Separation Sunday | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | May 3, 2005 | |||
Studio | Atomic Recording Co. (Brooklyn) Gigantic Studios (Manhattan) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 42:11 | |||
Label | Frenchkiss | |||
Producer |
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The Hold Steady chronology | ||||
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Separation Sunday is the second studio album by the American indie rock band the Hold Steady, released on May 3, 2005, through Frenchkiss Records. A concept album, Separation Sunday follows the interconnected stories of several fictional characters: Craig (the narrator), Holly (short for Halleluiah), a sometimes addict, sometimes prostitute, sometimes born again Christian or Catholic (and sometimes all three simultaneously); Charlemagne, a pimp; and Gideon, a skinhead, as they travel from city to city and party to party.[1]
Separation Sunday is lyrically dense, full of Biblical allusions,[2] self-reference[3] word play, and puns.[4] Vocalist/songwriter Craig Finn typically delivers these lyrics in a distinct flavor of sprechgesang.
Musically, Separation Sunday touches on elements of Classic rock: guitar solos, riff-based structures, use of piano and organ, and guitar harmony. Structurally, however, most songs eschew the standard verse-chorus-verse song structure, frequently foregoing choruses or refrains altogether. In a review of the album, Blender described the Hold Steady as "sound[ing] like the best bar band in the world."[5]
The album cover was photographed at the corner of Maspeth Avenue and Conselyea Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.[6]
The song "Your Little Hoodrat Friend" was featured on the video game Tony Hawk's Project 8.
Aggregate scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 86/100[7] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [8] |
Blender | [9] |
Chicago Sun-Times | [10] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+[11] |
The Guardian | [12] |
NME | 8/10[13] |
Pitchfork | 8.7/10[14] |
Rolling Stone | [15] |
Uncut | [16] |
The Village Voice | A−[17] |
The album received an 8.7 on Pitchfork, and ranked at number eight on the 2005 Pazz & Jop critic's poll.[18] The album was named the number ten album of the year by Spin. Punknews.org ranked the album at number 18 on their list of the year's 20 best releases.[19]
All songs written by Craig Finn and Tad Kubler, except where noted.