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Released a year before The National broke through with their third album Alligator, 2004's Cherry Tree EP is a thrilling record which -thanks to its collection of delicate ballads and anthemic crowd-pleasers -sums up what they do best in under 30 minutes.
The National marks the start point for one of the best bands of their generation with it's new master helping elevate it to new levels. A great primer to a great band.
The National's second album, Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers (2003) proved a leap forward from 2001's eponymous debut, showing a band adept at delivering warm embraces and gut punches in equal measure.
Check Your Head is certainly a record that's greater than the sum of its parts - individually, nearly all the tracks are good, but it's the context and variety of styles that give Check Your Head its identity.