At the National Grid

At the National Grid is the sixth album by New Zealand band The Bats, released in 2005. It was the band's first album for ten years and the first to be released on a New Zealand label other than Flying Nun Records.

Recording and release
The rhythm tracks were recorded to analogue at The National Grid studio, in Christchurch, New Zealand. The tracks were then digitised with overdubs and mixing by Paul Kean with input from the band. In New Zealand, the album was released on The Bats' own newly formed Pocket Music label. It was released in the US by Magic Marker, in Germany by Little Teddy (with different artwork and also on vinyl), in the UK by Egg Records and in Australia by Reverberation.

Reception
The album generally received very positive reviews. Tim Sendra at Allmusic gave it 4 stars, writing, "...having the group back at such a high level is as refreshing as a plunge into an ice-cold mountain stream." It had airplay on many college radio stations in the US, leading to an appearance at the 2006 SXSW Festival in Austin.

Personnel

 * Malcolm Grant - drums
 * Paul Kean - bass guitar, guitar, backing vocals
 * Robert Scott - guitar, vocals, piano
 * Kaye Woodward - guitar, bass guitar, vocals

Also credited:
 * Alastair Galbraith - violin (tracks 6 & 12)
 * John Kelcher - engineer