Heaven is Whenever (Super Deluxe Edition)

by The Hold Steady

supported by

Anders M. Nordli THS is one of my favorite bands. Their previous album, Stay Positive, is nothing short of a hit parade with a sweet story connecting everything together.

Heaven Is Whenever continues that Stay Positive legacy, I dare say, and is also one of my favorites.

This release celebrates the 10th anniversary of this album. It's still strong, good... and listenable. Also, plenty of bonus material to enjoy here - the original album had 10 tracks only. Favorite track: Barely Breathing.

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1.	The Sweet Part of the City 04:24	buy track
2.	Soft in the Center 03:52	buy track
3.	The Weekenders 03:48	buy track
4.	The Smidge 03:22	buy track
5.	Rock Problems 03:29	buy track
6.	We Can Get Together 04:29	buy track
7.	Hurricane J 03:03	buy track
8.	Barely Breathing 03:37	buy track
9.	Our Whole Lives 04:01	buy track
10.	A Slight Discomfort 07:13	buy track
11.	Ascension Blues 03:02	buy track
12.	Touchless 03:37	buy track
13.	Separate Vacations 03:48	buy track
14.	Criminal Fingers 04:38	buy track
15.	Beer on the Bedstand 02:54	buy track
16.	At Least Not Tonight 03:00	buy track
17.	Wonderful Struggle 03:23	buy track
18.	Going on a Hike 04:24	buy track
19.	We Can Get Together (Alternate) 04:57	buy track
20.	Hurricane J (Avatar Sessions) 03:14	buy track
21.	Our Whole Lives (Avatar Sessions) 04:02	buy track
22.	Separate Vacations (Avatar Sessions) 03:49	buy track
23.	Going on a Hike (Avatar Sessions) 05:00	buy track
24.	We Can Get Together (Avatar Sessions) 06:19	buy track
25.	Beer on the Bedstand (Demo) 02:51	buy track
26.	Patterson Hood Liner Notes 09:29

about

Everyone seems to have an opinion about our fifth album, Heaven is Whenever. Ten years later, going over these songs for this reissue, we’ve taken on a great new appreciation for this collection. With some distance, it seems we were trying to get somewhere else, and this was a necessary transition record. The songs are weary, but with a dark humor. It might even be the funniest Hold Steady LP, although it’s sometimes hard to tell because it doesn’t convey the same ecstatic joy as some of the earlier records.

For the 10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition, Heaven is Whenever includes nine bonus tracks that tell the story of the time it was made. We were chasing something that was mostly undefined, and we kept making more and more music. We recorded stuff we forgot about like “Wonderful Struggle”, stuff we’ve played live but never released, like “Separate Vacations”, and even an alternate version of “We Can Get Together”.

The album wasn’t a lot of fun to make. It was recorded in fits and starts. At one point, we left Dreamland Studios early due to a medical issue. The label folks flew in and visited to see what the hell was going on. Franz had left the band, Steve had yet to join, and we were coming off several years of non-stop touring. We’d become a bit more self-aware than in our early days. Many of our favorite bands didn’t make it to their 5th LP, and it’s hard to keep a band evolving for that long. Rock problems, right?

One huge bright spot about this period is that Steve Selvidge came in for the touring on this album cycle. He became and remains a huge part of the heart and soul of THS. In fact, our biggest regret about Heaven now is that we didn’t record this album with Franz and Steve.

There’s even more to the story - the Super Deluxe version of the album available on streaming platforms will include tracks from the 2009 Avatar Sessions in New York City, featuring versions of Heaven is Whenever songs that Franz was working on with the band prior to his departure.

Here in 2020, we’re very proud of Heaven is Whenever. It’s the sound of a band pushing through difficult times by making music about that very struggle. It acknowledges suffering as part of human life. And with all the extra songs that we recorded beyond the album tracks, it’s a testament to the band’s willingness to show up and try to work through uncertainty. Our amazing friend Patterson Hood from Drive-By Truckers has a lot more to say about that in the LP liner notes, which you can also hear him read here.

Happy 10 years to Heaven is Whenever!

credits

released November 27, 2020

THE HOLD STEADY (2009) was:
Bobby Drake
Craig Finn
Tad Kubler
Galen Polivka

THE HOLD STEADY (2020) is:
Bobby Drake
Craig Finn
Tad Kubler
Franz Nicolay
Galen Polivka
Steve Selvidge

Produced by Dean Baltulonis
Additional Production by Tad Kubler

Recorded at Dreamland, Wild Arctic, and Mission Sound by Dean Baltulonis
Additional Engineering: Dustin Miller
Assistant Engineer at Dreamland: Adam Armstrong
Assistant Engineer at Mission Sound: Shawn Kimon
Mixed at Wild Arctic by Dean Baltulonis
"Criminal Fingers" mixed by Aaron Bastinelli
Mastered by Dave Gardner at Magneto Mastering

Reissue Remastered by Dave Gardner at Infrasonic Sound

Additional Piano and Keys: Dan Neustadt
Additional Vocals: Corinne Caouette and Roman Kuebler
Additional Guitar: Jon Reis

John Reis appears courtesy of Vagrant Records/Swami
Horns: Peter Hess and Lloyd DeBonis
Horn Arrangements: Peter Hess

Original Art Direction by Christian Helms
Original Design by Christian Helms and Erick Montes
Photography by Andrew Yates on location at Barton Creek Greenbelt Trail and Mohawk in Austin, Texas
Repackage Art Direction by Dale Voelker at DigitalLava.com

Artist Management: David Gottlieb/Death Or Glory, LLC
Business Management: Marshall Sollender at Clique Strategic Management
North American Booking: Larry Webman at Paradigm Agency
Rest of World Booking: Josh Javor & Steve Strange at X-Ray Touring
US Publicity: Big Hassle Media
UK Publicity: Prescription PR
Legal: George Regis, ESQ
Digital Media Management: Brendan Hilliard at Juicebox Industries
Vagrant Records Marketing: Matt Medina & Jeff Christian

All songs copyright 2010 Key Hits/Muy Interesante Music (ASCAP)
except:

"HURRICANE J" © 2010 Key Hits/Muy Interesante Music/Eggshell Armor Music (ASCAP)
"ROCK PROBLEMS" © 2010 Key Hits/Muy Interesante Music (ASCAP)/Mr. Buttermaker Painting (BMI)

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about

The Hold Steady Brooklyn, New York

Wired and well connected since 2003. Stay Positive.

theholdsteady.net

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