Boxer
by The National
User Score
8.8

Universal acclaim- based on 348 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 313 out of 348
  2. Mixed: 14 out of 348
  3. Negative: 21 out of 348

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  1. AlekseyI
    Jun 6, 2007
    10
    Simply the best
  2. feriatus
    May 23, 2007
    10
    Riveting.
  3. LS
    Jun 30, 2007
    10
    Superb Album. A bit calmer than Alligator, with the tracks more like the calmer Daughters of the Soho riots etc. An absolute must.
  4. GuyH
    Jun 8, 2007
    10
    This album is simply superb. 'Alligator' was good but this sounds like a perfectly formed album. By far the best album I have heard this year - The National should now be considered as members of that elite group of truly special bands.
  5. PhilipB.
    Jul 10, 2007
    10
    Excellent album. Get's better with each listen and hasn't gotten old yet.
  6. Dan
    Jul 11, 2007
    10
    I just got this album, and it has literally blew me away - right from the first listen. Outstanding!
  7. PerG
    May 22, 2007
    10
    A grower for sure. Keep listening to this album and you'll keep it close for life.
  8. PraC
    May 24, 2007
    10
    This album has set the bar for all releases in 2007. Not only is it the best album of this year, it's one of the best this decade. A brilliant work from one of the best and undoubtedly the most underrated band in the world.
  9. nathalie
    May 29, 2007
    10
    this is the most beautiful album i have heard all year.
  10. SharonC
    May 30, 2007
    10
    This album is absolutely amazing - one of the best I've ever heard.
  11. KostasG
    May 5, 2007
    10
    If you like Nick Cave, then you will love this album.
  12. andrew
    Jun 17, 2007
    10
    Boxer just made my personal list of 10 greatest albums of all time. I may be jumping the gun on this one a little, seeing as how I have only had the album for a few weeks, but every time I hear Berninger's voice softly contemplating the meaning of our existence over a lovingly played piano that emerges into a lush cacaphony of brass, guitar and drums, I can't imagine that I Boxer just made my personal list of 10 greatest albums of all time. I may be jumping the gun on this one a little, seeing as how I have only had the album for a few weeks, but every time I hear Berninger's voice softly contemplating the meaning of our existence over a lovingly played piano that emerges into a lush cacaphony of brass, guitar and drums, I can't imagine that I would ever become enough of a heartless bastard to knock this album off my list. I remember thinking when I first heard Boxer and Alligator (the preceding album) that they were like 'bright lights' interpol meets the hold steady, toeing the line between being too esoteric to understand for more than a fleeting moment or being so bombastically story driven that you would have to be completely removed from the music to not realize how the songs were connected. Now though, I have just come to be able to appreciate Boxer for being the incredible, soulful gem of a record that it is.… Expand
  13. RobertG
    Jun 22, 2007
    10
    Definitely in my top 3 albums of 2007. I'm not sure I like it as much as Alligator, but Boxer gets better with every listen. Great album.
  14. BrunoJ
    Jun 5, 2007
    10
    This album is absolutely SUPERB...
  15. TylerM
    Jun 6, 2007
    10
    Begs to be listened to repeatedly.
  16. JimK.
    Jul 14, 2007
    10
    Perfect album, not one weakness. This is the band to like right now imo, forget the Shins.
  17. JamieS.
    Jul 3, 2007
    10
    Excellent album, such a progression from the stuff before, perhaps a little more subtle than previously, but definatly the quality is there. A wonderful listening experience!
  18. Muz
    Aug 14, 2007
    10
    I agree totally with what Raindog 1972 said. Midlake's latest was the last album which floored me, now Boxer has done it too. Awesome album.
  19. ChrisP
    Aug 5, 2007
    10
    Best album of the year and in the top 10 of the decade. Buy it immediately.
  20. LinusG.
    Nov 20, 2007
    10
    "We expected something, something better than before, we expected something more" is not something you can say about this album. Perfect. Best sing-a-long of the year.
  21. Andy
    May 19, 2007
    10
    This album is amazing. This is definitely one of the best bands going right now.
  22. JLO
    May 21, 2007
    10
    I have been listening to this album obsessively multiple times a day since it leaked, and it only gets more beautiful with every spin. Boxer takes everything good about all the previous albums and incorporates it into a mature, fully realized, self-assured masterpiece. I didn't think any record could kick the ass of Alligator, but Boxer does that unlikely deed.
  23. Aaron
    May 21, 2007
    10
    Great Album
  24. Kyle
    May 21, 2007
    10
    Track to Track, a calming and wonderful listen. Great album!
  25. EdLeisurewear
    May 21, 2007
    10
    I haven't even heard this yet and it still gets 10 - The National are that good.
  26. sachep
    May 23, 2007
    10
    stunning.
  27. MatthewH
    May 23, 2007
    10
    An album that keeps unfolding to reveal more more layers and greater depth on repeated listens. This is the type of album that made me fall in love with music in the first place.
  28. JasonS
    May 24, 2007
    10
    Album of the year so far. It takes courage to make an album so different from a breakthrough like Alligator, but the National pull it off. This is their best album yet.
  29. TimB
    May 27, 2007
    10
    excellent
  30. NathanC
    May 4, 2007
    10
    This album is so well done. Kudos, gents.
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Awards & Rankings

15
#15 Best Album of 2007
15
#15 Most Discussed Album of 2007
9
#9 Most Shared Album of 2007

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
86

Universal acclaim - based on 31 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 31
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 31
  3. Negative: 0 out of 31
  1. Hartford Courant
    70
    The National hews too closely to established formula on "Boxer," content to revisit previously explored territory without expanding its sound.
    Read full review
  2. Paste Magazine
    60
    Here, most gestures remain a bit too consciously panoramic—elegant enough for comfort but often not chancy enough to be breathtaking.
    Read full review
  3. Playlouder
    60
    A patchy, flawed effort.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »