Craig Finn’s ruminations on faith are hardly equivocal. As if 2005′s Separation Sunday isn’t enough, you’d be hard-pressed to rifle through any Hold Steady album without bumping into some lyrical outlier talk-singing its way through spiritual matters.

In the vein of someone like Flannery O’Connor — with a much less morose tone — and to the consternation of some, the overarching narrative he weaves ties human experience and all its warts inextricably to the search for spiritual existence in very overt ways.

I mean, that whole record was about trying to interpolate Roman Catholic dogma into mundane and seedy affairs, good or bad. In the end, it makes statements like this one seem pretty innocuous:

There’s all these kinds of parallels … between the way we commune around the church and the way we commune around a rock show. I don’t think they’re necessarily strange bedfellows.

The interesting part, though, is how multifarious this idea proves to be. Many will give it a cursory glance, nod their head to a relatively superficial comparison on a social level, then read on. It appears to be a simple thought, but it’s really a complex axiom that reflects all kinds of “-ologies” and loads of introspection.

Personally, it hits close to home for a few reasons. In recent months, things of this nature have popped up when talking with a number of folks in the unified scene (both bands and fellow nerds) who are all over the map spiritually. So I have these unorganized bits strewn about my brain above and beyond my limited perspicacity. Then there’s the emphasis Buzzgrinder places on the music scene’s communal aspects, coupled with this vaguely-shared journey of many longtime Buzzgrinderers when it comes to faith.

It’s tough for me to break down my thoughts in a manner that doesn’t involve way too many words for this space (i.e. even more so than this load of blah blah blah), and I’m still not sure what I wanted to “say” when I began writing. It just started percolating in my mind, with all these far-flung thoughts whizzing around. I guess maybe it’s an open-ended attempt to point out an interesting topic for discussion.

What I do know is that Finn’s statement is like a clown car. You don’t expect so many different things to pop out of such a small package. But they do. And they keep coming.

I think this is the part where you tell me I’m stupid. Proceed.

:: NPR is streaming the new Sufjan Stevens album. While they (and many others) seem all too enthused, I’m just wondering if this is the exit strategy he hinted at years ago…

:: MC Hammer seems none too pleased with Kanye West.

:: Metallica‘s Robert Trujillo claims he and the rest of the boys have way too many good songwriting ideas. That begs the question: Where have they been hiding them all these years?

:: The Replacements taught Hold Steady frontman Craig Finn that rock stars didn’t descend “from some rock mountain.”

:: Thrice is working diligently on a new album. Or at least the band is now, since Dustin Kensrue is back from vacation. And look, I didn’t mention The Illusion of Safety or The Artist in the Ambulance this time around. Um, nevermind.

:: When you get robbed, you might call the cops. When Mark Ronson gets robbed, he congratulates the perpetrators.

:: Granted, there are some pretty bad festivals out there, but it looks like Epicenter might be at the top of that list.

:: Too. Many. Flutes.

:: Shellac tour dates!

:: Shockingly, Liz Phair‘s Funstyle ended up losing her a record deal and a manager. Also, not really shockingly.

:: Fuck Yeah Fest continues to head up the redundancy committee of redundancy and use the FYF Fest moniker. But hey, the lineup is pretty sweet.

:: Major League Baseball continues to court the cool kids, this time by kicking it with The Hold Steady.

:: Speaking of people who love The Boss, the MLB will miss George Steinbrenner.

:: If you need some extra power violence to brighten your day, Black Army Jacket might just hit the spot.

:: Ra Ra Riot is previewing a new song, Too Dramatic. But it’s not really that dramatic.

:: Turns out Tommy Mattola really, really, really wanted Hall and Oates on Live Aid.

:: What is this, Pattinson vs. Love part 45? Yawn.

While Sean enjoys himself at Forecastle this weekend, I’ll be headed to Memphis for The Hold Steady on Sunday evening with The Whigs.

The boys put out Heaven is Whenever, one of my favorite albums of the year so far, and they have yet to disappoint live. It’s like a giant party with all the best friends you never knew you had. Needless to say, it should be a good show.

Original photo by prusakolep used under Creative Commons.

Check out more summer and fall Hold Steady tour dates.

Word broke a few days ago that former Hold Steady mustache man Franz Nicolay would be joining Against Me! for some dates in Europe, but not much more was said than that. So, of course, speculation abounded as to whether or not Nicolay would be staying in a more permanent fashion or if this was just a temporary gig until a more handlebar-friendly gig came up.

