Board index » Word on the Street... » Other Bands




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 41 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2, 3  Next
Author Message
 Post subject: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 5:58 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Supersonic
 Profile

Joined: Mon Sep 05, 2005 1:34 am
Posts: 12029
The New Hold Steady Album: Stay Positive

"One thing I can say is that [Craig Finn] continues to blow my mind. And I'm saying that as a big a fan of his as anybody." - Tad Kubler

Earlier this week, Craig Finn and Packers/sausage aficionado Tad Kubler of the Hold Steady were in upstate New York. When we rang them up, they were "driving around," as Finn tells it, and "kind of scouting some stuff for artwork ideas."

Artwork for the fourth Hold Steady album! That's right-- after months of being hunkered down in the studio, growing their beards, the thing is finally in the can. All that needs to be done now is the mastering, sequencing, and, of course, artwork.

Pop the bottle of your choosing: this is reason for celebration.

"It's probably going to be called Stay Positive," Finn says, adding "we can say tentatively. There's a song called "Stay Positive" we've been playing live, and it was just something that's been kind of hanging around in my head a long time. I would say it's safe to say that's the name of the record."

For a band as prolific as the Hold Steady--they'll have four LPs in five years once Stay Positive is released-- tunes tends go from the page to the stage and then the studio in rapid succession, but some of the Stay Positive jams have been kicking around for a while now. "[Keyboardist] Franz [Nicolay] kind of got his laptop set up to do some hotel room demos over in Europe last summer, and we started throwing down ideas through that, and just kind of collected songs. And then when we got off the road from the tour we did with Art Brut, that ended at Thanksgiving, there was kind of a huge push right there when things were coming together. You know, sometimes you get in the creative mode, and you start using the other side of your brain and things happen quickly, there's a warm up period and then things start firing in all cylinders."

Recorded at a handful of New York-area locales over the last few months, the record is the band's second with Boys and Girls in America producer John Agnello. As Kubler says, the combination of the seasoned touring band's tightness and Agnello's deft hand behind the boards created a very fluid studio situation. "I would compare it to a basketball team that plays well together, that can get into that kind of rhythm. You can read people's next move and it allows you to kind of move together as more of a fluid unit or a machine, like a Swiss watch or something like that." He laughs, noting, "though I'm not sure I should describe our band as having quite that precision."

Though both Finn and Kubler are quick to point out that it "still sounds like a Hold Steady record", there's talk of opening up the sonic palette a bit on Stay Positive. Finn adds "there's certainly horns and strings, which I guess we had before, but there's also a mandolin, a harpsichord." Kubler notes the band's growing comfort with the studio setting, particularly with Agnello at the helm. "In terms of fidelity or stereo range, I think John took a little different approach in the way we mixed it in terms of just using some hard pans and doing some things different, rather than just a compressed guitar rock record."

One can't talk to Craig Finn without asking him about words themselves; specifically the ones he'll spit all over Stay Positive. When asked if there was any kind of overarching theme to the tunes on the new disc, he hesitated a bit. "I think the songs relate to each other in a way," adding "I'm not sure I want to talk about that quite yet." I figured maybe Kubler would give up the goods. "Well, he's sitting right next to me, so you're not going to get anything out of me!" Dammit. Let's assume alcohol is involved. Maybe parties, too.

Kubler did offer this: "One thing I can say is that the guy continues to blow my mind. And I'm saying that as a big a fan of his as anybody." Awww. "You rehearse, rehearse, rehearse and you go in and do takes, and takes, and takes, and different tracks of the songs, and then as that comes together, some of the funnest parts of being in the studio are getting to listen to Craig go in and start to do the vocals and hear the story unfold. It's a really exciting part for us-- I think I speak for everyone in the band-- when we're recording."

It's been said before, but what the hell: it's quite clear these guys just love making music. They'll even tell you themselves. "It isn't always just this huge bloodletting process that you sometimes hear other artists talk about in terms of songwriting." Kubler said of making Hold Steady records. "We do it because we enjoy it."

The Hold Steady dates:

02-25 Glasgow, Scotland - Garage
02-26 Manchester, England - Academy 2
02-27 London, England - Koko
03-27 Austin, TX - Emo's
05-09-11 Rye, England - Camber Sands Holiday Centre (ATP vs. Pitchfork) *
05-13 Dublin, Ireland - Academy
05-14 Belfast, Northern Ireland - Spring and Airbrake
05-16 Brighton, England - Great Escape
07-06 London, England - Hyde Park (O2 Wireless Festival)

http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/n ... -positivei

_________________
durdencommatyler wrote:
I'm a big fan of every invention post I've read.


Last edited by invention on Sat Feb 23, 2008 5:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 5:59 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Interweb Celebrity
 Profile

Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:47 am
Posts: 46000
Location: Reasonville
i still don't like this band.

_________________
No matter how dark the storm gets overhead
They say someone's watching from the calm at the edge
What about us when we're down here in it?
We gotta watch our backs


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 6:01 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Former PJ Drummer
 WWW  Profile

Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2004 12:03 am
Posts: 18376
Location: outta space
Gender: Male
cause they aren't so good, but you can learn from that title ceebs

_________________
thodoks wrote:
Man, they really will give anyone an internet connection these days.


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 6:04 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Supersonic
 Profile

Joined: Mon Sep 05, 2005 1:34 am
Posts: 12029
the only song i have of theirs is their dylan cover of can you please crawl out your window

_________________
durdencommatyler wrote:
I'm a big fan of every invention post I've read.


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 6:26 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Supersonic
 Profile

Joined: Fri Feb 04, 2005 9:24 pm
Posts: 12990
Location: Ohio.
Hello, most anticipated 2008 record.


