Song · The National
“Mistaken for Strangers” by The National
From the album Boxer (2007)
“Mistaken for Strangers” by The National appears on 13 radio countdowns from 8 stations between 2007 and 2025. It was first released in 2007 on the album Boxer. Its best result is #44 on the WFNX Top 100 Songs of 2007. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #176 alternative song of 2007.
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"Mistaken for Strangers" was the first taste of Boxer, the fourth album from Brooklyn's the National, landing on April 30, 2007 in Britain and a day later in America. Matt Berninger wrote it with Aaron and Bryce Dessner, and it's the band at their most wired: Berninger's melodies loop and wander over prickly guitar picked up behind the bridge, while Bryan Devendorf's drumming stays as solid as a brick wall.
The critics leaned in. Rolling Stone's Rob Sheffield and the Guardian's Louis Pattison both singled it out as one of the album's best, Pattison calling it gloomily great, and AllMusic's Heather Phares heard something like a slightly more hopeful Joy Division in it. "Apartment Story" came next.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 44 | WFNX Boston, MA | WFNX Top 100 Songs of 2007 | 100 |
| 2007 | 81 (tie) | WBER Rochester, NY | WBER Listener Countdown 2007 | 129 |
| 2007 | 51 | WXPN Philadelphia, PA | WXPN Year in Review: Top 100 Songs of 2007 | 100 |
| 2008 | 86 (tie) | WBER Rochester, NY | WBER Listener Countdown 2008 | 136 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 678 | WXPN | WXPN 885 Greatest Songs of the New Millennium (2013) | 885 |
| 2019 | 513 | KEXP | KEXP Listeners' Favorite Songs of All Time | 627 |
| 2020 | 1504 | WXPN | WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time | 2020 |
| 2022 | 132 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 2000s | 907 |
| 2022 | 1313 | WYEP | WYEP Countdown to Fall 2022 | 603 |
| 2024 | 858 | The Colorado Sound | The Colorado Sound Top 1055 Songs of the 21st Century | 1055 |
| 2024 | 486 | WXPN | WXPN The 885 Greatest Songs of the 21st Century (2024) | 885 |
| 2025 | 213 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 21st Century | 909 |
| 2025 | 633 | The Current | 893 Essential Songs of The Current: 2005 to Now | 893 |
Also listed as: Mistaken For Strangers.
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