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Brooklyn based rock band The Hold Steady formed in 2003 by members Craig Finn (vocals/guitar), Galen Polivka (bass), Tad Kubler (guitar), Bobby Drake (drums), and Franz Nicolay (keyboard/accordion/harmonica).
Stylistically the band has been described as a ‘riff heavy mixture of classic rock’ notable for its ‘lyrically dense storytelling’.
2004 brought the release of The Hold Steady’s debut album titled ‘Almost Killed Me’ on Frenchkiss Records. Somewhat of a sleeper hit, the album achieved high critical acclaim and reached number 31 in the Pazz and Jop Critics poll.
The bands sophomore album ‘Separation Sunday’ was released in 2005. A loose concept album following the exploits of a character named ‘Holly” (short for Hallelujah) and her quest to find a balance between Catholicism and rock and roll through drugs and metaphorical resurrection. The album was extremely well received and was dubbed ‘the most egregiously American Catholic album since X’s ‘Under The Big Black Sun’ and Springsteen’s ‘Tunnel Of Love’’.
After ‘Separation Sunday’s release The Hold Steady parted company with Frenchkiss Records and signed to Vagrant Records for the release of their third album ‘Boys And Girls In America’. The album was ranked first on the Best Albums of 2006 by Pitchfork Media and eighth by Rolling Stone Magazine.
The bands fourth album ‘Stay Positive’ was released in July 2008 and features guest musicians – Ben Nichols of Lucero, J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. and Emilyn Brodsky and Doug Gillard of Guided By Voices. Finn spoke of the album saying he believed it ‘captures a band hitting their creative peak, as well as enjoying each others creativity and company.’
The band have recently finished recording their fifth studio album Heaven Is Whenever, which will be released on May 4th 2010. Guitarist Tad Kubler has stated that musical scores and cinematic soundscapes were major influences when composing the album, listing Gustavo Santaolalla, Terence Blanchard and Jon Brion as key examples.
The Hold Steady will be performing live at Manchester Academy 2 on Saturday 26th June. |
