Pretty rocking Late Show last night: Dave welcomed Neil Young to the couch to talk about his efforts at engineering alternatively fueled cars, and the show dedicated two entire segments to the Hold Steady. The first was a pre-recorded bit with comedian and occasional Late Show man on the street Andy Kindler, who was tasked to profile this group that had “quietly become the best rock band in America.” Since Andy looks like this, though, it was mostly a profile in how Craig and Kindler look a lot alike but Finn is probably getting laid more. (Andy: “From (your) voice I expected the brooding sexuality of Jim Morrison, the golden locks of Robert Plant … you look like me! Why am I not a rock star?” Craig: “Well I dunno, maybe you’re doing something wrong?”) Uncle Dave’s taking his time posting the bit to his site, so while we wait on that, here’s “Sequestered,” with horns and handclaps:
This isn’t the first time THS have visited the Late Show, but it’s fair to think they’re gonna get a bigger bump from last night’s show. Vagrant’s psyched. Stay Positive‘s out.
You Might Also Like
 The Hold Steady – “The Bear & The Maiden Fair” |  Watch Craig Finn Cover “Scarlet Begonias” With Members Of… |  Hear Craig Finn Play Two Unreleased Tunes |  Stream Craig Finn Clear Heart Full Eyes |
 |
 |
Leave a Reply
Sign in Sign in with FacebookYou must be logged in to post, reply to, or rate a comment.
I love this band and I especially love this album. I think it’s even better than Boys & Girls In America, which I didn’t think was possible.
KEEP IT COMING KINDLER
I disagree. Boys and Girls is America and Seperation Sunday are much better.
This is still a great album, though. Long live The Hold Steady!
Please explain why everyone loves this band?
I guess I just don’t get this “white people guitar music” after all…
Aaron, fair enough. Just as long as I can say how much I prefer this to the pitiful “black-people-talking-instead-of-singing-music” that so many people love these days.
What’s not to like. The music is great and the lyrics are amazing. Give them another chance.
I have always said the Hold Steady is like sushi or ciggarettes. You don’t really like it the first time you try it, but if you keep coming back, it becomes an obsession and you start to crave it.
I like white people guitar music, but these guys just fucking annoy me. He looks like a toddler and the rest of the band are over the hill weirdos. Go figure.
Hate this band.
Guess I’m not the only one who just doesn’t care.
I mean, why even have two guitars if you’re not going to play one of them.
Passssssss.
If you’re gonna hate a band, why not hate coldplay or something. You may not like these dudes at all but at least they are earnest and sincere about what they do.
I’m not a big coldplay fan either, but just because you don’t like them doesn’t mean they aren’t earnest and sincere about what they do. these guys are all artists with a passion for making music, and the fact coldplay were on an ipod commercial doesn’t change that.
The Hold Steady are the greatest rock n roll band on the planet. Listen to Seperation Sunday right now!
yeah, honest and sincere about sucking.
I just don’t get why people insist on going into the comment boards and hate on bands that everyone is real excited about. I mean, I do not understand at all why everyone loves Sigur Ros so much, but I’m not going to rain on everyone’s parade and express my opinion of them. What bands do you guys like anway?
This song has been stuck in my head for the last three days. this isn’t helping. Great song.
I have a load of photos from their McCarren Pool show up here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/subcow/sets/72157605900883717/
I hate Coldplay, too and they’re earnest and sincere too..in their own minds. The Hold Steady is just some band that I would hear on a Monday night at a dive bar with songs that are clever (to them) with a singer who would probably try (and fail) to hit my girlfriend. I guess it’s the old adage that one cannot fully enjoy a band if you don’t enjoy the people in it. In this case though, I just hate this smart-ass, cheeky frat rock.
“with a singer who would probably try (and fail) to hit my girlfriend.”
Sounds a freudian slip there, you abusive douchenozzle. Just because you enjoy slapping your (imaginary) girlfriend around, don’t transfer your anger issues onto Craig Finn.
