When we met up with the Hold Steady at Lollapalooza, Craig Finn told he us hoped Boys And Girls In America would stay off the P2Ps at least a month before it’s 10/3 due date. So far so good. It’s frustrating when your band’s album leaks, Craig explained, not because people are stealing it (“I don’t care if people download it for free!” he claimed, but please don’t take as an invitation) but because an album release should be a big event. October 3rd … and boom!
That said, he did promise “Chips Ahoy!” would soon be made a free MP3. And that day has come!
Lolla photos by Amrit:
Word on the street is that PFork’s already given the album a 10.1. You guys dig the single?
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this is the worst band ever
this is the best band ever.
wow, honestly how could anyone like this tuneless, ridiculous, older fat man frat lyrics. not only do they suck, but they are ugly too. they have literally nothing going for them but the pitchfork cum lodged up their asses
….This better not be the final recording. Because theres not enough penetration park, religion, and hood rat friends. The instrumentals suck too.
I’m not digging this song. I wanna go back to Ybor City.
huh? barf
I liked it better the first time when The Wallflowers did it
Great song! It has a tune, a lot of great songs are ridiculous, and I don’t think they let old fat men join frats these days and in either case you can’t fault great bands just because classic rock has become hip with the fratboys. I can imagine this song being ace in the context of a whole album of solid, honest and dirty rock n’ roll.
Woah, yeah, I really, really hope this isn’t the final mix. ICK!
Personally, I think Craig Finn needs not to sing, but keep doing that Rex Harrison talking on pitch thing. That’s what I love most about The Hold Steady. Well, that and Tad’s ridiculous guitar solos and Franz’s rad moustache.
hahahaha!
seems the skinny wearing jeans set has no love for The Hold Steady.
i will take real rock n’roll over ironic moustache havin’, skinny jean wearin’, white belt havin’ hipsters ANY FUCKING DAY OF THE WEEK!
please, go back to your eating disorders and image concerns all call me up when you figure out what rock n roll is and not what is the “hottest-indie(a term that is a joke in itself if you remember the 90′s at all)band-on-the-blog-circut-that-we-will-forget-about-in-two-months”….
these guys rock like it is fun
p.s. thanks for the tix scott
“honest and dirty rock n’ roll.” this cracks me up. do you see everything through these imaginary rose tinted glasses? do you romanticize shit on the daily?
Seriously, it’s not about that he’s fat, and not a “hipster” even though he actually IS
it’s rather that his voice is bad, the songs are stupid and generic
and anyway you shake it, it’s NOT original
Not as fond of that track as I have been when listening to the other albums for the first time. I still think they’re a great band and I’m sure the album will be excellent.
Never read anything on Pitchfork so I honestly couldn’t care what they say about it, make up your own minds kids. Don’t put stuff aside because it’s cool to like them or because they’re now popular. Learn to grow some taste of your own.
I understand why so many people reject this band so passionately. I really do.
But man, i feel sorry for them because if you are into this band and see them live it is unreal.
All you haters just go listen to your Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, OK? This new one sounds decent, but its no Little Hoodrat Friend.
“his voice is bad”? no shit. go buy taylor hicks or something, not indie rock.
I like the song, I loooooove the bridge.
And frat boys/Wallflowers will never appreciate/play
an organ solo like that ever.
“seems the skinny wearing jeans set has no love for The Hold Steady.”
But the cool thing is they all show up in the songs and we get to laugh while enjoying ourselves. Don’t you just hate these meta-clever kids and these meta-clever parties?
People would compain if the album sounded like the older stuff saying they were a one trick pony. People will complain if every album doesn’t sound like the old ones they like so much. It is impossible for bands to win. You can do the sound you want.
I love the first 2 albums and i will wait to here the full new album before deciding on it. One song is not always an accurate assesment of the overall album.
People need to chill out and listen to stuff they like and shut up and move on from stuff they don’t.
Not bad.
I’m looking forward to seeing if anything else on the album sounds like the fucking bridge. The organ sound is stupendous, even if the production does sound “overdriven,” in a sense.
Seems like he’s toned his delivery down a bit, practically reaching a croon by Craig Finn standards.
I like it better than the new Decemberists tunes I’ve heard.
Anyone else notice the slightly more relaxed vocals?
sounds like a rejected Elvis Costello song circa Radio Radio.
That would still make it pretty good.
i love how one of the “anti-hipster” comments addressed bad ironic moustaches. LOOK AT THE THIRD PICTURE BRO.
Although I like this band they slightly annoy me in a Barenaked Ladies kind of way.
fucking snifflers
I don’t have an ironic mustache, and I don’t celebrate the days of dirty, honest rock and roll. Either way, I don’t really like it. It’s like the Mountain Goats, but bad.
Whoa, who put the poo in everyone’s coffee today? I think this song ain’t bad. Sure beats Oh No Oh Bishop Lily Allen War Kids.
Like the Mountain Goats?
Huh?
You know, this might sound OK to all you kids who didn’t have to live through this kind of dull crap in the 70′s, but it’s really just a Springsteen song in emo drag. Hated ‘em when I saw ‘em a couple of years ago, and boy, this sure isn’t changing my mind. Not bad, really (unlike, say, the Arctic Monkeys or whatever it is you hipsters are lapping up this week), but certainly not impressive. I guess they drink a LOT,though,which should count for something.
