The Hold Steady - Boys And Girls In America (2006)

I remember hearing "First Night" on a sampler while driving in a car with my girl through the beautiful landscapes of Portugal. 🛣 The rest of this only CD, that we had with us in that car, was not very good. So, we've listened to this song over and over again. It was such a lovely soundtrack for that ride. 🚗 After my return, I bought the whole album and I was stunned, first, by how shitty the cover looks, but then also by how good the other songs are. What I heard was triumphant. It was muscular. It had choruses! I would say, few bands have managed to produce arena-rock sing-your-guts-out anthems à la Bruce Springsteen quite like The Hold Steady. 🇺🇸 But they are more than just a good Springsteen clone. Craig Finn's voice is here to stay. 🎙

Boys And Girls In America is full of great music, excellent storytelling, vivid characters and a lot of moving teenage drama moments. Just listen to "Chillout Tent" for example. 🎪 💊🍊🚬 This deluxe edition from 2016 contains 2xLP featuring 4 b-sides and 6 demos.

The Hold Steady 'First Night' is part of the ‘Flash Track Of The Day’ playlist on Spotify. Feel free to follow anytime.