The Hold Steady have been around for nearly two decades and they’re far from finished releasing new music. Gearing up for the debut of their eighth studio album, Open Door Policy, the band shares the driving single “Heavy Covenant.”
“Heavy Covenant” is the second single shared of their Open Door Policy LP, following the raucous track “Family Farm.” Speaking about the new single in a statement, The Hold Steady’s vocalist Craig Finn says the song came together relatively seamlessly:
“‘Heavy Covenant’ is a song about travel, technology, and human connection. The song came out of two different music pieces that The Hold Steady piano/keyboardist Franz Nicolay brought in, and with the help of producer Josh Kaufman, we combined them. It came together quickly, and when our friends Stuart and Jordan came in and added the horns to the chorus it really seemed to bring it together. To us, this song is a great indication of where the band’s sound is at in 2021.”
About their Open Door Policy album as a whole, Finn said: “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. 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.”
Listen to The Hold Steady’s “Heavy Covenant” above and check out their Open Door Policy album cover and tracklist below.
1. “The Feelers”
2. “Spices”
3. “Lanyards”
4. “Family Farm”
5. “Unpleasant Breakfast”
6. “Heavy Covenant”
7. “The Prior Procedure”
8. “Riptown”
9. “Me & Magdalena”
10. “Hanover Camera”
11. “Parade Days”
Open Door Policy is out 2/19 via Positive Jams/Thirty Tigers. Pre-order it here.