The Hold Steady -- Separation Sunday

There are concept albums (and I promise this blog isn't only about them) but The Hold Steady is a concept band. More lyrically dense than any band should be allowed to be, most of the songs on this and all their albums revolve around a cast of characters from the Twin Cities who are surely too well-realized to be entirely made up.

Craig Finn's vocals have been described as the guy next to you at the bar who just won't shut up and I think that's accurate, provided the bar is loud enough the guy is raising his voice to just below a shout. He's talking (hollering) much more than he's singing, lending an exuberance perfectly in line with the music. Some will be put off by the vocals.
I became aware of them because as a Constantines fan I watched their tour dates and saw they'd be nearby soon, sharing a bill with some band, "The Hold Steady". The name was interesting enough that I listened to some tracks and was suitably impressed. I liked the sound's overall clarity, I liked the not-an-afterthought-or-tacked-on piano, I liked the anthemic aspect, and yes, I liked the vocals. There is a palpable sense of fun here, like a night out in your 20s with a good crew, hangover be damned.

Best Song
"Stevie Nix". One of my top ten favorite riffs of all time.

Released
May 3 2005.

Acquired/First Heard
Another post-kids album that I've never owned. I first heard it in mid-2005.

Next Closest
Bruce Springsteen for the hooks and big sound, Circus Lupus for the vocal style, though with entirely different subject matter.

Brush with Greatness (note: may include name-dropping):
During their whole set at the aforementioned show, I was thinking guitarist Tad Kubler looked like someone from a different Minneapolis band (I didn't know anyone in The Hold Steady's names). After the encore as I was collecting the set list, he was unplugging his pedals so I asked him, "Hey, this is a dumb question, but are you Thor from Cows?" He laughed. "Ha! No, but that's funny that you ask that. Cows were a great band. Thanks." In retrospect I have no idea why I thought they were the same guy as they look nothing alike.