On records full of hymns about alcohol, partying youngsters in the Midwest and the redemption and rebirth thereafter, the Hold Steady details reckless youthfulness with an almost holy approach. Each song poetically follows a small collection of recurring characters through nights of unhindered excess and the sloppy, awkward years of young adulthood. Not surprisingly, Tuesday night’s show at the Roxy by the band and co-headlining act Art Brut was filled with the same feelings.
Art Brut kicked off the night with frontman Eddie Argos prowling the stage, melodically barking lyrics rather than singing them.
Equal parts rock-and-roll and tongue-in-cheek irony, the band provided an impressive three-chord ruckus to serve as a backdrop to Argos’ humorously juvenile lyrics.
On “Formed A Band,” Argos shouted, “I want to be the boy who writes the song that makes Israel and Palestine get along.”
Before closing the hyper 45-minute set, Argos exclaimed, “This is a dancing song, a drinking song and a love song. I think you can do all three. So get drunk, fall in love and dance!” Then, as the band shredded through “Bang Bang Rock ‘ Roll” Argos jumped rope with his microphone chord like a preteen boy stuck in the body of a man three times as old.
The Hold Steady’s performance capitalized on that same energy with colossal guitar hooks and Midwestern charm. Lead singer/Rhythm-guitarist Craig Finn (a Boston College alum) rattled about the microphone with a scattershot energy atypical of someone his age.
Meanwhile, velvet-suit clad pianist Franz Nicolay took swigs from a wine bottle at the conclusion of each song.
The (literally) beer-soaked audience swayed through a fifteen-song set which relied heavily on material from The Hold Steady’s latest album, Boys and Girls in America. The highlights included “Hot Soft Light,” “Massive Nights” and “Hostile, Massachusetts.” The band also debuted two new songs, one untitled and one called “Lord, I’m Discouraged.”
During the encore, Finn looked out on the crowd and said with what actually appeared to be undeniable sincerity, “I say this almost every night, but I wouldn’t say it if it weren’t true: There is so much joy in what we do up here. I want to thank you all for being here tonight to share that joy with us.” The band then launched into its trademark set-closer – “Killer Parties” – leaving the audience to make some poor life decisions that would undoubtedly make the band proud.