The Hold Steady on 7/22 at First Ave

Tuesday night a friend and I went to First Ave to see one of our favorite bands The Hold Steady. The show was in support of their new album “Stay Positive” and it sold out over a month ago.

We arrived in time to catch the last couple songs of the opener “The Loved Ones” which seemed like we walked through some time portal back to our high school days. Did First Ave just turn into Hot Topic and is this the new coolest band on the Warped Tour. We both were underwhelmed and surprised this is who The Hold Steady picked as their opener but were happy to only have to listen to two songs.

After the opener was done my excitement started to build. This was my 4th time to have seen The Hold Steady and have not been disappointed yet. At exactly 10:25 The Hold Steady took the stage, walking out to “Let’s Go Crazy” by Prince. They started off the set with the 1st track off the new album “Constructive Summer” and reeled in the crowd right away.

As the set went on I found myself getting really excited when they played tunes from past records. I have not found that “love at first listen” with there new album like I did with the others. There are some great tracks on the record but I find myself skipping tracks from time to time which I’ve never done in the past. I thought maybe seeing the band play some of these songs live would give me a new appreciation for them but I found myself drifting away from the show until a older tune was played.

The highlight of the show was the two killer encores they performed. Probably the most rocking I’ve ever seen the guys.

All in all I still had a great time at the show. I think it is impossible to not have a great time at a Hold Steady show. I wouldn’t hesitate for one second to see them again.

SETLIST:

Constructive Summer
Hot Soft Light
Chips Ahoy!
Sequestered In Memphis
Yeah Sapphire
One For The Cutters
Stevie Nix
Hot Fries
Magazines
Sweet Payne
Party Pit
Massive Nights
Two Handed Handshake (First Time Played Live)
Joke About Jamaica
Lord, I’m Discouraged
Your Little Hoodrat Friend
Stay Positive
Slapped Actress
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Positive Jam
Stuck Between Stations
How A Resurrection Really Feels
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Certain Songs
Killer Parties