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Major General

Franz Nicolay

Major General

The Hold Steady keyboard player's solo debut of indie rock

ADM rating[?]

5.4

Label
Décor
UK Release date
29/07/2009
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  1. 8.0 |   Uncut

    Few side projects have as much character as the witty and full-hearted Major General – Nicolay sounds like he’s been itching to bust out on his own for a while
    Read Review

  2. 7.3 |   Pitchfork

    If the old adage is true and the first LP really is a lifetime of ideas on wax, Nicolay's laid out an awful lot here. Let's just hope he doesn't feel compelled to say quite so much if he ever gets around to making another one
    Read Review

  3. 6.0 |   PopMatters

    In the end, the album has more good than bad, and is worth a listen for curious Hold Steady fans. Nicolay has clearly picked up some lyric-writing tricks from Craig Finn, because the lyrics here are great when he hits his mark
    Read Review

  4. 6.0 |   Q

    Print edition only

  5. 4.0 |   Mojo

    Print edition only

  6. 4.0 |   The Independent

    The album relies mainly on brash rockers in E Street Band/Hold Steady style, interspersed with subtler treatments such as the jazz-guitar arrangement of ""Do We Not Live in Dreams?""
    Read Review

  7. 4.0 |   Spin

    Franz Nicolay has the best mustache in the Hold Steady, but his songwriting is in desperate need of similar creative twists
    Read Review

  8. Back to main chart

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Preview & download it

Franz Nicolay: Major General

  • Download full album for just £8.49
  • 1. Jeff Penalty (feat. Demander) £0.99
  • 2. Hey Dad! £0.99
  • 3. World / Inferno vs. the End of the Evening £0.99
  • 4. Dead Sailors £0.99
  • 5. Do We Not Live in Dreams? £0.99
  • 6. Confessions of an Ineffective Casanova £0.99
  • 7. Quiet Where I Lie £0.99
  • 8. Note On a Subway Wall £0.99
  • 9. Nightratsong £0.99
  • 10. X-Games £0.99
  • 11. This World Is an Open Door £0.99
  • 12. Cease-Fire, or, Mrs. Norman Maine £0.99
  • 13. I'm Done Singing £0.99
  • 14. The Black Rose Paladins £0.99
  • 15. There Will Be Violins £0.99
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The sounds are slightly different here than on previous albums and his tentative sojourn into singing is a success because his voice connects as easily as his rapping does Albumism

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