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This is a great rock and roll album. I haven’t found anything like this in ages, good straightforward (on the face of it) noisy rock and roll. But not dumb rock and roll. The Hold Steady tell stories of drugs, booze and partying, having fun and the consequences.

Musically there are plenty of guitars, a keyboard that can played at a pretty frenetic pace and the drums driving through. They can change pace through a song, there is a lot more to this than a lot of ‘rock’ out there. They can settle back into anthemic choruses, and bring back it to a smaller sound when it is appropriate. The next song can be a lot of a smaller and intimate song, but with a bit of a punch underneath to maintain some strength.

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For me it’s not often that an album can start off from being disliked to being one of my all time favourites. As a Film by The Bank Holidays is one such album.

From the A capella opening track, “The Voice I hear when I alone” the album has a bright and airy feel. When you listen to the lyrics the songs become all the more captivating hooking you into the music. This is best done in quiet contemplation which lets the lyrics shine to the chirpy sound.

I call it jingle jangle pop primarily taken from The Byrds song which uses jingle jangle in its lyrics. (Turn, Turn, Turn)

Cheating, Cheating has a very much a Beatles sound to it as does Like a Piano. (Although both from different Beatle periods. ) Like a piano makes me laugh and wince all at the same time with the idea that a piano that falls on you can make you chest feel strange.

This Elated Height has clever lyrics and provides a nice link, I feel, to Cheating, Cheating. Folded in Half  starts off with male and the female voices lyrics before launching in the first verse which  has my favourite “relate to” lyric.

Its a great album where the songs have nice and short tracks. Perfect for this type of music but sometimes you almost wish they went just a little bit longer. But what the hey. Just play it the whole album all over again.

Highly recommended if you like jingle jangle airy guitar based music with lyrics that you listen out for

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