Mistaken for Strangers (song)
{{Infobox song
| name = Mistaken for Strangers
| cover = Mistaken for Strangers (The National single - cover art).jpg
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = The National
| album = Boxer
| released = April 30, 2007
| recorded = Tarquin Studios
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = Indie rock, post-punk revival
| length = 3:31
| label = Beggars Banquet Records
| writer = Matt Berninger, Scott Devendorf
| producer = Peter Katis and The National
| prev_title = Lit Up
| prev_year = 2005
| next_title = Apartment Story
| next_year = 2007
| misc =
}}
"Mistaken for Strangers" is a song by Brooklyn-based indie rock band The National from their fourth studio album, Boxer. The song was released on April 30, 2007 in the UK and May 1, 2007 in the US as the album's first single.{{cite web| url={{Allmusic|class=album|id=r1068534|pure_url=yes}}| title="Mistaken for Strangers" - Overview| publisher=Allmusic (Rovi Corporation)| accessdate=4 August 2009}}
Reception
"Mistaken for Strangers" has received mostly positive reviews from music critics. Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone and Louis Pattison of The Guardian each praised the song as one of Boxer's standout tracks,{{cite web| url=https://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/13933172/review/14459239/boxer| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070518072628/http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/13933172/review/14459239/boxer| url-status=dead| archive-date=May 18, 2007| title=Boxer - The National - Review| publisher=RollingStone.com| accessdate=4 August 2009}}{{cite web| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/v2f9/| title=Review of The National - Boxer| publisher=BBC.co.uk| accessdate=4 August 2009}} with Pattison adding that the song is "gloomily great."{{cite web| url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/8565| title=The National - Album Reviews| date=23 May 2007| publisher=NME.com| accessdate=4 August 2009}} Heather Phares of Allmusic said the song "touches on the side of the band that could be mistaken for a more hopeful Joy Division, if lyrics like 'You wouldn't want an angel watching over you? / Surprise surprise, they wouldn't want to watch' can be counted as hopeful."{{cite web| url={{Allmusic|class=album|id=r1042225|pure_url=yes}}| title=Boxer - Review| publisher=Allmusic (Rovi Corporation)| accessdate=4 August 2009}} Dennis Scanland of Music Emissions said it is "an infectingly beautiful upbeat song that is calling out to be the best track this year."{{cite web| url=http://www.musicemissions.com/artists/albums/index.php?album_id=6190| title=The National - Boxer Review| publisher=MusicEmissions.com| accessdate=4 August 2009| archive-date=15 December 2008| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081215062824/http://www.musicemissions.com/artists/albums/index.php?album_id=6190| url-status=dead}} Ian Cohen of Stylus Magazine described the song as "corrosive but ingratiating, backing up [vocalist Matt] Berninger's loopy melodies with little more than spiny, corrugated behind-the-bridge picking and brick-solid godbody drumming from Bryan Devendorf."{{cite web| url=http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/the-national/boxer.htm| title=The National - Boxer - Review| publisher=StylusMagazine.com| accessdate=4 August 2009| archive-date=24 September 2015| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924133725/http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/the-national/boxer.htm| url-status=dead}}
However, Ted Grant of Playlouder said the song, along with album track "Brainy," features "some especially overbearing stickwork and neo-sing-a-long choruses that don't really suit" the band.{{cite web| url=http://playlouder.com/content/12703/boxer| title=Content: Boxer| publisher=Playlouder.com| accessdate=4 August 2009| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090628171904/http://playlouder.com/content/12703/boxer| archive-date=28 June 2009| url-status=dead}}
The song was featured prominently in the film 2017 science fiction film Rememory. The song plays during the opening scene of the film in which the protagonist and a passenger, his brother, sing along to it while driving late at night on a highway in a wooded area. The song is interrupted by a fatal traffic collision, killing the protagonist's brother, establishing the plot's primary conflict. The film revisits the scene multiple times, as recalled by the protagonist.
