Hey idiot, why aren't you listening to the Hold Steady?

By Dan Nied

First of all, no I don’t think the new Nickelback is awesome. And why are you still singing the praises of Fred Durst? That guy hasn’t been relevant in years and hasn’t been good in, well, forever.

You say you like to rock, but you haven’t offered any tangible evidence to suggest you know the first thing about rocking. Yes, you like Weezer, but Weezer, while still great, hasn’t really rocked for a few albums now. Sad thing is, you just have no clue what you’re doing.

Because if you did, idiot, you’d be listening to the Hold Steady, or as I like to call them, the greatest Rock ‘n’ Roll band operating today.

Consider the Hold Steady a rocking starter kit. Pick up the new album “Heaven is Whenever” and you’ll know immediately that you like the hard-driving deluge of Tad Kubler’s guitar, and singer Craig Finn’s gritty vocals that suggest he’s been around the block a few times.

But then you’ll pick up on some of Finn’s lyrics and realize that this is the modern-day incarnation of Springsteen, Tom Waits and every other blue-collar, hard-scrabble musician inspired by hopeless stories.

If the “Weekenders” line “She said the theme of this party’s the Industrial Age... And you came in dressed like a train wreck” doesn’t instantly tell you a story, then maybe Nickelback really is for you.

And then you’ll check out a picture of the band and realize that, like Weezer, these are some hard-rocking dorks that just love making and performing music. Go ahead and check out this clip and you’ll see Finn experiencing more joy on stage than anyone in their mid-30s has a right to.

There is no glamor or pomp to this band. Their job, simply, is to rock, and they do it to perfection.

And that’s why you need to ditch your radio-inspired “rock” crap and get in touch with a truly organic brand of musical love known as The Hold Steady.

Note: "Hey Idiot" is part of a series I've been doing for The Man Faq, which is in no way a bad web site. In fact, you should probably check them out.

Image of Craig Finn from http://alloveralbany.com