The Hold Steady frontman, Craig Finn, has been making the rounds talking about how the new album will be a bit more intricate and less anthemic then the past few albums. More Almost Killed Me than Stay Positive. I guess Finn's definition of less anthemic is different from everyone else's because these are as anthemic as they've ever been. And in the greatest way possible.
Everything in this song is big, from the hook to guitar solo to the drums. It all sounds enormous. It's still a bit too early to tell how much longer these dudes can keep tossing these guitar-rock gems our way before they stray into the not so great Springsteen territory, but I'll take this while I can get it. Lyrically we find Finn mining that same nostalgic for the good ole' days with drinking and girls and guitars turned up to eleven territory. To me this is sounding like the "How a Resurrection Really Feels," the last track on the bands masterful Separation Sunday. It isn't quite a ballad, but isn't really all that up-tempo either. It's a mid-tempo fist-pumper that really showcases what The Hold Steady does best. (Music is post-jump)
So, here is the link to the MTV article where you can find a bit more info on the song. And here is the music.
1 comment:
This is far and away my favorite of the tracks released so far--it just soars. It took me about five listens to realize that it's a direct sequel to "Chips Ahoy" and "Yeah Sapphire", what with the clairvoyance and horses.
I would read the hell out of a collection of academic essays on this band: tracing the Holly/Gideon/Charlamagne storyline; the connections between Finn's style and hip hop; Christianity in THS; the band's relationship to their audience; the function of the continuing narrative/novelistic approach; self-consciousness in the creation and marketing of the band; on and on. I love them the way I love the Coen brothers.
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