ALBUM REVIEW: The Price Of Progress – The Hold Steady

Sometimes listening needs to be easy going, breathable or let itself be totally absorbed. This is what THE HOLD STEADY have produced, with over 20 years of experience, in their ninth album The Price Of Progress. A rock ‘n’ roll album merged with spoken word lyrics that narrate the human condition and simpler navigation than what is dealt with today. Most records feel like a collection of short stories, but the stories woven throughout this album could make for the read of a lifetime. Shining light on the most ordinary of situations, they highlight the beauty and complexity of the everyday.

A synth surges to introduce the opening track Grand Junction, one that kicks off the head shrinking that is prominent throughout; frontman Craig Finn’s vocals stay calm and consistent during declarations of love in which great vulnerability is embraced. Followed up by the rougher and more rugged Sideways Skull, this track exudes the image of throwing a sack on a stick over your shoulder with all of your belongings in. Taking every situation as it comes, the track halts for a solemn bridge before launching back into spoken word vocals. 

At times it’s difficult to understand what Finn is talking about or what should be taken from it; some tracks have to be heard a few times to appreciate their content, like Understudies‘ rambles about drowning as a struggling actor. Despite that, it illustrates a very regular scenario with a certain drama to it. On the other hand, The Birdwatchers details dreaming big and letting aspirations soar, no matter how small of an effect they may have on things. Slowly, information and metaphors are extracted from the seemingly normal. At points things do veer away too far though, feeling senseless. 

Obscurity is unforgivingly embraced during the whole album, an attitude that should be adopted when listening, even down to the sonic scenes formed by whimsical chimes or haunting brass instruments. Like a first session of therapy when you vomit out all of your issues in one breath, The Price Of Progress suffers from trying to say too much in just one song, one album. Distortions Of Faith is a stunning track, pulling in jazz elements to write a sorrowful tune, but understanding it is like trying to find the true north with no sun to cast shadows or a compass to save you.

However much it’s brilliant to see the inner workings of how someone processes experiences, which is very much the case here, it requires too much thought to just enjoy it. The Price Of Progress just isn’t easy enough to absorb; more often you will find yourself wondering what any song is about than loving it for what it is. 

Rating: 6/10

The Price Of Progress is out now via Positive Jams/Thirty Tigers.

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