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 Apr 07, 2021
Wednesday Apr 07, 2021
As listeners will know, A Positive Jam Season 2 host Shawn Westfall has called Separation Sunday our generation's The Wasteland, and so our final bonus episode of the season puts that to the test. We read T.S. Eliot's The Wasteland in a Craig Finn-inspired voice. We think and hope you will enjoy it as another lens on the wisdom of The Hold Steady.
You can follow along here: https://poets.org/poem/waste-land
This wraps up season 2. Get in touch with us on Twitter at @shawnwestfall, @mbrookstaylor, or @danielshortman, or @shortmanstudios.
Email us at mail@shortmanstudios.com.
And hold steady.