First thing that comes to mind: Bruce Springsteen.
Second thing that comes to mind: The band rocks but the vocals are buried.
Lastly, damn Les Paul’s sound great cranked straight through an amp (go win one – click the pic above).
There is a lot of buzz around this band. Rolling Stone magazine raves and raves about The Hold Steady’s music. ME? Eh, it’s good. It drives. It’s extremely American…I’m not sure what that means exactly, but it gives me the feeling of being back in Indiana drinking with my friends and cousins….gettin’ in trouble. Which is good! It’s just that every song sort of has this same story telling vibe that can get a bit stale really quick. There’s only so many times you can hear “The boys are back in town”.
If ya want, check out Boys and Girls in America
Top 40 Music Sucks! - A New Music Blog 
Boys and Girls… is good, but Separation Sunday is way better. You would like it a lot more. He has the line: “It was a Blockbuster summer/Moving Pictures got us through to September.” Billy’s cousin, Tad, is the lead guitar guy.
Also, I wish I was listening to “The Boys Are Back in Town” right now. Not the Thin Lizzie one, but the one by that band in 48 Hours or was it 48 Hours 2?
I still love you tickly
And I you.
Tad is Billy’s Cousin? WOW…Now there’s a hook up for ya. And what with all the love going on here?
Yeah, get in touch with Billy… The Hold Steady is playing the Great American soon…