I think Craig Finn would do alright if he hit on your girlfriend. He is a rock star, after all, and you’re some lame punk on a message board.
the hipsters have their girls jeans on too tight yet again. some of us like good old fashioned rock n’ roll and the hold stead is that at its finest.
sigur ros is innovative, making changes in music. the hold steady is doing everything that everyone has ever done before, but making it ten times more annoying and boring. and on top of that, the lead singer still looks like a retarded toddler.
hey reido: you know who’s honest and sincere about sucking? your mom!
alright fnnegan, despite that your mom shot being entirely uncalled for, it was completely ridiculous. i doubted that anyone could be as stupid as this shitty band, but your lack of intelligence and trite comeback proved me wrong.
Ok.
I come on to comment boards usually to say things about bands I like EXCEPT the hold steady who offend so many of my senses I need to endlessly rant against them.
Productive? no
Pathetic? yes
but it must be said the hold steady are the shittiest band I’ve heard in a long long ass time
I have always thought that The Hold Steady were a “love-em-or-hate-em” band, but by god to their fans love them. If you dislike their music, that’s fine, but please realize that it’s a personal preference thing. The fact that I love them and you may hate them doesn’t make them good or bad, it means we like different things. I think they’re the most alive, honest and exciting new rock band on the planet right now, but I can see where people would disagree with me. And if you ever happen to catch a show (even at a festival), the number of people going totally nuts in the crowd are proof that the band does not, in fact, suck, at least according to lots and lots of people.
Basically, let’s just lay off the hate, people.
Dude, why even be so diplomatic about this? The Hold Steady put killer hooks and intelligent lyrics into a fun package. I pity the people who hate them.
some thoughts for reido:
lack of intelligence: “sigur ros is innovative, making changes in music.” — yeah, that’s deep shit there (your high-school stab at music criticism, not the band — which i love)
entirely uncalled for: “He looks like a toddler and the rest of the band are over the hill weirdos.” — that was TOTALLY called for. besides, that’s what matters in a band. stick to your boring pretty boys. you know — the kind who have a chance hitting on aaron’s girlfriend.
I think you mean they’d be successful “hitting” Aaron’s girlfriend. =^)
Seperation Sunday is the best rock album since 2000. Those of you who are hating just haven’t taken the time and listen to their albums in full. This band is America and us in the Midwest completely understand where they’re coming from. Maybe you guys just don’t get it. Wow, the hipsters just don’t get it. that rarely happens…haha
@ reido
How is saying that Craig Fin has a baby face a legitimate criticism of the band’s music. Jonsi looks like a prepubescent elf but that dosen’t make me love Sigur Ros any less.
@ reido
How is saying that Craig Fin has a baby face a legitimate criticism of the band’s music. Jonsi looks like a prepubescent elf but that dosen’t make me love Sigur Ros any less.
and all you sniffling indie kids….HOLD STEADY. no he didn’t!!!
Craig Finn looks like Aberman from the Might Ducks.
The Hold Steady have really good stories in their songs. Try that HEALTH!
All the clustered up clever kids…HOLD STEADY!
I try so hard to like this band, but it sounds so cheesy…
I can see going to see these guys live and being surrounded by good old Brucey vibrations and having fun. The dude obviously believes.in what he does.. but the by the next time I youtube Bruce live in london 75 I’ll forget I ever saw this.
Hey Aaron, Reido and you other hipster arthouse types, go rock out to your Belle and Sebastian, Postal Service and Iron & Wine. That’s obviously about the level of rock and roll you’re used to.
I would honestly rather hear any one of those bands than this. What does that make me?
predictable?
Sometimes I think people on this board make judgments before ever really exploring a band’s catalog of work. How can you people ever enjoy music, if your constantly searching for “new music”? Listen to everything a band has to offer, and enjoy yourself while your at it…. and then your comments and opinions may be worth something. In the meanwhile go see Tegan and Sara play the same fucking set two nights in a row at Terminal… fuckin hipsters ( sorry if that last remark was unnecessary)
look at all the negative comments on this thread. haha the hold steady are “over the hill weirdos” or craig finn looks “like a toddler” i mean who gives a shit what he LOOKS like. I can see some people not liking the hold steady but again craig is an absolute master story teller and he really captures the whole growing up in the isolated midwest thing perfectly.
After seeing this band live and on this video, I’m convinced that craig’s guitar is either not plugged in, or turned waaaaaay down in the mix. can anyone confirm or deny this?
