A Positive Jam breaks great albums down track by track to find out what makes the music great, what goes into the songs, and why these albums matter. The second season covers The Hold Steady's breakthrough second album, Separation Sunday, an ambitious follow-up that saw the band refine their sound, their style, and their narrative approach, and which put them on the map with the wider music-listening audience. Season 2 is hosted by Shawn Westfall, with Mike Taylor and Daniel Shvartsman alongside. It will feature a variety of guests while focusing on the key lyrical themes of the concept album, its resonance with classic works in both rock and roll and beyond, and the way it built on The Hold Steady's debut album, Almost Killed Me (subject of Season 1 on A Positive Jam) in almost every meaningful facet.
Episodes
Wednesday Jul 29, 2020
Wednesday Jul 29, 2020
As we build up for the launch of A Positive Jam - which is one week away, on August 5th - we're releasing a couple playlist episodes. These playlists should help you get excited to dive into the Hold Steady's debut, Almost Killed Me, and will set the context for the 2004 music scene that the Hold Steady crashed into.
In this episode, Daniel Shvartsman sets the scene for music in the early '00s. A time where R&B and rap fully eclipsed rock, where indie mainstream music was falling into two nostalgic channels, where unconventional song structures and emo were having a moment. But also, 2004 would be a turning point year. This playlist will bring you back to that era and see why music was ready for a change, as driven by the Hold Steady and others.
There's no way to get to everything in 33 songs, of course. Any other tracks you remember from this era as important ones? Let us know on twitter @mbrookstaylor or @danielshortman, or @shortmanstudios.
Check out the full playlist here - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2hEU9wP2t4KdiBBjhHabGn?si=7rOOTgbRSUiqszit827yaQ
And make sure to subscribe to A Positive Jam here:
And hold steady for our debut episode, August 5th!
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