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While the band's members have stayed busy with a series of other projects, the National have been making moves on their follow-up to Trouble Will Find Me, Stereogum reports. The band met earlier this year for writing sessions, and Matt Berninger calls 15 of the new songs "very fucking amazing".

The band revealed that while the record is still in the early days, they're writing more songs together as a band. According to Aaron Dessner, they're also taking a more stripped-down approach to songwriting. “We’re not afraid, I think, to write hooks now,” he said.

Dessner described the National's new songs as "a bit razory," "brighter," and "a little bit harsher." Berninger said of their new songwriting and recording approach, "It’s changing the National, the way we’re doing it."

They also discussed their long-gestating Red Hot Grateful Dead tribute compilation, which will reportedly come early next year. They're currently editing down from about 70 contributions. The comp will feature the National, Bon Iver's Justin Vernon, Sharon Van Etten, the War on Drugs ("Touch of Grey"), the Walkmen ("Ripple"), Kurt Vile and J Mascis ("Box of Rain"), Tunde Adebimpe ("Playing in the Band"), Unknown Mortal Orchestra ("Shakedown Street"), Perfume Genius, Fucked Up, Grizzly Bear's Daniel Rossen ("Terrapin Station"), Phosphorescent ("Standing on the Moon"), Stephen Malkmus, Lee Ranaldo, and Yo La Tengo's Ira Kaplan.

Update (12/3, 7:25 p.m. EST): Bruce Hornsby revealed on his Facebook that he and Justin Vernon covered "Black Muddy River" for the compilation, Relix reports.

Read the full feature here.

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