Positive Rage (W/Dvd) (Bril)

The Hold Steady | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 7, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Vagrant Records
• ASIN: B001TH15WK
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,600 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Stuck Between Stations

2. The Swish

3. Chips Ahoy

4. Massive Nights

5. Ask Her for Adderall

6. Barfruit Blues

7. Same Kooks

8. You Gotta Dance (With Who You Came With)

9. Lord I'm Discouraged

10. You Can Make Him Like You

11. Your Little Hoodrat Friend

12. Southtown Girl

13. Citrus

14. First Night

15. Girls Like Status

16. Kille Parties

Editorial Reviews

2009 two disc (CD/DVD) release featuring 17 live tracks (CD) plus The Hold Steady Documentary (DVD). In the last three years, the Hold Steady have a come a long way. They've gone from being everyone's favorite bar band in their hometown of Minneapolis to critically acclaimed, international heavyweights. The band's newest studio album, Stay Positive, adorns just about every tastemaker Top 10 list of 2008, and the album has now sold over 100,000 copies worldwide. The band's live show is a big part of their success. While some fans try and keep up with Craig Finn's now-renowned vocals, some just shake with joy and try to mimic Finn's white-guy dance moves. A Positive Rage is not only a live album but, through a documentary style DVD, also gives fans a look behind a band that has risen from the Indie Rock underbelly to being the voice for hundreds of thousands of beer swilling men and women that are out to have a good time.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great material, great band, April 13, 2009

By 

tasteful dude (chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Positive Rage (W/Dvd) (Bril) (Audio CD)

I am second to none in my affection for these guys; in fact I was at that very live show (right in front as a matter of fact).

The DVD was fun, and the CD (which I heard from another source) really was great. It's a shame that my computer couldn't recognize my CD, which is the only reason I am giving this purchase less than 5 stars. Amazon is sending a replacement, though, so I have to hope that my CD was an anomaly.

This was a great performance, and this CD really captures the energy and excitement that they bring to their shows.

Note: if you wonder why Craig's voice seems to cut out sometimes, it's because of the way he sells his songs, singing to the audience off-mic in between lines. Sometimes he gets carried away and moves away from the mic even before he's finished with a line.

He was obviously having a great time that night, and you can hear him getting looser and looser as the night goes on. The rest of the band seemed only to get tighter and tighter, though, and they totally tear it up throughout the show. Franz' keyboard work is some of the best I've heard in the 10 shows I've been to, and he does some inspired work on the harp. Galen and Bobby are always powerful and propulsive: they are deep, deep in the cut. And Tad: he puts the power in power chords, and his solos really provide the emotional release that only great rock'n'roll can.

Bottom line: there is so much joy in what this band does. It's great that so many more people can be part of it through this CD.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bridging Generations with AWESOME ROCK, April 14, 2009

By 

John L. Thompson "A/V Geek" (Sykesville, MD United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Positive Rage (W/Dvd) (Bril) (Audio CD)

The Hold Steady and this album in particular are a group that will make you feel young and old at the same time. Their energy and smart lyrics are so infectious, that you can't help recall the days of being 21 watching a great local bar band playing songs you love. Of course... that makes you feel old at the same time. The CD is a great representation of their live show, which is clearly not a lip sync stage show like many artists today. You can hear their energy and the nuances that make a great live show great. It's a good mix of songs from their most recent album, Stay Positive, to their early albums, like Almost Killed Me and Separation Sunday. Both the CD and DVD create a feeling of intimacy which is representative of their live shows, and how their songs are written.

The DVD is really fun too. Since the Hold Steady is not a highly commercial band, it is hard to get insight about it's members, even though as a fan you feel like you already know them.

NOTE ABOUT UNPLAYABLE CDs in PCs: Report the problem to Vagrant Records if you have it. It seems that the problem is with Windows machines. I have tested it in Windows Vista 64, XP, and MacOS. Works fine on MacOS. Windows does not particularly like the CD. After a few eject and reinserts I got the CD audio portion to read on Vista. The data portion was never recognized. Couldn't get it to work on XP at all. Once again... it works fine on Macs.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great document, April 9, 2009

By 

Sam Sailor "arghonaught" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Positive Rage (W/Dvd) (Bril) (Audio CD)

I watched this last night as soon as I got home and I loved the DVD! You feel like you're right there with the band sharing their excitement. As a musician, I only dream of the day that my music career will support me and I can ditch the day job!
The live album is going to live in my car for a very long time.