“Constructive Summer†is the lead song off the Hold Steady’s fourth and soon to be released (July 15h) album, Stay Positive. The Hold Steady is unabashed in their reverence for Springsteen, someone I never got into, but an influence easily appreciated in their sound. Their songs are sincerely melodramatic, turning even the most mundane adolescent memories into epic victories or hallmark stories, typically laced among fluid piano breakdowns and sharp, classic-rock guitar solos. The hooks are huge, and the stories even bigger.
The song opens: “Me and my friends are like/the drums on Lust For Life/We pound it out on floor toms/Our songs are sing along songs†amid overdriven power chords and intricate, angular guitar spurts. It’s a one two punch to the adrenaline gland. They’re drinking on top of water towers and raising toasts to “saint Joe Strummer,” doing everything I’ve always romanticized as summer.
As my first official post with indiemuse, I’d like to share it with you. And if you dig this sound, grab a copy of Boys and Girls in America, and work from there.
m4a: “Constructive Summer” – The Hold Steady
From their first album, The Hold Steady Almost Killed Me
“Certain Songs” – The Hold Steady
[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=OCZB3nSoNbU[/youtube]
[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=IfQ_xQS_7mA[/youtube]
Sweet!
Hey, these guys are pretty cool! They remind me a little bit of Noah and the Whale… Check ’em out on MySpace, http://www.myspace.com/noahandthewhale
coincidentally, i was drafting a post on the hold steady yesterday!! “contructive summer” is a grea song, probably my favorite on the album. a perfect summer anthem.
i’d love some feedback on my blog, i just renamed/restarted it.
http://halfapersonblog.blogspot.com/