Here is your obligatory grainy cell phone picture of The Hold Steady performing last night at the Miramar in Milwaukee. I believe this was taken during the opening song "Stuck Between Stations," a personal favorite of mine. My GF and I were positioned stage right when the show began, the view was great but it sounded like shit and we moved after the first few songs. The concert was pretty awesome despite the fact that it got ridiculously hot towards the end and the staff at the Miramar did nothing (i.e. open the front doors) to cool it down. Before the show began, there were about 5 or 6 beers placed on the stage where each member of the band would be standing. To top it off there was a bottle of Jameson on an amp. Frontman Craig Finn took at least a few swigs during their set, and it seemed as though he had taken several before the band took the stage. It didn't seem like the band actually drank much of the beer and I guess it is probably kind of hard to drink a beer and play an instrument at the same time as they both require use of one's hands. I can excuse them for not being able to chug beers and rip away on a guitar at the same time, but I can't excuse the fact that the beer they were given (and presumably requested) was Budweiser. Right in front of our Miller-loving eyes. This is Milwaukee for f*** sake! Have a High Life or a Pabst. Shit, if you really wanted to show that you were down, you would polish off some Cream City Pale Ale or an Eastside Dark. Despite the poor choice of beer, The Hold Steady rocked ass. The band ripped through an impressive set that included most of the songs off of Boys and Girls in America, plus selected "classics" like Stevie Nix, Cattle and Creeping Things, Your Little Hoodrat Friend, Modesto is Not That Sweet, etc. Finn also managed to get booed for talking about the Minnesota Twins. It was pretty funny, and I love that a band that has received so much acclaim from the Indie (and mainstream) music press doesn't give a shit about being perceived as uncool for liking baseball. I think it was hard to grow up in Minnesota in the 80s and not develop a serious love for the Twins, I know I did and I relish it. I could give a shit about the Vikings or the Twolves, and don't even get me started about the North Stars (Norm Green, the offer to eat my shit still stands), but don't mess with my Twins. Whom, btw, are in Milwaukee this weekend. GO TWINS!Friday, May 18, 2007
Massive Nights
Here is your obligatory grainy cell phone picture of The Hold Steady performing last night at the Miramar in Milwaukee. I believe this was taken during the opening song "Stuck Between Stations," a personal favorite of mine. My GF and I were positioned stage right when the show began, the view was great but it sounded like shit and we moved after the first few songs. The concert was pretty awesome despite the fact that it got ridiculously hot towards the end and the staff at the Miramar did nothing (i.e. open the front doors) to cool it down. Before the show began, there were about 5 or 6 beers placed on the stage where each member of the band would be standing. To top it off there was a bottle of Jameson on an amp. Frontman Craig Finn took at least a few swigs during their set, and it seemed as though he had taken several before the band took the stage. It didn't seem like the band actually drank much of the beer and I guess it is probably kind of hard to drink a beer and play an instrument at the same time as they both require use of one's hands. I can excuse them for not being able to chug beers and rip away on a guitar at the same time, but I can't excuse the fact that the beer they were given (and presumably requested) was Budweiser. Right in front of our Miller-loving eyes. This is Milwaukee for f*** sake! Have a High Life or a Pabst. Shit, if you really wanted to show that you were down, you would polish off some Cream City Pale Ale or an Eastside Dark. Despite the poor choice of beer, The Hold Steady rocked ass. The band ripped through an impressive set that included most of the songs off of Boys and Girls in America, plus selected "classics" like Stevie Nix, Cattle and Creeping Things, Your Little Hoodrat Friend, Modesto is Not That Sweet, etc. Finn also managed to get booed for talking about the Minnesota Twins. It was pretty funny, and I love that a band that has received so much acclaim from the Indie (and mainstream) music press doesn't give a shit about being perceived as uncool for liking baseball. I think it was hard to grow up in Minnesota in the 80s and not develop a serious love for the Twins, I know I did and I relish it. I could give a shit about the Vikings or the Twolves, and don't even get me started about the North Stars (Norm Green, the offer to eat my shit still stands), but don't mess with my Twins. Whom, btw, are in Milwaukee this weekend. GO TWINS!