While Craig is certainly not playing lead guitar (and not playing it at all a large part of the time), it is definitely audible. I saw them a few weeks ago, and there were several times his guitar was the only instrument playing.
oh dont get me wrong, i love this fucking band. i’ve just always wondered about that. thanks.
It is turned way down in the mix, but it’s not like he’s ever really claimed to be a guitarist or anything. He plays because it’s fun and when it helps it helps, and it doesn’t hurt anything.
my comments were never meant for craig’s face, more at his absurd dancing style mimicking a seizure. he should put his instrument back in the van and call it a day for pretending to be a guitarist.
maybe sigur ros isn’t the greatest band for a hold steady killer, but just because i don’t like them means i DO like belle & sebastian, the postal service or iron & wine. i’m pretty sure nobody on this thread likes any of those bands, they are just weak cheap shots.
lets talk about fugazi perhaps.
I like Iron and Wine and the Postal Service and The Hold Steady. Don’t judge anyone….you don’t fucking know!
You fucking people all suck….i’m dumber after reading your comments.
the hold steady…. MEH
Haha, I love the negative hipster response. All you people (like myself) who like The Hold Steady should realize by now that the uptight hipsters can’t enjoy a band if 10 other people like them too. It’s inconceivable! That’s why the only negative things they can come up with about the band are what they look like. Wow, fantastic job boys – wait to critique a band based on their looks rather than what they play. After all, everyone should be based on how they look rather than how their perform their work related duties, right? Right???
I like the hold steady, but I’d rather have heard neil young.
The Midwest is Best.
Aren’t these guys from Brooklyn?
JFC, when did the Stereogum boards turn into Youtube comments?
In before some kid requests someone else “go die”.
Bob Mould
David Lowery
Tom Petty
Craig Finn
All of The Above
good to see Blogs singing praises of pure classic rock- it’s timeless, and the bands can make a living from touring- Not many other bands can do that today – most have a shelf life of 2 records and bub-bye. It’s about quality rock and roll – timeless sounds- if you want to actually make a living playing live.
mindless rubbish
If you don’t like The Hold Steady, you probably don’t understand Rock ‘n’ Roll. Or America. Or fun, in general.
Hipsters, find a new band to shit on. You couldn’t stop My Morning Jacket and you’re not stopping The Hold Steady either. Just go listen to Panda Bear and shut up already. For everyone’s sake.
okay okay okay…. if you don’t like the hold steady, you probably understand that HE IS NOT EVEN PLAYING THAT GUITAR!!!
Just wondering, could anyone who thinks the Hold Steady sucks post a list of what they listen to. Much appreciated.
I hate the hold steady
lately I enjoy
animal collective
deerhunter
radiohead
portishead
pj harvey
grizzly bear
bon iver
fleet foxes
beach house
beyonce
nico muhly
the futureheads
the gossip
panda bear
chad vangaalen
abe vigoda
spoon
feist
even sometimes vampire weekend!
hold steady fucking blow
Wow…you are Pitchfork’s target audience to a T. Sad.
and the hold steady aren’t?
haha
you are sad
I can’t fucking stand The Hold Steady (especially that Gogol Bordello reject motherfucker). Lately, I’ve been listening a lot to:
Bob Dylan
Smog
Wu-Tang Clan
Joy Division
Black Moth Super Rainbow
Earles and Jensen (admittedly not music)
Silver Jews
The Apples In Stereo
Royal Trux
I think the Hold Steady are probably the most OVERRATED band in indie rock. Craig Finn sounds like a video store clerk with a terrible cold. He doesn’t sing, he endlessly repeats lyrics about getting high in the vicinity of the Mississippi river. I’ve listened to their whole album (the second most recent) several times to see if I was maybe missing something. The music, I’ll admit, is decent if not really original, but the singing and lyrics are absolute garbage.
I’m listening to The Walkmen, Wolf Parade, TV on the Radio, Animal Collective, Band of Horses, Lil Wayne, Radiohead (who wipe their asses with the Hold Steady), Bon Iver, and Grizzly Bear.
The hold steady are king. Craig Finn is God.
Haters step off and go listen to your Pissed Jeans albums. (no offense to pissed jeans, they ok too.)
Until you’ve seen these guys live it’s impossible to know the sheer power of Craig Finn. Best Frontman Ever.
