The Hold Steady Live At The Brooklyn Bowl

It’s been a good week for us Hold Steady fans.

First, the Brooklyn band surprised their fans with the release of two brand new songs.

“Entitlement Crew” and “A Snake In The Shower” hit the band’s Bandcamp page, with all proceeds to be donated to the K+L Guardian Foundation.

The K+L Guardian Foundation was founded to benefit the children of “Jersey” Mike Van Jura, who died unexpectedly five years ago at the age of 36. According to The Hold Steady’s Bandcamp page, “Jersey Mike was the unofficial leader of The Unified Scene.”

Next, the band played a string of four straight shows at the Brooklyn Bowl, and I caught the second night.

The Hold Steady were, to get to the point, spectacular.

Singer Craig Finn was a grinding mix of James Tate and Bruce Springsteen, his streetwise punk poems spewing tales of endless parties, avenue agonies and the kind of deep, dark disillusionment that destroys a person from the inside out and back again.

Finn masterfully held court while his band whirled around him in a tight rhythmic circle.

“Stuck Between Stations” was a powerful and winning, “Sequestered In Memphis” was just perfect, and “On With The Business” was blistering and brilliant.

It was a hell of a night.

Set List