Rob’s Album Of The Week: The Hold Steady’s Open Door Policy

Normally an evolution from a raw, punk sound to a polished multi-dimensional one can turn some folks off, but I guess it depends on the genuity of the transition. There’s a difference between a band blatantly “selling out” to become more popular and a band growing their music into something original. That difference can do with the substance of the lyrics and instrumentation, which is why a band like The Hold Steady from Brooklyn can pull it off without alienating anyone. Their eighth album, Open Door Policy, that’s due out via Thirty Tigers on February 19 shows a band that’s changed a lot over the past 15 years. With that being said, they also prove that change doesn’t have to be bad.

One thing I love about this album is that they brought the horns back with Stuart Bogie, Ray Mason and Jordan McLean adding an dimension that’s similar to the E Street Band. The other thing I love is that this is their second record with Franz Nicolay since he reunited with the band in 2016 and his skills on piano are fantastic. Craig Finn still has some of the best storytelling lyrics in the world. The riffs from his, Tad Kubler and Steve Selvidge’s guitars also bring that trademark grit. An underrated trait of The Hold Steady has always been their tightly knit rhythmic structure and bassist Galen Polivka and drummer Bobby Drake maintain that in the album.