© 2026 Milwaukee Public Media is a service of UW-Milwaukee's College of Letters & Science
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Due to technical difficulties due to the active weather pattern, WUWM 89.7 FM is operating at reduced power. Thank you for your patience as we work to have it restored to full capacity.

The Hold Steady On World Cafe

The Hold Steady.
Kelsey Stanger
/
WXPN
The Hold Steady.

Today, World Cafe presents a lengthy set from The Hold Steady, the Brooklyn indie-rock staple led by Craig Finn. The band plays songs from its new album, Teeth Dreams, as well as selections from across its decade-long history — including a selection Finn describes as his favorite Hold Steady song.

Born in Minnesota, Finn turns frequently to the Midwest — and to the messy lives of recurring characters — in his densely worded, exultant lyrics. "We started this band when most of us were in our early 30s," Finn says. "We had kind of been through the 20s thing: indie rock, hipsterism and all of that. And [we] wanted to do something that was not exclusive, but inclusive."

Copyright 2021 XPN. To see more, visit XPN.