I’m gonna be in heaven tomorrow night and The Hold Steady”s gonna put me there!
i love how hipsters call each other hipsters.
ps. this band does suck. and most would say i’m not a hipster. I’m ugly, wear over sized clothing and work in tech
hip?
I’m not buying the “This has been done before” bash from people who go on and on about equally derivitave bands like El Guincho, Girl Talk, Bon Iver, or Fleet Foxes. What they are saying has been done before is completely modal. Sure, The Hold Steady’s formula for song-writing and performing has been done, but I don’t think that has anything to say for the quality of the song-writing. Originality isn’t very beautiful on its own. I would be foolish to expect to be moved by something merely because I haven’t seen it before. Furthermore, I’d much rather listen to ABBA emulating The Beach Boys formula or Stephin Merritt emulating ABBA’s with beautiful and timeless results than El Guincho or other’s who are supposedly making superflous additions to an already thoroughly fulfilling musical lexicon. The same goes for The Hold Steady’s Thin Lizzy template, which I’m very much enjoying.
okay. we all get some of you hate the hold steady. who fucking cares? there are plenty of us who absolutely love them. we are all just anonymous music lovers with different tastes. the hold steady are just a like a piece a pizza, not everybody wants the same kind.
and to echo an earlier comment, when did stereogum turn into youtube? It’s no wonder Pitchfork won’t let people comment after reading some of the preteen posting I just read. (yes, that would be you reido)
“okay. we all get some of you hate the hold steady. who fucking cares? there are plenty of us who absolutely love them.”
Well, who fucking cares that you like them? Isn’t the point of a comments section is to give your opinion?
This band is annoying as fuck sometimes.
thanks for the preteen insults guys, fyi i turned 13 last week. here is what i have been listening to lately you craig finn fanboys:
fugazi, meat puppets, clinic, my morning jacket, husker du, sigur ros, MBV, radiohead, blonde redhead.
@3d glasses, thank you for pointing out the fact that we don’t care who likes the hold steady. they still make me cringe.
I am annoying as fuck, sometimes. Reido, you are now officially a teen! Congratulations!
I think this is all very interesting, because, I have never, ever, heard this band talk shit about anyone. They are lovers of life who do what their heart’s passions and digressions entail. . Reido, some of us have forgotten how to do that. Do it. Don’t cry about it. And, check out Dodos. THS are grand.
The Hold Steady hates Barack Obama and support people like John McCain and Bill O’Reilly.
Quoted by that idiot in The Hold Steady: “Barack Hussein Obama!… Barack Hussein Obama!… Barack Hussei Nobama!…”
Well reido, we don’t care about who doesn’t like the hold steady. A 13-year old would come into a post that had positive news about a band. Ass. Sigur Ros blows so hard its unreal. AND Husker Du is a huge Hold Steady influence. You would know that if you had ever listened to the band.
The Hold Steady performance was awesome! Another artist who has a great live show is Eric Solomon. His music and lyrics are amazing. I recently saw his show in L.A. and I was blown away. He has a number of upcoming concerts, check him out!
Somehow I knew this Eric Solomon guy would be some John Mayer wannabe douchebag. Something in the way you wrote about him tipped me off (presumably as a member of his street team). Sure enough, I was right. Dude, you really, really suck as a human being if you spend time promoting this shit.
Somewhere out there there’s a retarded toddler who is getting really tired of these hipsters mistaking him for Craig Finn.
Open up your ears. The Hold Steady is apple pie.
i’m not actually 13. Ass.
“My absolute favorite stuff is Brother Ali from Rhymesayers. Atmosphere, obviously. Things like Aesop Rock, Sage Francis, Murs, all those guys. Even Jay-Z. Hip-hop is so much about lyrics, and as a lyricist it’s hard not to be inspired by it.”
-craig finn.
so the hold steady was influenced by husker du, i would have to agree, but because that is true doesn’t mean the following statement is correct: the hold steady is good.
atmosphere, obviously.
He rhymed Texas with Memphis. Hilariously bad.
Hilariously amazing.
Haha, you guys are all pretty funny here, calling each other names and arguing over a popular band; online no less. Go get the album, or don’t, and don’t get so worked up about other people’s tastes. And if you do get that worked up, do something about it! (Like start a band!)
Double True! Just like Art Brut said.
Fuck The Hold Steady.