Well, turns out it’s the latter. Nicolay took a few minutes to give Buzzgrinder the scoop:

At present it’s nothing more committed than they needed an extra guy and I happen to be available. I just finished mixing my new record and it won’t be out until later this fall, so playing shows with some old friends – we’ve crossed paths and played shows together for almost ten years – seemed like a great way to spend the next few months.

No word on whether or not Tom Gabel and the crew will be growing their mustaches out. Or getting mustache finger tattoos.

Friends, can I speak candidly for a minute? I am curious as to how it is that Godsmack is still around, putting out albums and, assumedly, touring. Sure, we all didn’t mind them back when nu-metal was still nu and anything on rock radio was better than Nickelback. Some of us maybe even owned their first album or two. Maybe. But there’s no excuse for their continued survival. Vote with your dollars, folks. And vote with your charm by counseling your friends in the middle part of the country away from any band sandwiched by Slipknot songs on the radio.

There are, however, a few exciting releases this fine day. Most notable (for me, at least) is The Hold Steady and their positive jams. Les Canadiens in Broken Social Scene are back in action with a super group release; Deftones are still going strong and proud; Flying Lotus will twist your thoughtsicles with his laptop; stoned proggers will enjoy some Minus the Bear; and the other super group, The New Pornographers, are back with something new.

:: 8Ball & MJG, 10 Toes Down (Grand Hustle)

:: At the Gates, Purgatory Unleashed: Live at Wacken (Earache)

:: The Austerity Program, Backsliders And Apostates Will Burn (Hydra Head)

:: Batusis, Batusis (Smog Veil)

:: Blank Dogs, Quiet Years (Captured Tracks)

:: Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Uni-5: The World’s Enemy (Asylum)

:: Booka Shade, More! (Get Physical)

:: Broken Social Scene, Forgiveness Rock Record (Arts & Crafts)

:: Court Yard Hounds, Court Yard Hounds (Columbia)

:: Deftones, Diamond Eyes (Warner)

More »

I’m still really on the fence about this new album from The Hold Steady. I can’t tell if it’s a grower or a groaner. There are some good moments, but it’s supposed to be taken as a whole. It’s kind of a return to pre-Franz form, but it’s also an attempt to move forward. Heaven Is Whenever seems crafted to be it’s own fully-developed statement in the band’s evolution, but it feels more like the awkward archaeopteryx than the majestic eagle it gave way to.

Birds with teeth. Yes, that’s science.

:: Bonnaroo has its own Ben and Jerry’s flavor, which consists of “light coffee and malt ice creams with whiskey caramel swirls and English toffee pieces.” I expected the flavor to be no showers.

:: Apparently Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood helped teach Slash guitar when he was a youngster.

:: You can stream the new Hold Steady record, Heaven Is Whenever, over at NPR. Any first impressions on the record? I’m still unsure at this point.

:: Ryan’s Rock Show recently did a 21-minute Dillinger Escape Plan video interview. Among other things, Ben and Liam talk about how much they like The Locust.

:: Looks like Ben Folds has a new album in the can.

:: The Courier-Journal did a nice writeup on Titus Andronicus a couple days back in anticipation of our show with them — which is tomorrow! If you haven’t already told your friends about it, do that now.

:: Random tracks that don’t suck:

:: We know you want to follow Lil Wayne‘s journey in prison. Hopefully it doesn’t entail any soap dropping. Unless that’s Weezy’s thang. In which case we hope there’s plenty of it. We don’t judge here at Buzzgrinder.

:: So now that former Attack Attack! frontman Austin Carlile is Of Mice & Men‘s former frontman as well, does that mean he’ll start a third crapcore crabcore band to help prop up sales of the ailing icepick industry? You know, because it makes people want to poke icepicks in their ears. You know, icepicks.

:: Hold Steady fans in Connecticut got a treat over the weekend, when Craig Finn and the gang played their first bit of new material in the post-handlebar era.

:: Thor‘s Only the Strong was released a quarter century ago, and it’s getting the cushy reissue treatment. Show ‘em what it is, thunder god!

:: Slowcoustic takes a little time to reminisce about the Jason Molina solo album Let Me Go. Let Me Go. Let Me Go.

:: The Market Hotel — Brooklyn’s noted cool kid hot spot and DIY venue — is shutting down operations thanks to a little trouble with the police. Cops be cool!

The Hold Steady just announced the impending release of Heaven Is Whenever. The Franz Nicolay-less version of the band will give us the album on May 4 via Vagrant in the U.S. and Rough Trade across the pond.

Frontman Craig Finn said the album is about “embracing suffering and finding reward in our everyday lives.” Don’t think there’s ever been a record about that before, so that’s a plus.

See the Heaven Is Everywhere track list.