Speak it KJB, my brother. The Hold Steady sound just like all the phony arena bands from my childhood too! REO Speedwagon, Foreigner, Boston. But these young hipsters, they’ll lap up anything. First it was Clap Your Hands, then the Arctic Monkeys, now these clowns. Whatever happened to Television, Gang of Four, or Wire? They were sick! Lets get more bands that sound like them, because nooobody sounds like British post-punk these days. Nobody. 10-4 good buddy, peace out.
I get that the voice turns people off, but if you can get through that, wow.
what is so wow about it? it’s not like the instrumention is very special
seriously the lyrics are jeuvenile
and the music is even worse
to the person who longs for wire, go4 and television– if you knew shit youd know all the mainstream ninnies were saying the same thing about those bands when they were current. it must be easy to like a band like television where everyone tells you they are ´classic.´it takes balls to enjoy modern music because you really dont know where it will take you down the road.
Awesome! I’m a skinny jean wearing hipster. That’s a new one.
Thing one: Forget songwriting, the “classic rock” sound, whatever. The production and engineering on this track is just plain BAD. The sound is muddy, muddy, muddy. I may have liked this band’s other material, but I absolutely will not endorse technically shoddy work.
Thing two: I’ll say it again — Craig Finn shouldn’t try to sing. For you culturally illiterate people out there who don’t know who Rex Harrison was, look it up. Here’s another comparison that will at least make sense to the nostalgia-swilling whiners above — it was better when Mr. Finn’s delivery was reminiscent of Mark E. Smith.
I know I shouldn’t get worked up over idiotic comments on a Stereogum post — because god, the comments have gone to shite in the last year or so, but really people. Is it too much to ask people to discuss things in an intelligent fashion? Obviously, yes.
“I absolutely will not endorse technically shoddy work.”
I know I shouldn’t get worked up over your idiotic comments on Stereogum, but Jesus F. Christ. Get over yoiurself. Maybe you’re part of the reason the comments have “gone to shite.”
Whatevs, Jake. It’s a fair critique. Any particular reason you don’t agree?
Pretty mediocre stuff. It certainly doesn’t seem worth such heavy criticism.
While I am old, I am not fat, and was never in a frat. I grew up in Brooklyn, and was lucky to come from a neighborhood that was extremely musically oriented.I listend to everything from Lou Reed to Earl Scruggs…I went to high school around the corner from CBGB’s and saw all the “famous” bands before anyone knew they were famous. I would easily say The Hold Steady is one of the top five bands I have ever seen. The first two albums are poetic in a way that puts you in a situation that you may have never experienced…but you know what it is. I saw them do Chips Ahoy ina sweaty second floor bar in Albany a few weeks ago….it fucking killed. I cant wait for the new album and Craig Finn is the best writer I have heard since Lou Reed/Jim Carroll.
While I am old, I am not fat, and was never in a frat. I grew up in Brooklyn, and was lucky to come from a neighborhood that was extremely musically oriented.I listend to everything from Lou Reed to Earl Scruggs…I went to high school around the corner from CBGB’s and saw all the “famous” bands before anyone knew they were famous. I would easily say The Hold Steady is one of the top five bands I have ever seen. The first two albums are poetic in a way that puts you in a situation that you may have never experienced…but you know what it is. I saw them do Chips Ahoy in a sweaty second floor bar in Albany a few weeks ago….it fucking killed. I cant wait for the new album and Craig Finn is the best writer I have heard since Lou Reed/Jim Carroll.
They’re just not that good. Bad pub-rock!
“I cant wait for the new album and Craig Finn is the best writer I have heard since Lou Reed/Jim Carroll.”
He’s a mediocre talent who’s gotten the press he’s gotten mainly thanks to his press connections from his day job and playing up the angle they are from Brooklyn, yet they’re all reallly just midwestern doughboys. I know, because I met Craig Finn and he’s as fun to be with as a real estate broker.
The Hold Steady simply are not that good to warrant any fame they’ve gotten.
Best album of the year, hands down. Whining hipsters, please do not forget that music can sometimes be legitimately enjoyable – Black Dice can be amazing sometimes, but music need not sound like a museum exhibit to have artistic merit.
Best album of the year, hands down. Whining hipsters, please do not forget that music can sometimes be legitimately enjoyable – Black Dice can be amazing sometimes, but music need not sound like a museum exhibit to have artistic merit.
this band is not aimed at indie hipsters, but qy people who can appreciate the somewhat cynical remeniscing of a deeper drunken teen & college-hood. go listen to the jim carroll band’s ‘catholic boy’–fast forward nearly 25 years, and then tell me that you don’t appreciate this record.
This is a great song on a great CD. Franz has a slick moustachio and you cant say anything about it until you can play the keys and accordian like him. This band has an appreciation for music like most hipsters wouldn’t believe.
first of all, i don’t understand why anyone would say the lyrcis are juvenile. the references in the songs, and the issues the songs deal with are far from juvenile. you shouldnt nitpick so much about the music. they may not be amazing instrumentalists, and if thats what you want to worry about, then fine. but i think theyre a good band just because you can get into the music, get caught in it. some may say that the lyrics are cliche, but there are a lot of original themes and if you can relate to the whole “im a teenager and i drink and i do drugs and i know it might be bad but its fun and everything is so complicated” thing and also the “im a teenager and completely wrapped up in the scene and it may be stupid and artificial and there may be way more important things to care about but this just FEELS right and good” thing, then the songs and the stories they tell are mindblowing. sorry about the run-on sentences…