"He was drunk and exhausted but he was critically acclaimed and respected."

I overheard some guys talking about a show that they were going to at the El Rey Theater. I fancy myself as someone who knows music, so I asked, "Who are you going to see?"

"The Hold Steady," one of them answered.

"Who are they opening for?" I asked.

"They're headlining. It's sold out."

"What's the name of the band?" I asked again. I must not have heard them right. I would know the name of a band that sold out the El Rey.

"The Hold Steady," he answered again.

"Why have I never heard of them?" I asked. Again, I must not have heard them right.

They proceeded to tell me about the band. They said magical words to pique my interest like: "really early Bruce Springsteen." That was all I needed to hear. I scrawled the band's name on a napkin, went home and checked out their MySpace page. I wasn't halfway through the first song, "Stuck Between Stations" when I was on my iTunes, downloading the entire album.

If you've listened to (and love) Bruce's first album, "Greetings from Asbury Park," then The Hold Steady is for you. The lead singer doesn't as much sing as he recites poetry quickly. And the words...oh, the words...great lyrics such as:

“She was a damned good dancer, but she wasn’t all that great of a girlfriend.”
“He was drunk and exhausted but he was critically acclaimed and respected.”
“We drink. We dry up. We crumble into dust.”

Think about Bruce Springsteen, Randy Newman and Matthew Meltzer being put into a room and told to come out with a band. And viola, you have The Hold Steady.

Of course, you probably already know this. I seem to be the Boy OR Girl in America to have heard of them.

Check out their video. Stick around 'til the end.