Craig Finn

Clear Heart Full Eyes

Written by: PP on 22/06/2012 06:14:04

No one tells a story better than Craig Finn of The Hold Steady, so naturally his first ever solo effort during a five month break from his main band is worthy of interest to your readers. After all, The Hold Steady are one of the most critically acclaimed bands of our time, having consistently released near-perfect records that build instrumentation around Finn's unparalleled storytelling ability into songs and arrangements that just hit home with people. The immense depth and literary approach to the lyrics is what has always made The Hold Steady brilliant (alongside Franz Nicolay's subdued keyboards, of course, even though he has since then departed the band), so what about Craig Finn solo without the rest of his crew, how does that sound like?

Well, basically like The Hold Steady, given his campfire-esque, grandpa telling of his pre-war experiences type of voice is one of the most unusual ones in the industry. Instrumentally, however, the solo project allows Craig Finn to explore softer and more unusual sound themes than with his main band. Even though "When No One's Watching" is quintessential The Hold Steady, there are more country oriented songs as well as standard singer-songwriter material, too. Finn himself plays only the guitar and sings, and he has assembled quite a crew behind him to perform drums, percussion, upright bass, organ, pedal steel, piano, keyboards, and fiddle during various sections of the album. While these are interesting additions to his voice, you really can't get around the fact that it is Finn's stories and lyrical prowess that are the centerpiece of "Clear Heart Full Eyes". Remember "One For The Cutters" from "Stay Positive"? The impervious storyline that required more than a few hours to interpret like a literary masterpiece because of the parts that were left for the listener to fill in the blanks? "Jackson" here is a song that rivals that classic Hold Steady track in terms of a storyline. And I quote:

"Now why you asking about Jackson? It was a long time ago and nothing really happened. Someone said he ended up in Denver. Someone said he went to Kansas City. Someone said he went off the deep end. Some said he was living there already. One day Jackson just didn't show up to the party

It's passages like these that have people heralding Craig Finn as one of the greatest lyricists of our time, not necessarily because they are intellectually driven or contain sociopolitical criticism, but because they are like reading a work of literary art, with multiple plotlines interjecting one another in a way that allows the listener to really use their imagination about what really happened. Of course, the aforementioned quote is but a little part of the song, but it's a key section where the listener really is put on his toes for the first time.

But aside from a couple of gems here, we've heard Craig Finn sound a lot better with The Hold Steady on "Heaven Is Whenever", "Stay Positive", and the seminal albums that preceded these two. The truth is that the second half of his solo album is awfully weak, and though his lyricism leaves a lasting mark on its listener, it's a little too...experimental this time around to appeal to this scribe. Even so, "Jackson" is such a beautiful track that it alone makes this record worth purchasing. In any case, "Clear Heart Full Eyes" is a nice refresh that Finn still exists, and a nice teaser while we wait for the next Hold Steady masterpiece to land.

Download: Jackson, When No One's Watching
For the fans of: The Hold Steady
Listen: Facebook

Release date 24.01.2012
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