Hold Steady is a perfect band for people who like music, but don’t like good music. We all know folks like this. Their collection consists of shit like OK Go and The Apples In Stereo. Happy-go-lucky non-confrontational, emotionally shallow pop that’s not quite top 40. You can dig this music and seem intelligent to most people because most people are morons and buy Fall Out Boy records at Wal-Mart. If they ever heard any good music, they’d run for their life. Hold Steady is a perfect in-between band, they’re not Fall Out Boy, but they still suck.
yup, what JP said
hey, Fall Out Boy are great! and I like OK Go (as well as fleet foxes, abe vigoda, deerhoof, grizzly bear, girltalk, blah blah “cool” indie music)
But I still find The Hold Steady kinda boring. but then, I’m not a Bruce Springsteen fan, nor can I really relate to the midwest or americana, so I guess that makes sense
*shrug* no need for everyone to get so worked up about it! some bands resonate with some people, some don’t. why do people get so angry when bands they don’t like get popular?
(also, no more using the word hipster as generic “person who likes different types of indie music than I do” insult. it doesn’t mean anything anymore)
JP’s comment has to be among the most arrogant. Perfect example of what’s wrong with judging other people’s taste. Who made you (or anybody) the authority on what’s good and bad!?
Best band ever. Actual honest music. And yeah i dig OK Go. and Fallout Boy. again, honest emotional music. sorry… i ain’t cool enough to get off on shit like Girl Talk or El Guincho
fall out boy is the worst band ever.
Yo.
It’s natural hipster response to hate a band widely beloved. I take it as a good sign that the indie scene is turning against these guys, it means the Hold Steady are about to hit the big time.
I hate the kids and Love The Hold Steady. Confirmed! Craig Finn is both Sexy and Brilliant. I would watch him rant and never touch a string for hours on end. Boys take notice real women like brains and nerosis!
Man i tolerated the Hold Steady until i came to this comment thread.
I feel like i walked into a club with a bunch of dudes saying “Fuck YEAH she’s hot!” and high fiving each other repeatedly.
if you dont like these guys, you dont know what fuckin rock and roll is PERIOD
hey bud, i actually think the opposite applies here to this band. they are silly, stupid accesible pop that you think is cool because they are a bit off the radar. in reality, this band is terrible. vocally unimpressive, riddled with piano arpeggios, one guitar player disguised as two, and just an altogether clusterfuck of suckiness.
“Black Moth Super Rainbow” & Grizzly Bear are better then the Hold Steady. Wow. Here is a better website for you, http://www.pitchfork.com/Im/a/dateless/nerd, good stuff over there, just a heads up before you check it out – it helps to be caucasian, have a beard (guy or girl), not into sports, and complain about the White Male Hierarchy. There, you have your talking points, good luck!
Ahh, Internet message boards: where criticism goes to die.
Its not the fact that you dislike the band that is irritating to the more intelligent people posting here, hell I couldn’t stand Finn’s voice until I listened to “Boys and Girls In America: a couple of times, its the “holier than thou” attitude that comes with it. Here’s a lesson in etiquette: “I don’t care for them” makes you sound like less of a dick than “They fuckin suck and everyone who listens to them is gay lolololol”
For example: I don’t care for the Fleet Foxes, despite the fact that the Internet is blowing its collective load over them. I, however, have the decency to just pass over posts in reference to them so people who do like them can have an intelligent conversation.
“I, however, have the decency to just pass over posts in reference to them so people who do like them can have an intelligent conversation.”
talk about holier than thou lolololol.
Any band that takes an album name and a few lyrics from a Kerouac quote is alright with me. Oops, I forgot, reading isn’t generally “hip.”
First off, I really like this band, simply because they remind me of some of the work Springsteen did on Born to Run. I don’t know why, but this song especially does.
And to the criticisms of Finn for not playing guitar during the song whilst holding one: I once saw a R.E.M. performance on SNL where Michael Stipe played even less guitar. I don’t think anyone that reads this blog would diss R.E.M. for that move.
And finally, why can’t we all just get along? If you don’t like them, take Boney King of Nowhere’s advice and just be nice about it.
In a sea of “Fuck you for liking the Hold Steady!” and “No, fuck YOU for disliking them!” inanity, I would like to make a few points:
1. It’s a specious argument — and a ridiculous blanket statement — to say that there’s any correlation whatsoever between one’s level of culture/education and his or her liking of THS’s music.
