The Hold Steady brings its boozy tunes to a dry campus
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Stacy Schwartz
The Hold Steady
The small, private, dry-campus college of St. Olaf in Northfield is a seemingly odd choice for for The Hold Steady 's first show on the new leg of its tour in support of Stay Positive, considering that the group has been repeatedly called "the best bar band in America." But with help from liberal consumption of Red Bull and raucous opening bands The Alarmists and Two Cow Garage, the cheers of "Hold Steady, Hold Steady" began, and the band came out to greet its fans.
Lead singer Craig Finn smiled a goofy, heartfelt smile and tossed his hands about as if trying to fling something sticky, pouring adoration on the crowd. Keyboard and accordion player Franz Nicolay was dressed in his usual finery: a brown pin-stripe suit and that amazingly curly mustache. He did tricks with his hat and thrust his hands out as if he'd just received salvation. Tad Kubler pulled off the most wicked guitar solos throughout the night, causing eruptions of screams, though the legendary 'round-the-body guitar flip was sorely missed.
The band played a few new tracks, like "Heaven Is Wherever," causing the crowd to fall silent in order to hear the lyrics (yet cheer when St. Paul got a mention), but the most enthusiastic responses came during fan favorites "Massive Nights," "Southtown Girls," and "Stuck Between Stations."
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The AlarmistsStacy Schwartz
_jpg_595x1000_q85.jpg "the alarmists")
The AlarmistsStacy Schwartz
Two Cow GarageStacy Schwartz
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Micah Schnabel of Two Cow GarageStacy Schwartz
_jpg_595x1000_q85.jpg "two cow garage cody smith")
Cody Smith of Two Cow GarageStacy Schwartz
Craig Finn of The Hold SteadyStacy Schwartz
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Galen Polivka of The Hold SteadyStacy Schwartz
_jpg_595x1000_q85.jpg "the hold steady franz nicolay")
Franz Nicolay of The Hold SteadyStacy Schwartz
_jpg_595x1000_q85.jpg "the hold steady tad kubler")
Tad Kubler of The Hold SteadyStacy Schwartz
_jpg_595x1000_q85.jpg "the hold steady franz nicolay")
Franz Nicolay of The Hold SteadyStacy Schwartz
_jpg_595x1000_q85.jpg "the hold steady galen polivka craig finn")
Galen Polivka and Craig Finn of The Hold SteadyStacy Schwartz
_jpg_595x1000_q85.jpg "the hold steady bobby drake")
Bobby Drake of The Hold SteadyStacy Schwartz
_jpg_595x1000_q85.jpg "the hold steady craig finn")
Craig Finn of The Hold SteadyStacy Schwartz
Stacy Schwartz
