Avenue show Thursday night. I would have to say this is the the one album I am most looking forward to, whenever they decide to finish it and release it.
First up a new song live from Q TV, as yet untitled. They don’t need silly song titles. They’re The National.