2. It’s entirely baffling to see how many people accuse hipsters of disliking THS based on the fact that the band has built a sizable fan base and is therefore too popular to be cool. This is completely counterintuitive, because THS totally panders to the hipster demographic in their lyrics. A significant degree of my utter revulsion for the band stems from the fact that this asshole, Finn, is 36 years old and yet somehow singing lyrics about “the scene” and 17-year-olds and all manner of related pathetic, creepy, and pedophiliac topics that he should’ve outgrown years ago. I’m five years younger than the guy, and I’ll be good god damned if I’ve given the slightest shit about scenes or hipsters for a decade. It would be fun to write THS-style songs about the Hannah Montana demographic, just to point out just how disturbing and absurd it is for these borderline-middle-aged men to be singing about college/high-school-aged kids; “She said she got a chocolate milk sugar buzz/ just because/ her mom won’t let her stay up late/she’s spastic in oversized plastic sunglasses/she said, ‘yeah, I put off my homework’/'my teacher’s a real jerk’ …”
3. Finn’s *delivery* is obnoxious as hell; the only thing more ponderous than the pseudo-profundity of his fake-catch-phrase-y one-liner lyrics is his smug, arrogant “I’m a poet of the people” nasal shout-singing. You can hear the “I’m a genius, and this is why” in every line, not unlike Anthony Hopkins’s post-Silence of the Lambs scenery-chewing, Oscar-grubbing hamminess.
4. That Finn throws together a bunch of details and dropping random scene/hipster-esque vernacular in his lyrics does not even _begin_ to warrant comparisons to Springsteen, let alone Beat writers.
5. Many seem to praise THS’s “refreshing honesty” and “belief in what they’re doing” or whatever, but their little contrived narratives and straight-faced bar rock feel juuuuuust a bit forced.
All of the above are just my opinions, of course; I just wanted to throw something out there about *why* I think the Hold Steady are terrible and insufferable, not just that they *are* terrible and insufferable.
i’m not trying to be offensive, i’m merely observing the fact that the hold steady remind me of bruce springsteen or some old guy like that
If you hate the hold steady, you hate America. go and listen to the kaiser chiefs.
Hellephant perfectly explained every reason I’ve hated the Hold Steady since the release of their first album… but I don’t take it personally. they make music that people like, and I’m glad for them. The music isn’t being forced on me… I don’t have to listen to it. So let’s live and let live, right?
Hellephant is GOD!
Hellephant has just read a lot of reviews about THS’s work, not actually sat down and listened to/read the lyrics.
Sorry, MarkBT, but I don’t think that is the case. I, like Hellephant, truly despise the band; however, I have listened to their most recent effort through and through. Hellephant’s reasons are very similar to mine though I don’t think he was hard enough on them about their music. The music is laughably ordinary. The arrangements are boring, the progressions are boring, the embellishments of every instrument are predictable, and above all, Finn’s vocal melodies are trite, dull, and even deadening. They are a band and therefore should have interesting and exciting music. Remember, they are a band. Not an artist like Dylan for instance, who has an incredible capacity for storytelling. This brings me to the next and glaringly obvious point (It deserves redundancy): the lyrics. They aren’t that great. Period. They are not bad, but they are not great. A rock band, as many of you claim THS to be, is supposed to be impressive melodically, musically, and vocally. They are none of those things! They write boring, average music for those who don’t yet understand what kind of music they like. It’s just like with any band that is said to be ‘the best’ as some of you have absurdly claimed: you move on. I had diehard Zeppelin, Hendrix, and Radiohead phases, but I realized that they are not the best bands in the world. Only with THS, fans don’t realize how average they are and come on these blogs to praise them for all their nothingness. And before you criticize me for coming on just to tear them apart, I have tried to remain calm and open-minded, believe me. Friends of mine are fans and I have tried long and hard to understand why, but there is no logical answer. This is hopefully a trend that will burn, be smothered, and spit on.
I hate the Hold Steady because they’re shit. Except for the gypsy.
The Hold Steady want me to stab myself in the ear. They are truly awful. Quit ripping off Springsteen and get a frontman who can sing
My bad. I meant to say “hit on” my girlfriend.