Brooklyn-via-Minneapolis rockers The Hold Steady have announced the street date of their fourth full-length album: Stay Positive is set for release on July 15 in the US and July 14 in the UK.
Written on the road and recorded in New York and New Jersey, the 11 new tracks feature "more dynamics, different instrumentation, more complex arrangements, and not always hiding behind raw volume," lead singer Craig Finn said in a statement. That "different instrumentation" includes doses of banjo, talk box and harpsichord, undoubtedly in addition to the band’s long-beloved sonic combination of accordion, guitars and beer.
As befits the name, Finn seems positively giddy about the new album. "Possibly the most exciting aspect of our band is the community of fans that have followed us around the country," he said in the statement. "In talking to them, we have found that no matter their ages, they are so much like us as people, that they seem at times an extension of the music. A great American philosopher named D. Boon once said 'Our band could be your life.' I think that is true. But 'Your Life could be Our Band' is also a true statement. I know this because we have lived it. These are our lives. These are your lives."
And this is the Stay Positive track list:
1. "Constructive Summer"
2. "Sequestered in Memphis"
3. "One for the Cutters"
4. "Navy Sheets"
5. "Lord, I’m Discouraged"
6. "Yeah Sapphire"
7. "Both Crosses"
8. "Stay Positive"
9. "Magazines"
10. "Joke About Jamaica"
11. "Slapped Actress"
This time last year, The Hold Steady was holding court on the cover of our Summer Festival Preview issue, still riding the woozy wave of its third LP, Boys and Girls in America, which clocked in at #2 on our list of Top 100 Albums of 2006. The band played over 200 live dates for that album, and the guys will hit the road again for the new release. Summer tour stops include:
May
2 - New York, N.Y. @ Webster Hall (Tribeca Film Fest)
7 - Middletown, Conn. @ Andrus Field (Wesleyan University)
June
8 - Chula Vista, Calif. @ 94/9 Independence Jam
27 - Baltimore, Md. @ Ram's Head Live!
28 - Philadelphia, Penn. @ Festival Pier - The Paul Green School of Rock Music Festival (with Devo)
29 - Brooklyn, N.Y. @ McCarren Pool
July
19 - Chicago, Ill. @ Pitchfork Festival
26 - Seattle, Wash. @ Capitol Hill Block Party
Related links:
Feature: We’re An American Band: The Hold Steady Holds Steady
Review: The Hold Steady - Boys and Girls in America
TheHoldSteady.com
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