Craig Finn and Co. are joined by the excellent Steve Selvidge (who came along on the support tour for 2010’s introspective Heaven Is Whenever), and twin-attack guitars are suddenly the going thing once again. The Hold Steady continues to grow up in public, but where Heaven was the sound of a group figuring out how to transition from bar-band woodshedding into the complexity of middle age, privately and professionally, “Teeth Dreams” will likely be seen in hindsight as the point where the band members considered various paths, then said, “Fuck it,” and kicked a new one for themselves, retaining their youthful power while articulating the lessons of age. The group’s sixth album is as rewardingly energetic in places as anything it’s ever recorded (see “Spinners” and the barreling “Big Cig”), but it’s also the most literate and lyrically expressive album in its catalog to date, which is saying a hell of a lot for aband that started and stayed brainy without slipping into precious.
The Hold Steady could likely keep making “Hold Steady albums” for as long as it wanted to—the formula works—but the group is still heading new and interesting places. The fact that it’s consistently been one of the smartest American bands of the past decade makes that journey all the more impressive.
The Fat Angel Sings 