Joyously wordy bar-rock scavengers the Hold Steady haven’t released a proper album since 2014’s Teeth Dreams. They’ve been doing the thing where they celebrate album anniversaries by playing those albums in full. Frontman Craig Finn has been cranking out solo albums, and he recently announced another one, I Need A New War, set to come out this spring. Usually, these things might lead you to believe that the band is more or less on the inactive list. But that’s not the case with the Hold Steady. They’re still making new music, and they’re still putting it out in the world. It’s just that they’re doing it a song or two at a time.

For about a year and a half, the Hold Steady have regularly been jamming out double-sides singles and posting them on their Bandcamp. The last one was the one-two shot of “Confusion In The Marketplace” and “T-Shirt Tux,” which came out back in September. And now they’ve come out with a single song, a hard-strutting number called “The Last Time That She Talked To Me.”

The Hold Steady have never been a swagger-deficient band, but “The Last Time That She Talked To Me” has more swagger than most of their songs. It’s got a deep Southern groove, with some Stonesy horn action and some typically incisive and narrative-heavy Craig Finn lyrics. It’s a total jam, and you can hear it below.

The Last Time That She Talked To Me by The Hold Steady

You can buy “The Last Time That She Talked To Me” at Bandcamp.