He's back

I tend to agree with his assessment of Finn. Dylan he ain't. I'm not the biggest Hold Steady fan, though, so maybe that makes sense that i would agree.

I can't believe anyone would think that Craig Finn would have girls want him at any point in his life. He's like the dork that gets to hang out with the "in" crowd because his older brother was really cool back in the day.

That said, his lyrics can be rather interesting at times, but to me, the stories about Holly and self-referential lyrics [referring to other lyrics of his... I don't mean lyrics about himself] don't really do it for me. Who does he think he is, Trent Reznor? Nothing can stop us now.

p.s. that was sarcasm at the end.

He's lost weight lately - I only know because I saw the Don't Look Down performance. Also he's in a popular and cool band, has scene savvy and is a sports fan. I'm sure he's slept with women so fantastically out of proportion to his own eligibility that to imagine their union would be to picture the truly phantasmagorical. I just wish that 20% of what he's saying didn't seem designed to CONVINCE me that his life and his world are so crammed with giddy romance and grit and danger and hijinks/mischief/illicit activity that he literally doesn't know where to begin.

bro i love the visual bookshelf

I understand what you're getting at, BG. I think a lot of guys do spend a good chunk of their life trying to put out the image that their lives are exciting and extreme just to get girls. Tattoos, motorcycles, faux-hawks, being in bands - I'm generalizing, but these are all the types of things that come off to me as a means for guys to seem cool/interesting to girls. In reality, no one's life is all that exciting or mysterious once you get to know them.

I would say that Finn comes off a bit more genuine though. He seems like, more then anything, he's just enjoying the success The Hold Steady are having right now. Has he really partied even half as much as his lyrics seem to suggest? Probably not, but I think he's found a lyrical niche that no one else is really using. I think it's working as well.

quote:

Originally posted by sans_success:
Has he really partied even half as much as his lyrics seem to suggest? Probably not, but I think he's found a lyrical niche that no one else is really using. I think it's working as well.

Psssh, Finn ain't got shit on Lionel Richie.

Is Finn the Andrew WK of indie-rock?

The solo in "Lord, I'm Discouraged" gets me so hard, dudes

"Lord I'm Discouraged"'s last line just shocks the bejesus out of me every time. And Lionel Richie and Craig Finn is a connection I have never even remotely thought of before. But I bet Finn would never get horrifically obvious plastic surgery like good ol' Lionel. He is a homely Midwestern man and proud of it, and should be loved for that.

Going to see them in 2 days... besides Killer Parties, nothing is really sticking with me from Almost Killed Me. Are there any tracks that I need to get into beyond that?

quote:

Originally posted by Chamberk:
Going to see them in 2 days... besides Killer Parties, nothing is really sticking with me from Almost Killed Me. Are there any tracks that I need to get into beyond that?

The only song from Almost Killed Me I've actually heard is "The Swish", and it's one of my favorite Hold Steady songs. It was one of the first songs of theirs I heard actually. It has great lyrics.

Have fun at the concert, by the way. I think a Hold Steady concert would be too ironic for me to enjoy entirely. Wish all the kids rocking out and getting wasted.

quote:

Originally posted by Chamberk:
Going to see them in 2 days... besides Killer Parties, nothing is really sticking with me from Almost Killed Me. Are there any tracks that I need to get into beyond that?

"Killer Parties" is probably my fave, but I think there are some other greats too. "The Swish", "Most People Are DJs", and "Knuckles" all rank among some of the band's best. "Positive Jam", "Hostile, Mass", and "Certain Songs" are also good.

Edit:

I really like Almost Killed Me. It's less polished then their more recent stuff, and reminds me more of Craig's Lifter Puller stuff.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: EricG75,

quote:

Originally posted by EricG75:

quote:

Originally posted by Chamberk:
Going to see them in 2 days... besides Killer Parties, nothing is really sticking with me from Almost Killed Me. Are there any tracks that I need to get into beyond that?

"Killer Parties" is probably my fave, but I think there are some other greats too. "The Swish", "Most People Are DJs", and "Knuckles" all rank among some of the band's best. "Positive Jam", "Hostile, Mass", and "Certain Songs" are also good.

Edit:

I really like Almost Killed Me. It's less polished then their more recent stuff, and reminds me more of Craig's Lifter Puller stuff.

"The Swish" and "Knuckles" are hilarious. Some of Finn's most clever writing, in my opinion.

"Certain Songs" is also a great sing-along song.

I'm really a little annoyed that they're opening for Drive By Truckers... I just hope that means they don't have a short as hell set.

quote:

Originally posted by Chamberk:
I'm really a little annoyed that they're opening for Drive By Truckers

Um, no, that makes perfect sense. Not only does The Hold Steady have fewer albums and have been a band for four less years but Drive-By Truckers are better. I mean, I like The Hold Steady a lot but come on, if you don't "get" Drive-By Truckers then that sucks for you. Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley are brilliant songwriters and back when they had their three-headed writing team with Jason Isbell they were unstoppable.

By the way, Drive-By Truckers rule live. Sure The Hold Steady are known as a great live band but so are the Truckers. I was blessed to see them last month at the Austin City Limits festival and they are outstanding. And finally, Drive-By Truckers are from Georgia, the crowd at your show will be packed with rabid fans. Enjoy their show and give them an honest chance, they are well worth it.

Completely missed the concert. Couldn't catch the Hold Steady, couldn't care less about DBT, went to a party instead and tore up the tickets.

That said the parking situation was balls and by the time I was even able to get anywhere near the venue the one act that I wanted to see was pretty much done...

Sorry, but I wasn't about to catch another band that I know nothing about, if it meant paying about 1/2 the cost of the ticket for just parking.

quote:

Originally posted by Chamberk:
That said the parking situation was balls and by the time I was even able to get anywhere near the venue the one act that I wanted to see was pretty much done...

Sorry, but I wasn't about to catch another band that I know nothing about, if it meant paying about 1/2 the cost of the ticket for just parking.

Ah man. That's the lamest thing I've heard all day. I'm sorry man.

My wife and I paid several thousand dollars to fly from Alaska to Washington this summer. We then rented a car to drive across the state to an Andrew Bird and Josh Ritter Concert in Spokane. We paid big money to park in a parking garage, only to have the concert run way late, and we realized the parking garage was going to close before we could get back. I had to leave early and run several blocks to get in my car and find a new place to park at midnight in a strange city while I was missing the concert I paid so much to get to. I thankfully didn't miss anything important, but I ran faster than I have since winning the shuttle run contest in Jr. High. My legs hurt for the next few days and I nearly threw up about the time Josh Ritter was taking the stage. People thought I was a total psycho.

I'm starting to think listening to music is more than just a hobby.

So, for what it's worth. I'm sorry you missed your concert.

Well, I did see TVOTR last week, so it's not like I entirely missed out on all the concertage that this month had prepared for me. Plus, like I said, there was a party going on concurrently so I managed to get pretty trashed instead, which was nice.

Yeah, the Georgia Tech game really screwed up traffic around mid-town last night. It took me almost 45 minutes to go 5 miles or so. Anyway, I saw most of The Hold Steady act (which was my main interest) and then left at about 11, which I'm guessing was about 3/4 of the way through the DBT part.

For my money, a much better show took place a couple of weeks ago at The Earl when I saw Plants and Animals.

THAT was the event parking that was giving me such hell. Okay. Though I thought the game was over far before the concert would start...