Lifter Puller

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title: "Lifter Puller" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["indie-rock-musical-groups-from-minnesota", "musical-groups-established-in-1994", "musical-groups-disestablished-in-2000", "1994-establishments-in-minnesota", "frenchkiss-records-artists", "musical-groups-from-minneapolis", "musical-groups-from-the-twin-cities", "the-hold-steady"] description: "American indie rock band" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifter_Puller" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American indie rock band ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox musical artist"]

Field	Value
name	Lifter Puller
background	group_or_band
image	Lifter_Puller.jpg
origin	Minneapolis, United States
genre	Indie rock, post-punk
years_active	1994–2000, 2002, 2003, 2015, 2016
label	Skene, No Alternative, Threatening Letters, Frenchkiss Records, The Self-Starter Foundation
associated_acts	The Hold Steady
website	lftrpllr.com
current_members	Craig Finn
Steve Barone
Tad Kubler
Dan Monick
past_members	Tommy Roach
Dave Gerlach
::

| name = Lifter Puller | background = group_or_band | image = Lifter_Puller.jpg | caption = | origin = Minneapolis, United States | genre = Indie rock, post-punk | years_active = 1994–2000, 2002, 2003, 2015, 2016 | label = Skene, No Alternative, Threatening Letters, Frenchkiss Records, The Self-Starter Foundation | associated_acts = The Hold Steady | website = lftrpllr.com | current_members = Craig Finn Steve Barone Tad Kubler Dan Monick | past_members = Tommy Roach Dave Gerlach

Lifter Puller, or LFTR PLLR, was an American indie rock band from the Twin Cities and the Boston area between 1994 and 2000. Their music is considered innovative, with its angular riffs and a synth-infused sound that predated the 1980s revival trends of the early 2000s.

The band released three LPs and an EP before breaking up in the summer of 2000. In 2002, the compilation Soft Rock was released, featuring nearly every song in the Lifter Puller catalogue, excluding their final album, Fiestas and Fiascos, and the songs "Prescription Sunglasses", "Emperor", "Slips Backwards," and "Bitchy Christmas," as well as the original version of "Nassau Colisseum," the b-side to the "Slips Backwards" single.

After several years out of print, all of the original Lifter Puller records were re-issued digitally with bonus tracks in December 2009. These reissues were accompanied by a limited-edition book entitled Lifter Puller vs. The End of.

Singer/guitarist Craig Finn and bassist Tad Kubler are now members of The Hold Steady, which continues to explore some of the lyrical themes established by Lifter Puller while eschewing the art punk sound of the prior band in favor of a sound more akin to classic-rock revivalism.

In 2003, the band reunited for three sold out shows for the opening of the Triple Rock Social Club in their hometown of Minneapolis.

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Lifter_Puller_-_First_Avenue_Star.jpg" caption="accessdate=2020-05-10 }} Kubler and Finn's subsequent group The Hold Steady also has a star."] ::

The band reunited on July 4, 2015, in Minneapolis at the Triple Rock Social Club at Dillinger Four's annual "D4th of July" event for an eight-song set. On September 2, 2016, they reunited again to support Atmosphere at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado. On December 3, 2016, Lifter Puller opened for The Hold Steady at The Brooklyn Bowl on the final of a four-night series of shows commemorating the tenth anniversary of the album Boys and Girls In America.

Members

Final band line-up:

• Craig Finn — lead vocals, guitar
• Steve Barone — guitar, keyboards
• Dan Monick — drums
• Tad Kubler — bass guitar (1998–2000)

Past members:

• Tommy Roach — bass guitar (1994–1998)
• Dave Gerlach— drums (1994–1996)

Discography

Albums

• Lifter Puller — 1997
• Half Dead and Dynamite — 1997
• Fiestas and Fiascos — 2000

Singles

• "Prescription Sunglasses b/w Emperor" — 1995
• "Slips Backwards b/w Nassau Coliseum" — 1995
• "The Mezzanine Gyp b/w Star Wars Hips" — 1996
• "Bay City Rolling" — 2001
• "4-Dix" — 2001

EPs

• The Entertainment and Arts — 1998

Compilations

• Soft Rock — 2002
• Lifter Puller Vs. the End of — 2009

References

References

1. Michaelangelo Matos. (2002-10-01). "Nice Nice Guys Finish Last - Page 1 - Music - New York". Village Voice.
2. (2009-11-11). "Pre-Hold Steady Band Lifter Puller Remembered With Reissue Series, Book | News". Pitchfork.
3. . ["The Stars"](http://first-avenue.com/about/thestars).
4. Bream, Jon. (2019-05-03). "10 things you'll learn about First Avenue in new Minnesota History Center show". [[Star Tribune]].
5. Marsh, Steve. (2019-05-13). "First Avenue's Star Wall". Mpls.St.Paul Magazine.
6. (2001-12-16). "Discography". Lifter Puller.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::