Drumbeat of Shots, Broken by Pauses to Reload
BLACKSBURG, Va., April 16 — The gunshots were so slow and steady that some students thought they came from a nearby construction site, until they saw the police officers with rifles pointed at Norris Hall, the engineering building at Virginia Tech.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
They went on and on, for what seemed like 10 or 15 or 20 minutes, an eternity with punctuation.
Bang. Bang. On the third floor of Norris Hall, Scott L. Hendricks, a professor, looked out the window of his office and saw students crawling away from the building.
Bang. Tiffany Otey’s accounting class crammed into an office and locked themselves in, crying in fright.
Every so often, the shots paused for a minute or so. That was the gunman, who was in the midst of the worst shooting rampage in American history, stopping to reload. When it was over, 33 people, including the gunman, were dead and at least 15 more were injured.
“I was terrified,” said Ms. Otey, a junior whose class met in the room above the one where much of the shooting took place.
One student finished the day’s assignment and tried to leave, but returned to tell the others that the hall was full of smoke and that there were police officers everywhere. The class decided to go into a room with a lock. Dr. Hendricks, an engineering and mechanics professor on the same floor, barricaded himself in his office, pushing a bookcase in front of the door. Some students on campus took refuge in the library, searching the Web to find out what was happening. No one knew.
“I was crying,” Ms. Otey said. “I was worried that the guy with the gun was going to come upstairs too.”
The violence began early in the morning in the west wing of Ambler Johnston, the largest dormitory at Virginia Tech, where two people were killed, officials said. But when the first class started two hours later, at 9:05 a.m., many on campus remained unaware of any danger.
“I woke up and I didn’t know anything was wrong,” said Sarah Ulmer, a freshman who lives in the east wing of the dorm. “I went to my first class and my teacher was talking about how some people weren’t coming because there was a gun threat at West A. J. and they were blocking it off. It was like, ‘Oh.’ ” [READ MORE]
Review: The National, Boxer
This weekend was Felicia's birthday, and one of the things she received from me was tickets to go see The National in June in Madison, Wisconsin at one of our favorite spots, The High Noon Saloon.
Luckily, that gives me enough time to become inundated with the band's new album, Boxer, which is set to hit stores May 22.
There are few bands out that that portray such an understated style of music as The National. "Fake Empire" opens with a quiet piano and a deep monotone voice, as if you were privy to a private show at a dark underground piano bar. My favorite track on the album comes next with "Mistaken for Strangers," which takes on a steady and strong drumline as if it was pulled straight out of an Interpol catalog. The lyrics, "Mistaken for strangers by your own friends" speak of isolation, and the isolated voice of lead singer Matt Berninger throughout the album makes you feel almost alone with the music. The album, as understanded musically as it is vocally, is deep and diverse in tone; on "Apartment Story," Berninger's clear, simple vocals float over a heavily distorted fuzz, but on songs like "Racing Like a Pro" and "Ada," a quick flamenco style guitar holds the energy just enough to match the lyrics.
The National it seems is a band that relies haveily on the music to pace their albums, particularly Boxer, creating a synergistic relationship with Berninger's vocals rather than simply existing in the periphery or playing over the vocals as so many others do. An understated gem of an album, Boxer is a true testament to the strength of their songwriting and the ability to capture the emotional tone of their songs without overvocalizing or overproducing the music.
I think Ian of Minneapolis F@cking Rocks describes the feel of the album well in his preview of Boxer:
"Consistently overlooked by the national music media, The National first made some real noise in 2005, when the exquisite Alligator showed up on a number of bloggers/print pubs' "Best Of" features at the end of the year. Defined by Matt Berninger's resonant baritone and sharp lyrics, the band kicked out a number of great twitchy pop songs with shades of country and punk rounding out the edges.
This new album, Boxer, is not nearly as edgy or nervy. From the outset, Berninger & co. sound self-assured and comfortable, as if the mild success they experienced has given them a serious jolt of confidence. That means that the band eschews the jagged catharsis of "Abel" for more subtly, and luckily, this is a band that does subtle seriously well. The best thing about The National are the little flourishes that make their songs feel so alive, like the swell of horns at the end of "Fake Empire" or the steady build-up in "Apartment Story." Beringer's voice, deep and steady, is some unholy combination of Ian Curtis' monotone and Jim Morrison's swagger, and he dominates the record with his personality. In fact, if I had one complaint about Boxer, it would be that at times it feels a bit like Matt Beringer solo album; the presence of the band is much more subdued than it was on Alligator. There is no sense of "Mr. November"'s unified anxiety. But at the same time, The National are now writing songs that don't just seem anxious, they're writing songs that make anxiety, fear and love palpable..."
The National - "Fake Empire"
The National - "Mistaken for Strangers"
Video for "Start a War" at Pitchfork