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Stay Positiveby The Hold Steady |
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Price Range: $11.89 - $11.99
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Stay Positive is the fourth studio album from The Hold Steady and follows their hugely popular 2006 release Girls And Boys In America. Working once again with producer John Agnello (Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr.), the album sees the band continue in the same direction their previous release took them, mixing classic bar-room style Rock with Craig Finn's half spoken/half sung lyrical tales of drinking, partying and love. Features the single 'Sequestered In Memphis'.
From Amazon.co.uk:
The Hold Steady's ascent and eventual breakthrough with 2006's Boys & Girls in America was never pre-ordained. If anything they did it without the tastemakers' consent. Their shtick is old-fashioned through and through, beginning with Thin Lizzy and ending with Bruce Springsteen, performed by men advanced enough to have experienced those touchstones first or second hand. And look at them--not exactly The Strokes, are they? But it was precisely their enthusiastic unoriginality, the fact that the clichés were piled on so thick and so fast, that they triumphed. And placed next to that unapologetically feel good record, that Stay Positive sounds so immediately brighter and more muscular is undoubtedly a great sign. Production is really cranked up--see the horns wedged into "Sequestered in Memphis", the REM mandolin texturing of "Both Crosses" and the surprising harpsichord flagrancy of "One for the Cutters". They're clearly determined to not be so easily pegged this time around, though admittedly they never exactly go that far off-piste. "Our songs are sing-along songs," announced Craig Finn semi-helpfully, and though the spirit is right, with such a conversational lyrical style that is rarely the case. It's more about the rock gestures and knowing when to punch the air. And there are instances aplenty, from the Pete Townsend-esque windmill power-chords in "Constructive Summer", to the overblown solo in "Lord I'm Discouraged" that is so "November Rain" it's practically going through Stephanie Seymour's trash (those not watching MTV in the mid-90s, hit Youtube). --James Berry
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Disc 1
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They'll always have Boys and Girls in America -  |
Stay Positive Review |
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After the major leap forward that Boys and Girls in America was, The Hold Steady stood a pretty good chance of having me completely forgive them for their first two albums. Perhaps singer/songwriter Craig Finn's Catholic Church would have required him to confess the musical sins of his past, but I would simply ask that he make another record comparable in quality to their third one. Unfortunately, their fourth album - Stay Positive - doesn't quite scale such grand heights.
On Boys and Girls in America, Finn's lyric writing had grown by leaps and bounds. On Stay Positive, it is still pretty good. The religious dimension continues to give his songs a fair amount of depth. Among the more memorable lyrics are "Me and my friends are like/The drums on `Lust for Life'," "In bar light, she looked alright/In daylight, she looked desperate," and "Sniffing on crystal in cute little cars/Getting nailed against Dumpsters behind townie bars." That last lyric comes from "One For the Cutters," the title of which refers to the names of the townies in the 1979 movie "Breaking Away" (props to J.D. Jansen for noting this in his review). However, Cleveland - the one city mentioned in this song - is quite far from Bloomington, Indiana, where that film takes place. Alas, certain aspects of his songwriting aren't getting any less annoying. He still sings incessantly about being under the influence of one substance and/or another. He continues to name-drop cities quite a bit - including Ybor City, twice, in the last song on the album. Once again, he seems to get a kick out of referencing his own songs: There are two allusions to the title of the band's first album (Almost Killed Me), a quote from a song from that album's first song ("Positive Jam"), a repeat of a lyric from their second album ("she's gonna have to go with whoever's gonna get her the highest"), and one mention of the band's name ("We're the directors - our hands will hold steady"). All of these appear in the last few songs on the album, so I guess he felt like he had to squeeze them in. Also, in the excellent "Both Crosses," Finn sings "You Catholic girls you start much too late." This, coupled with the mention of "Only the Good Die Young" on Almost Killed Me, makes The Hold Steady and Fountains of Wayne the unlikely co-winners of the "Most Likely to Quote Billy Joel in a Song" award. Whether this is a good thing or not is in the ear of the listener. Musically, "Constructive