Boys And Girls In America
by The Hold Steady
  • Record Label: Vagrant
  • Release Date: Oct 3, 2006
User Score
8.4

Universal acclaim- based on 109 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 95 out of 109
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 109
  3. Negative: 6 out of 109

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  1. Giterdone
    Oct 25, 2006
    4
    music...nice licks and riffs = good lyrics....humorous, youthful, mischevious = good vocals....sounds like marshmellows shoved in this mouth = very bad
  2. shantie
    Nov 1, 2006
    6
    Probably should have given this a 7. I just don't get the hoopla. Good lyrics, but delivered by a voice that does very little for me. Wouldn't matter so much if I didn't feel the music at times is also (both the sound and the riffs) pretty bland. Maybe this review comes too early and I will see what people love about this record so much in weeks to come, but so far underwhelmed.
  3. EricW
    Oct 3, 2006
    6
    A fairly mundane bar-band sound, lead by a singer without much of anything notable to say. Probably highly reguarded due to critical guitar starvation, but if you're looking for a rock 'n' roll savior, this ain't it.
  4. KevinC
    Oct 4, 2006
    5
    Sounds like one of those dreadfully overdone Bruce Springsteen productions that glorify mundane lifelessness with no trace of a sense of humor.
  5. MikeG
    Nov 29, 2006
    6
    A solid effort, but it just doesn't hold a candle to the passion and the pathos of Separation Sunday. Finn doesn't sound as raw or passionate, the band doesn't sound as energetic or vital, and the entire affair just sounds like a great band trying to capitalize on a growing fan base. There are some good tracks here, but on the whole this is above average and not great.
  6. Marc
    Oct 13, 2006
    4
    Just not that good, frankly. The lyrics are the only interesting thing happening on the entire album. Otherwise, the music just repeats the same tired riffs you've heard over and over in rock music.

Awards & Rankings

16
#16 Best Album of 2006
38
#38 Most Discussed Album of 2006

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
85

Universal acclaim - based on 36 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 34 out of 36
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 36
  3. Negative: 1 out of 36
  1. Blender
    90
    [Finn] tells better stories than anyone else in music these days. [Oct 2006, p.131]
    Read full review
  2. Entertainment Weekly
    91
    On several tracks, the swirls of organ they've added to their hyper-literate stomping suggest Deep Purple with a library card. [6 Oct 2006, p.68]
  3. Los Angeles Times
    75
    Packed with forceful, nuanced songwriting that makes room for face-melting guitar riffery, lovelorn Midwestern teenagers and even, by Hold Steady standards, a bit of actual singing.
    Read full review
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