The Hold Steady announces their eighth studio album, Open Door Policy, arriving on the band’s own Positive Jams label via Thirty Tigers on Friday, February 19, 2021. Open Door Policy, is available for digital and physical pre-orders beginning today. All pre-orders will be joined by an instant grat download of the new song, “Family Farm,” premiering today at all DSPs, streaming services and can be heard below. In addition, Open Door Policy is being released in a variety of formats, including standard black vinyl and limited editions of CD and colored vinyl. Positive Jams/Thirty Tigers will also be offering an exclusive limited-edition colored vinyl for independent record stores.
“Songs are created a bunch of different ways in The Hold Steady, but to me, our most classic songs are driving rock songs with piano breaks,” says singer Craig Finn. “‘Family Farm’ fits the bill. The genesis of the song was the guitar riff that starts it. Tad Kubler played a home demo for me and our producer Josh Kaufman, and we thought it was worth pursuing. At this point it had the working title ‘August’. We brought it to the band and Franz had the idea for the bridge. This seemed like a ‘scene change’ of sorts, and gave the song more depth and intrigue. We recorded it in December 2019 at the Clubhouse in upstate NY, just after our annual run of shows at the Brooklyn Bowl. Our friends Stuart Bogie and Jordan McLean added horns a bit later. I was personally happy to get a mention of Van Halen’s ‘Eruption’ in the lyrics, and I appreciate it even more after Eddie Van Halen’s unfortunate recent passing. Overall, it feels like a song that will be fun to play live – uptempo, dynamic, and a chorus with shout-along potential.”
Recorded at The Clubhouse in Rhinebeck, NY with producer Josh Kaufman and engineer D. James Goodwin, Open Door Policy marks the second LP by The Hold Steady to feature the band’s current six-piece lineup. Additional performers include Stuart Bogie and Jordan McLean on horns, Cassandra Jenkins and Annie Nero on backup vocals, and Matt Barrick on percussion.
“OPEN DOOR POLICY was very much approached as an album vs. a collection of individual songs, and it feels like our most musically expansive record,” says Finn. “This album was written and almost entirely recorded before the pandemic started, but the songs and stories explore power, wealth, mental health, technology, capitalism, consumerism, and survival – issues which have compounded in 2020.”
The Hold Steady will herald Open Door Policy this week at the 2020 edition of Massive Nights, the band’s legendary multi-night celebration of music and community held each year at Brooklyn, NY’s Brooklyn Bowl. Set for December 3, 4, and 5, this very special Massive Nights will be live-streamed around the world, allowing everyone everywhere to raise a glass and sing a favorite song alongside fellow fans far and wide. Single-night tickets and three-day passes are available now, exclusively via FANS.LIVE. Limited tickets to an additional Soundcheck/Happy Hour event on Friday, December 4 are also on sale.
