theholdsteady Blog and Journals

All aboard the last train to Lateville! These bands have been rocking for some time, yet I just discovered them. Maybe if I wasn't so busy making the internet safe I would be on the good foot with what's hip these days. Without any further ado, here are the acts I just found out about this year at Coachella 2009.

The Hold Steady and Buraka Som Sistema

Not that we don't love obsessively following Pete Wentz's every move, sneeze and ingrown toe-nail, but we thought it'd be cool to diversify the news feed and give a shout out to some of our fave hip-tastic bands making headlines this week. The Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs! and The Hold Steady, oh my!

In 1987, the hit comedy-meets-horror film, The Lost Boys, made everyone afraid of teenage vampire gangs. 21 years later The Lost Boys are back with a killer sequel, Lost Boys: The Tribe, and an even killer soundtrack. Share.

Call them punk, rockabilly, punkabilly, whatever — The Living End are back with their fifth studio album. Tell me!

The Capitol Hill Block Party puts Seattle's South Capitol Hill neighborhood on the map every summer. So, on July 25-26, the 11-year-old outdoor festival will unleash Vampire Weekend, The Hold Steady, Les Savy Fav and more on four stages for a low price.

The festival has teamed up with highly respected, and indie-focused, KEXP radio to broadcast the performances; DJs John Richards, Cheryl Waters and others will cover the two-day event. Capitol Hill festival will also be captured on video courtesy of The Stranger, you'll be able to access video clips from the festival at: lineout.thestranger.com.

Tickets for the Block Party go on sale this Friday at 10 a.m. (PST) and are priced to move at $18 a day and $34 for a two-day pass. Partial proceeds will benefit nonprofits Home Alive, which encourages violence prevention, and The Vera Project, a youth-run all-ages venue and recording studio in Seattle.
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Check out six live videos of the Hold Steady performing in Minneapolis, MN, on October 25th, 2006. Songs featured include: Chips Ahoy, You Can Make Him Like You, Banging Camp, The Swish, Stevie Nix, and Cattle and The Creeping things. Check out the videos here: http://scheduletwo.com/video/the_hold_steady

The Hold Steady cover... Take Me Out To The Ball Game? (stereogum)

Introducing the Joy Division sneaker. (musicslut)

Thursday cancel future touring plans... uh oh? (punknews)

Wanna hear a little Bjork? (beyazcorap)

Ernie Ball Warped Tour lineup. (Absolutepunk)

The 6th Annual Sasquatch! Music Festival will be taking place in the oh so picturesque Gorge Amphitheatre over Memorial Day Weekend. Some of the artists that will be performing are: The Arcade Fire, Bjork, M.I.A., Beastie Boys, Interpol, The Hold Steady and The Blow.

Brooklyn Vegan has the rest of the line up, and more acts will be annouced.

The Blow: Eat Your Heart Up

I've been hearing Buzz on The Hold Steady for weeks. Maybe even months. I lagged on checking them out because I've been on this Lily Allen kick. Their website header is a loopy girly pink font, and from that I deduced they were an indie-pop band being fronted by someone with Damian Kulash vox-- or maybe Ben Gibbard. Kevin Barnes? Actually, no logic was employed in my coming to that conlcusion, so I probably shouldn't use the word "deduce." Anyhow, I had warm, fuzzy, feelings for what The Hold Steady might be.
And then I saw this.

Holy sh*t, that guy sounds like he's been smoking since he was 15, and that phlegm pockets are getting in line for his end-of-set coughing fit.

And is it just me or does Craig Finn remind you of...



Despite that, I think they still may grow on me. It took me FIVE years to warm up to Bright Eyes (great lyricist), and that mofo still sounds like he's gonna hang himself after every song. And I can't sit through any Ani Difranco songs cause folk-rock makes me want to yak, but that girl can WRITE.

And I really like The Hold Steady's music. Really.
So I'll just give it time.

Will Ferrell has a new movie - check out the trailer for "Blades OF Glory"

Golden Globe winners.

MTV is cranking out the fucking hits this season. Check out Maui Fever. Not to mention this golden nugget - Engaged & Underage.

The Hold Steady on David Letterman.

Melissa Joan Hart (we can just call her Clarissa or Sabrina) is defending her "rocker" husband. According to the teenage witch her husband Mark wrote the Chris Daughtry hit single. She rants here.