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 9:51 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Force of Nature
 Profile

Joined: Mon Jul 03, 2006 2:40 am
Posts: 399
Location: WI
dyingonahilltop wrote:
Hello, most anticipated 2008 record.


I'm excited!!!


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 9:13 am 
Offline
User avatar
trying to make a career out of postwhoring
 Profile

Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2004 5:24 am
Posts: 37009
Location: In Missouri, they would (will) not let me be
Gender: Female
I really like this band and the more I listen the more I like them.

_________________
Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose
Nothin' ain't worth nothin', but it's free


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 3:07 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Force of Nature
 Profile

Joined: Mon Jul 03, 2006 2:40 am
Posts: 399
Location: WI
They won me over when I saw them live at Lollapalooza last year. It was the stand-out act of the weekend.


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 5:23 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Reissued
 Profile

Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 11:41 pm
Posts: 23014
Location: NOT FLO-RIDIN
Gender: Male
dyingonahilltop wrote:
Hello, most anticipated 2008 record.


Behind Wolf Parade....yeah.

_________________
given2trade wrote:
Oh, you think I'm being douchey? Well I shall have to re-examine everything then. Thanks brah.


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 2:33 am 
Offline
User avatar
Leak Inspector
 WWW  Profile

Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 5:25 pm
Posts: 35180
Location: Brasil
Gender: Male
im slowly appreciating this band (vocals, to be more precise)

it wasnt easy

_________________
need you, dream you, find you, taste you, fuck you, use you, scar you, break you, lose me, hate me, smash me, erase me, kill me....


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 3:20 am 
Offline
User avatar
Unthought Known
 Profile

Joined: Wed Oct 20, 2004 8:35 pm
Posts: 8770
Location: flap flap flap hey no fair i made my saving throw
love em. New album's average, but when it kills, it destroys.

_________________
New Age bullshit is just a bunch of homo shit that some rich fuck came up with to scam people. It's exactly the same as scientology and every other religion: fake.


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 3:24 am 
Offline
User avatar
Leak Inspector
 WWW  Profile

Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 5:25 pm
Posts: 35180
Location: Brasil
Gender: Male
key tracks?

_________________
need you, dream you, find you, taste you, fuck you, use you, scar you, break you, lose me, hate me, smash me, erase me, kill me....


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 3:27 am 
Offline
User avatar
Supersonic
 Profile

Joined: Mon Sep 05, 2005 1:34 am
Posts: 12029
not sure how i feel about them

_________________
durdencommatyler wrote:
I'm a big fan of every invention post I've read.


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 5:06 am 
Offline
User avatar
Unthought Known
 Profile

Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2005 6:30 am
Posts: 6116
Location: NC
great album... really, really good. Maybe not as good, but a little bit more professional than BAGIA and Seperation.

key tracks-

Constructive Summer
One for the Cutters
Both Crosses
Stay Positive
Joke about Jamaica
Slapped Actress

I know that's half the album, but those are all stellar.


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 5:42 am 
Offline
User avatar
Supersonic
 Profile

Joined: Fri Feb 04, 2005 9:24 pm
Posts: 12990
Location: Ohio.
This is probably their least-best record, but still a worthy addition to their catalog, plus the contender for their best song ever (yes), "Sequestered In Memphis."


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 5:53 am 
Offline
User avatar
Supersonic
 Profile

Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 5:01 pm
Posts: 14261
Echoes wrote:
it destroys.

_________________
bitches I like em brainless
guns I like em stainless steel
I want the fuckin fortune like the wheel


dvds -> http://db.etree.org/lukinman


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 6:20 am 
Offline
User avatar
Unthought Known
 Profile

Joined: Wed Oct 20, 2004 8:35 pm
Posts: 8770
Location: flap flap flap hey no fair i made my saving throw
washmykev wrote:
great album... really, really good. Maybe not as good, but a little bit more professional than BAGIA and Seperation.

key tracks-

Constructive Summer
One for the Cutters
Both Crosses
Stay Positive
Joke about Jamaica
Slapped Actress

I know that's half the album, but those are all stellar.


these and Sequestered in Memphis and myabe Lord I'm Discouraged are probably the only one I listened.

_________________
New Age bullshit is just a bunch of homo shit that some rich fuck came up with to scam people. It's exactly the same as scientology and every other religion: fake.


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 1:08 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Unthought Known
 Profile

Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2005 6:30 am
Posts: 6116
Location: NC
8 out of 11 tracks isn't bad


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 3:16 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Got Some
 Profile

Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 2:27 pm
Posts: 1965
Location: 55344
dyingonahilltop wrote:
This is probably their least-best record, but still a worthy addition to their catalog, plus the contender for their best song ever (yes), "Sequestered In Memphis."


i dunno, i still like "almost killed me" more.


Top
 
 Post subject: Re: The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 4:09 pm 
Offline
User avatar
Supersonic
 Profile

Joined: Fri Feb 04, 2005 9:24 pm
Posts: 12990
Location: Ohio.
ledbutter wrote:
dyingonahilltop wrote:
This is probably their least-best record, but still a worthy addition to their catalog, plus the contender for their best song ever (yes), "Sequestered In Memphis."


i dunno, i still like "almost killed me" more.


Top
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 41 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2, 3  Next

Board index » Word on the Street... » Other Bands


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 19 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Search for:
Jump to:  
cron
It is currently Thu Jul 17, 2025 7:36 pm