Band: The Hold SteadyAlbum: Stay PositiveReleased: July 15Label: Vagrant Records
For those of you who haven’t heard The Hold Steady, its albums are similar to listening to an audio book with an awesome soundtrack. Craig Finn’s preachy vocals glorify the bad habits and lifestyles of suburban 20-year-olds. On its fourth and latest addition, Stay Positive, the overall structure is much the same. Clinging to the band’s idols such as Springsteen, Costello and The Replacements, the latest album is once again made up of fist-pounding sing-a-longs and a few ballads.
What makes Stay Positive stand out from the other albums is its darker tone and more apparent melodies. On Stay Positive, the characters are growing up, dreams are being crushed and people are dying. As the characters age, they reminisce of earlier days and find it harder to retain youth as responsibilities begin to weigh them down. The characters’ substance abuse, which was present on the previous albums, has died down as they focus more on struggling to grow without change.
The opening track, “Constructive Summer,” begins with hard and heavy guitar riffs over Finn’s vocals and portrays a dying town with false hopes to “build something this summer.”
Most of the songs are done in this style, including “Sequestered in Memphis” and “Magazines,” which are set to gain the attention and love of The Hold Steady’s older fans.
On certain songs, however, the band begins to veer from straightforward barstool rock. Composer and keyboardist Franz Nicolay is more apparent than ever on this album. It begins to experiment with synthesizers on “Navy Sheets” and harpsichords on “One for the Cutters.” Finn, who is normally known for his half-singing/half-talking style, even took vocal lessons for the creation of the album.
One of The Hold Steady’s strongest points is its ability to end an album well. “Slapped Actress” fills the spot on Stay Positive nicely by grabbing the essence of the album. The lyrics and the music work well to bring the album to a close.
The Hold Steady is a band that has no problem displaying its influences, and Stay Positive is no different. Where some bands would seem like imitators, The Hold Steady seems like a relief for the music industry today. The band seems to play for the sake of playing, and Finn’s lyrics depict a more bare and restless America than what is normally displayed. Although Stay Positive is not a giant step forward for the band it stands at par with its other albums, which, for The Hold Steady, is saying a lot.
