Stay Positive Accessories
 Fleet Foxes
Modern Guilt
Evil Urges
Dear Science
Viva La Vida
Consolers Of The Lonely
Narrow Stairs
Boys and Girls in America
Little Honey
Acid Tongue
Stay Positive Reviews
As you write your next batch of songs, consider this lyric from "Constructive Summer": "Let this be my annual reminder/That we can all be something bigger.". Musically, "Constructive SSSUH-mer" features chainsaw guitars and an E Street Band piano, the latter of which re-appears on "Yeah Sapphire." A harpsichord stakes out new musical territory on the aforementioned "One For the Cutters." "Lord, I'm Discouraged" and "Joke About Jamaica" have great guitar solos. Once again, he seems to get a kick out of referencing his own songs: There are two allusions to the title of the band's first album (Almost Killed Me), a quote from a song from that album's first song ("Positive Jam"), a repeat of a lyric from their second album ("she's gonna have to go with whoever's gonna get her the highest"), and one mention of the band's name ("We're the directors - our hands will hold steady"). He continues to name-drop cities quite a bit - including Ybor City, twice, in the last song on the album. He still sings incessantly about being under the influence of one substance and/or another. Unfortunately, their fourth album - Stay Positive - doesn't quite scale such grand heights.
On Boys and Girls in America, Finn's lyric writing had grown by leaps and bounds. Write about something else now. All of these appear in the last few songs on the album, so I guess he felt like he had to squeeze them in. Whether this is a good thing or not is in the ear of the listener. I'm not gonna bet the house on it, but I do think that you have a 5-star album somewhere in you. Jansen for noting this in his review).
On Stay Positive, it is still pretty good. Good for you. However, Cleveland - the one city mentioned in this song - is quite far from Bloomington, Indiana, where that film takes place. Perhaps singer/songwriter Craig Finn's Catholic Church would have required him to confess the musical sins of his past, but I would simply ask that he make another record comparable in quality to their third one. I am not optimistic about your next album, but consider this: I awarded one star to Almost Killed Me, two stars to Separation Sunday, four to Boys and Girls, and three to Stay Positive.
"Navy Sheets," however, contains the absolute most annoying keyboard riff that I have ever heard in my life. Also, in the excellent "Both Crosses," Finn sings "You Catholic girls you start much too late." This, coupled with the mention of "Only the Good Die Young" on Almost Killed Me, makes The Hold Steady and Fountains of Wayne the unlikely co-winners of the "Most Likely to Quote Billy Joel in a Song" award. Finn: you like to drink a lot and you constantly quote yourself. The religious dimension continues to give his songs a fair amount of depth.
Could the next one be a fiver. Alas, certain aspects of his songwriting aren't getting any less annoying. Among the more memorable lyrics are "Me and my friends are like/The drums on `Lust for Life'," "In bar light, she looked alright/In daylight, she looked desperate," and "Sniffing on crystal in cute little cars/Getting nailed against Dumpsters behind townie bars." That last lyric comes from "One For the Cutters," the title of which refers to the names of the townies in the 1979 movie "Breaking Away" (props to J.D. So we get it, Mr.
After the major leap forward that Boys and Girls in America was, The Hold Steady stood a pretty good chance of having me completely forgive them for their first two albums.
There isn't soci-political statements being tossed up as enlightened dogma. Sometimes it's just rock and it's important because it's simple. Sometimes it's just that simple. When I first heard the The Hold Steady, I didn't get them. . After the second listening it all came back to me.
So I figured they were trying to trick me. I remembered digging a Springsteen record.
This is an album for you to buy. Sometimes it's just Rock and Roll folks. Sometimes it doesn't have to change the world to change your outlook. If you like Rock when the count to get it started is "One, Two, Three, Four", if you are not looking for vocal hysterics, over-blown freshman posey/poetry lyrics, maudlin mope rock and/or songs composed on Pro Tools which do not require learning how to play an instrument with ANY level of professionalism.
I remembered the joy of putting on a Stones album. Why would a band in the new century just play straight ahead rock music. I could not get past Craig Finn's vocals and the simple regurgitation of rock and roll cliches. Included in this recording you should know: There isn't any tricky production. I had to be missing something and that annoyed me.
I remembered about singing along in the car to Tom Petty, Creedence, The Pretenders, The Clash etc.
I only wish I could see them with DBT this fall. Well, after a suggestion from a friend I downloaded this album from amazon and it has gotten almost 'round the clock airtime since. I have also gotten BAGIA and SS and the band's germination has culminated in Stay Positive. My best album of '08.
Everything from (dare I say) Springsteen style epic rock ballads and subject matter, to beat poetry and phenomenal lyrical story telling. Stay Positive, when compared to the previous releases of THS, does have a feeling of a smirking smile, even in the midst of the subject matter. Often times, its a bit didactic, hes repeating the same lines which didn't need underlining and emphasis. IF you like indie/alternative rock, and respect the classic rock aspect, this is a must own. I've read that Craig Finn has indicated that he sings about the specific to describe the general"- and he does it quite well. Songs like "Constructive Summer " and "Sequestered in Memphis" are smooth and quite perfect- and "yeah sapphire" is a rock guitar gem. But there is brilliance, and pretty consistent brilliance.
I know Craig Finn said this album is grown up, but I still see themes of youth in the music and in the lyrics. All in all, "Stay Positive" is 11 track album with two 'eh' songs, one 'so-so' song, and seven Hold Steady masterpieces. The places are the same and the debauchery carries many of the same themes. To be honest, I have a love affair with the Hold Steady. "Both Crosses" is deal-able.
It starts off SO strong with "Constructive Summer" and "Sequestered in Memphis" and then kind of drops off for "One for the Cutters" and "Navy Sheets." But the album comes back strong (but soft) during "Lord, I'm Discouraged." After that ballad (which is kind of acts the same way "Citrius" did on "Boys and Girls in America"), it is all uphill. They tell stories of Holly and the usual cast of Hold Steady characters. Their songs, although growers, are such great stories of life, friendship (and drinking). To me "Stay Positive" is definitely a grower-type album.
But everything else is so solid.
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