SSSUH-mer" features chainsaw guitars and an E Street Band piano, the latter of which re-appears on "Yeah Sapphire." A harpsichord stakes out new musical territory on the aforementioned "One For the Cutters." "Lord, I'm Discouraged" and "Joke About Jamaica" have great guitar solos. "Navy Sheets," however, contains the absolute most annoying keyboard riff that I have ever heard in my life. So we get it, Mr. Finn: you like to drink a lot and you constantly quote yourself. Good for you. Write about something else now. I am not optimistic about your next album, but consider this: I awarded one star to Almost Killed Me, two stars to Separation Sunday, four to Boys and Girls, and three to Stay Positive. Could the next one be a fiver? I'm not gonna bet the house on it, but I do think that you have a 5-star album somewhere in you. As you write your next batch of songs, consider this lyric from "Constructive Summer": "Let this be my annual reminder/That we can all be something bigger." |
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Stay Postive People - |
Stay Positive Review |
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When I first heard the The Hold Steady, I didn't get them. I could not get past Craig Finn's vocals and the simple regurgitation of rock and roll cliches. So I figured they were trying to trick me. Why would a band in the new century just play straight ahead rock music? I had to be missing something and that annoyed me.
Included in this recording you should know: There isn't any tricky production. There isn't soci-political statements being tossed up as enlightened dogma. After the second listening it all came back to me. I remembered the joy of putting on a Stones album. I remembered digging a Springsteen record. I remembered about singing along in the car to Tom Petty, Creedence, The Pretenders, The Clash etc. Sometimes it's just rock and it's important because it's simple. Sometimes it doesn't have to change the world to change your outlook. If you like Rock when the count to get it started is "One, Two, Three, Four", if you are not looking for vocal hysterics, over-blown freshman posey/poetry lyrics, maudlin mope rock and/or songs composed on Pro Tools which do not require learning how to play an instrument with ANY level of professionalism..... This is an album for you to buy. Sometimes it's just Rock and Roll folks. Sometimes it's just that simple. |
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Eggsellent! -  |
Stay Positive Review |
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Well, after a suggestion from a friend I downloaded this album from amazon and it has gotten almost 'round the clock airtime since. I have also gotten BAGIA and SS and the band's germination has culminated in Stay Positive. My best album of '08. I only wish I could see them with DBT this fall... |
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you can only believe the hype - |
Stay Positive Review |
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Stay Positive, when compared to the previous releases of THS, does have a feeling of a smirking smile, even in the midst of the subject matter. Everything from (dare I say) Springsteen style epic rock ballads and subject matter, to beat poetry and phenomenal lyrical story telling.
I've read that Craig Finn has indicated that he sings about the specific to describe the general"- and he does it quite well. Often times, its a bit didactic, hes repeating the same lines which didn't need underlining and emphasis. But there is brilliance, and pretty consistent brilliance. Songs like "Constructive Summer " and "Sequestered in Memphis" are smooth and quite perfect- and "yeah sapphire" is a rock guitar gem. IF you like indie/alternative rock, and respect the classic rock aspect, this is a must own. |
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Hold Steady still delievers gems - |
Stay Positive Review |
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To be honest, I have a love affair with the Hold Steady. Their songs, although growers, are such great stories of life, friendship (and drinking). To me "Stay Positive" is definitely a grower-type album. It starts off SO strong with "Constructive Summer" and "Sequestered in Memphis" and then kind of drops off for "One for the Cutters" and "Navy Sheets." But the album comes back strong (but soft) during "Lord, I'm Discouraged." After that ballad (which is kind of acts the same way "Citrius" did on "Boys and Girls in America"), it is all uphill. "Both Crosses" is deal-able. But everything else is so solid. They tell stories of Holly and the usual cast of Hold Steady characters. The places are the same and the debauchery carries many of the same themes. I know Craig Finn said this album is grown up, but I still see themes of youth in the music and in the lyrics.
All in all, "Stay Positive" is 11 track album with two 'eh' songs, one 'so-so' song, and seven Hold Steady masterpieces. |
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