The Hold Steady – Boys and Girls in America

As a reviewer, there’s a few things that are few guidelines we must follow. A simple one is just be careful who you compare the band you’re reviewing too. There are certain bands that have had such an impact on today’s music scene that it is always a risky thing to name-drop them in a review. I still remember the fuss that happened when Stephanie Reines called Steel Train the next Beatles – those are dangerous words to say because you have to be able to back those statements up. Nirvana, Beatles, Dylan, are just some of the bands you can’t use as comparisons at a whim. So as I sit here listening to The Hold Steady‘s new album, Boys And Girls In America, I’m filled with a sense of dread as I prepare to utter the following statement; but after listening to the album numerous times and discussing it with friends and family, I know it’s true: Boys And Girls In America can easily be compared to The Boss‘s Born To Run.

The instant The Hold Steady‘s new album starts playing, you get a distinctive feeling of familiarity. You get a sense of rock’n’roll history as you hear a song structure that is oddly familiar and yet something you haven’t heard for a while. Soon, as you get deeper into the album it clicks: Bruce Springsteen. The album is structured in the same way The Boss structures his songs. Everything is there, from the way Craig Finn talk/sings everything to the driving piano that leads the songs, everything can be compared to early Springsteen. It’s a refreshing sound that never becomes repetitive as it teases your senses with a sense of old, no frills rock and roll that you feel you’ve heard before but the other logical part of you pulls you the other way telling you it’s brand new. It all makes for a pro-longed listen and repetitive listens. Then, throwing a complete twist at you, as Citrus pulls you towards Dylan and his folk-rock melodies.

Everything on this album oozes rock and roll energy, familiarity, excitement and charisma. The growing drum beats, driving piano and spacey guitar riffs mold together for a fun, no frills rock and roll album with lyrics connecting each and every song together. While it’s not a concept album, Boys And Girls is a theme album based around just that, boys and girls, love, relationships, adventures and more. The lyrics are quirky and intelligent (I’ve had kisses that make Judas seem sincere) and show that the band knows what they’re talking about (There was that night that we thought John Berryman could fly, but de didn’t so he died. She said “you’re pretty good with words, but words won’t save your live.” And they didn’t, so he died.).

From the slow First Night, to the perfect drinking song Party Pit and the great rock anthem with You Can Make Him Like Him, The Hold Steady have made an album that reminds us why some albums just need to be fun and not overly analytical. It is a rock album created from the roots of rock’n’roll, and one of the better albums released in recent months.