Pitchfork

The Hold Steady aren't bashful about their love of Minnesota Twins baseball; this reporter has personally witnessed at least a couple boozy soliloquies from Mr. Craig Finn pitching woo towards his treasured Twinkies. (As have most people who have seen the band live, probably.)

But one suspects no one in the Hold Steady organization ever expected they'd have a night at the ballpark quite as massive as Monday's, when the boys' punchdrunk pre-recorded riff on "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" thundered through speakers at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. That's some Little Big League shit right there.

According to MTV.com, the band apparently has a fan in Twins musical director Kevin Dutcher, who, having already pegged "Massive Nights" for last night's Twins home opener, implored Finn and company to take on "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." In typical nonchalant, dude-ish fashion, he agreed, telling MTV, "the Hold Steady, we're all sort of sports guys... we're more likely to be drinking beer and eating wings and watching baseball rather than collecting some obscure 7-inch." Bro's got your number, Meloy.

Finn also told MTV, "I think a lot of the players choose their own music, and generally speaking, baseball players don't have the coolest music taste. I think your ability to hit a baseball takes away from your ability to like good music." Oooh, diss!

You can watch Finn-- King of Beers in hand, per usual-- moan his way through "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" via MTV (see link below).

In other Hold Steady news, they're touring, unplugging, doing a Springsteen tribute show, and probably down for some more tallboys.

Hold Steady dates:

04-05 New York, NY - Carnegie Hall (Bruce Springsteen tribute show)
04-13 Rotterdam, Netherlands - Motel Mazaique Festival
04-14 Berlin, Germany - Knaack
04-15 Cologne, Germany - Gebaude 9
04-18 Barcelona, Spain - Razzmatazz 3
04-19 Madrid, Spain - Moby Dick
05-12 Harrisburg, PA - Abbey Bar at Appalachian Brewing Co.
05-13 Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom
05-14 Newport, KY - Southgate House
05-15 Detroit, MI - Magic Stick
05-16 Grand Rapids, MI - Intersection
05-17 Milwaukee, WI - Miramar
05-18 Madison, WI - Orpheum Stage Door
05-20 Omaha, NE - Sokol Underground
05-22 Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre
05-23 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
05-24 Boise, ID - Neurolux
05-26 George, WA - The Gorge (Sasquatch! Festival)
05-28 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
05-30 San Francisco, CA - Slim's
05-31 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre
06-02 Phoenix, AZ - Brick House
06-16 Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo Festival