LITTLE ROCK — “Subpoenaed in Texas ... Sequestered in Memphis.”
No disrespect to Arkansas, Craig Finn says, although he’s not exactly sure what happened in the middle of the ill-fated story in the song, “Sequestered in Memphis” on his Brooklyn-based band The Hold Steady’s fourth album, Stay Positive.
The band released their fifth studio album, Heaven is Whenever, in May and now has almost 100 songs in their catalog.
“As we get more established one of the things we can do is kind of vary the set list,” Finn said. “It is generally a mix of things from all five records. We usually write the set list right before [being] on stage.”
Finn has fond memories of playing “Sequestered in Memphis” for the first time in Memphis on this tour.
“I forgot we hadn’t played it there yet,” Finn said. “They went crazy.”
Finn said the band picks songs based on “what the night calls for,” and he’s not sure what that means yet for their upcoming Little Rock show.
He also isn’t sure of the details from the last time his band was in town, but he does remember that he had a good time.
“I remember that a significant portion of the audience ended up on stage at one point,” Finn said. “There have been some wild nights and great shows.”
Wild nights and great shows are actually the themes of many of The Hold Steady’s story-heavy lyrics, which Finn says is something that makes the band unique.
“I think that in the end you kind of make the music you most want to listen to, and I always loved story songs,” Finn said.
Stay Positive as well as the Hold Steady’s earlier albums are full of songs about the teen drinking and drug culture. From passing out at festivals, to waking up in bars and betting on horses, the band has pretty much covered it all.
That’s why Finn said their newest album comes off a little more mature.
“Where I was coming from with the tone of the record was kind of imparting advice or wisdom,” Finn said. “It’s kind of like sitting on the porch and telling tales and trying to be the cool older brother.”
(If Finn was your cool older brother, he’d be the one getting in trouble for playing guitar too loudly in the basement.)
Musically, The Hold Steady is often compared to classic rock bands with a few extra guitar riffs and synth noises thrown in. The band also isn’t afraid of the cowbell on tracks like “The Smidge.”
Finn’s first-person “singing” is usually much more of a spoken conversation, which can sometimes turn to shouting — but again, it’s a lot like the tongue lashing you might expect from an older sibling.
“The Sweet Part of the City,” which opens the bands’ latest album is a self-aware tune that starts out with a more folksy-sounding riff than usual.
“Folksy?” Finn pondered. “I think there’s something to that. We wrote this album as a four-piece, so I think it breathes a little more. We resisted the urge to fill up every available space with music. Somebody said it brings out more dynamics, and I think that’s kind of cool.”
Finn likes the idea of space. That’s why the Brooklyn band plays songs with lyrics about the Midwest and the South. Finn grew up in Minneapolis, and says the old “write what you know” adage still applies.
“Writing about New York wouldn’t feel as sincere to me,” he said. “I feel more comfortable setting things in Midwestern towns and I have a better grasp of what’s going to happen.”
The Hold Steady has been enjoying this tour of the entire country so far with five albums worth of material to pull from.
“We’re getting toward having 100 songs in our catalogue now,” Finn said. “That’s the cool thing about having five albums now.”
The band may have grown up lyrically in a sense, but Finn said that lyrical growth may have been somewhat manufactured by his hyper-awareness that he was writing the bands’ fifth album.
“I kept thinking, ‘What have I learned?’” he said.
So, the Hold Steady faithful needn’t worry. Finn says his interest in people’s emotions have and will remain somewhat similar.
“I’m fascinated with extreme highs and lows and the way people manufacture their own highs and lows” he explained. “I think that will continue.”
See the show:
The Hold Steady is appearing at Revolution Music Room on Thursday. The music starts around 8:30 p.m. with the opening bands Wintersleep and Cotton Jones. It's an 18-and-up show with the doors opening at 7 p.m., and tickets are $18 in advance.