I'm loving the new Hold Steady, despite fewer explicit Minnesota references than the last couple of albums. Michaelangelo Matos has a great piece about the band on Salon, and this part certainly rings true for me:
Like a lot of Midwesterners who move east (I speak from experience), Finn began sticking to his traditionalist guns in a way he hadn't at home -- partly ironically, partly out of defensiveness... The Strokes spoke to the nonchalantly chic; the Hold Steady spoke for the ex-pats waiting to finish doing their city time and head back to their hometowns. They became the New York rock band for people who hated New York rock bands.Yes, the Hold Steady has now officially made twice as many good albums as the Strokes have. Posted by Stephen Silver at July 16, 2008 05:54 PM