The Hold Steady

After Lifter Puller

The Hold Steady grew out of Lifter Puller, the Minneapolis band of Craig Finn and Tad Kubler that ran from 1994 to 2000. Finn and the bassist Galen Polivka began talking about a new band in 2003; Finn and Kubler developed the idea watching The Last Waltz, Finn wondering why bands like that no longer existed. Wikipedia says the band formed in 2003, though its categories give 2004, and the first show, under the name Northsix, was at the Music Hall of Williamsburg. Finn writes the lyrics and his bandmates the music. Their cited influences include Bruce Springsteen, Thin Lizzy, Tom Petty, Bob Seger, the Replacements and Husker Du, and their songs return to recurring characters, religion, redemption and Minneapolis settings.

Almost Killed Me (Frenchkiss, 2004) was a critics' sleeper hit, and Separation Sunday (May 3, 2005), a loose concept album about a character named Holly, reached the Village Voice cover. Drummer Judd Counsell was replaced by Bobby Drake and keyboardist Franz Nicolay joined in 2005. Boys and Girls in America (October 3, 2006) made Blender's band of the year and Rolling Stone's number eight album of 2006. Stay Positive (July 2008, produced by John Agnello) reached 30 in the US and 15 in the UK, and A Positive Rage (April 7, 2009) paired a live disc with a documentary. Nicolay left in January 2010, Heaven Is Whenever followed in May 2010, and Steve Selvidge became an official member in 2011.

Residencies

Teeth Dreams came out on March 25, 2014, and Nicolay returned in May 2016. From 2017 the band played three-night city residencies, and worked with the producer Josh Kaufman on singles such as "Entitlement Crew". Thrashing Thru the Passion (August 16, 2019), Open Door Policy (February 19, 2021, their first Billboard top ten) and The Price of Progress (March 31, 2023) followed. A 20th anniversary run in January and February 2023 ended at the Brooklyn Bowl in Philadelphia on February 4, and a recording of the 2003 anniversary show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg (January 28, 2023) was released on December 1, 2023. They appeared as themselves in the Billions season three finale, and have a star on the First Avenue mural in Minneapolis. Stereogum credits Boys and Girls in America with helping open a lane for Titus Andronicus, Japandroids and the War on Drugs.