The song's title was also given to the 2013 documentary film Mistaken for Strangers which premiered April 17, 2013 at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City. The film takes place in 2010 as the band prepares to dive into the international spotlight. The National’s lead singer Matt Berninger invites his brother Tom to join the band on tour for the latter's directorial debut.{{cite web|url=http://www.movieroomreviews.com/reviews/tribeca-breakdown-mistaken-strangers| title=Tribeca Breakdown: "Mistaken For Strangers"| publisher=Movie Room Reviews| accessdate=29 April 2013}}
Music video
The music video for "Mistaken for Strangers" was filmed in Berninger's Brooklyn apartment, and was released in May 2007.{{cite web| url=https://stereogum.com/archives/video/new-national-video-mistaken-for-strangers_005300.html| title=New "Mistaken for Strangers" Video| publisher=Stereogum.com| accessdate=4 August 2009}} The video was directed by Thread-Count, a collaboration between Berninger's brother Tom, Ryer Banta, and Hope Hall.{{cite web| url=http://sixeyes.blogspot.com/2007/05/national-sixeyes-interview-with-matt.html| title=The National: Sixeyes Interview with Matt Berninger| date=7 May 2007| publisher=Sixeyes Music| accessdate=4 August 2009}}
In a June 2007 interview with The Scenestar, Matt Berninger explained the video as "very low-budget, without any narrative. No applied story to it. We're really happy with it. That kind of stuff, when it comes to videos, we'd much rather be cinéma vérité and just shooting the band as the band. Not the band on a desert or on a spaceship. That's usually more interesting I think."{{cite web| url=http://thescenestar.typepad.com/ss/2007/06/interview-matt-.html| title=The Scenestar: Interview: Matt Berninger of The National| publisher=The Scenestar| accessdate=4 August 2009}}
Track listing
;UK CD (BBQ 405CD)
- "Mistaken for Strangers" – 3:31
- "Blank Slate" – 3:17
- "Santa Clara" – 4:06
;UK and US 7" vinyl (BBQ 405)
- "Mistaken for Strangers" – 3:31
- "Blank Slate" – 3:17
Charts
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+ Weekly chart performance for "Mistaken for Strangers" ! scope="col"| Chart (2007) ! scope="col"| Peak |
| {{singlechart|Scotland|48|date=2007-05-06|rowheader=true}} |
| scope="row"| UK Singles (Official Charts Company){{cite web |url=http://www.zobbel.de/cluk/CLUK_N.HTM |title=Chart Log UK: Nadanuf – Michael Nyman |website=Zobbel.de |accessdate=March 20, 2014 |author=Zywietz, Tobias}}
| 183 |
|---|
| {{singlechart|UKindie|6|date=2007-05-06|rowheader=true}} |
Accolades
| class="wikitable" |
| Publication
!Country !Accolade !Year !align="center"|Rank |
|---|
| Eye Weekly
|Canada |2007 |22 |
| Pitchfork Media
|U.S. |2007 |77 |
| Rolling Stone
|U.S. |2007 |92 |
| Slant Magazine
|U.S. |2007 |47 |
| Hot Press
|Ireland |Singles of the Year{{CN|date=December 2023}} |2007 |18 |
| 97X
|U.S. |The 500 Best Modern Rock Songs of All Time{{cite web| url=http://woxy.com/blog/2009/06/01/the-2009-modern-rock-500-final-song-listing/| title=The 2009 WOXY.com Modern Rock 500| publisher=woxy.com| accessdate=4 August 2009| url-status=dead| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090814001603/http://woxy.com/blog/2009/06/01/the-2009-modern-rock-500-final-song-listing/| archivedate=14 August 2009}} |2009 |398 |
| Pitchfork Media
|U.S. |2009 |337 |
References
{{reflist|2}}
External links
- [http://www.americanmary.com/ Official band website]
- {{YouTube|cgRsYkKb1eI|"Mistaken for Strangers" music video}}
{{The National}}
{{authority control}}
Category:The National (band) songs