Liam Finn
Just to start with a personal note: I heard this fellow on a late night television show recently and to be honest I wasn’t impressed at first. The guitar licks were very basic and the vocals were so simple. Adding the female harmony certainly helped, however. The tune was “Second Chance” from I’ll Be Lightning (Liberation 2007). By the end of this simple offering I was rather hooked. “Gather To The Chapel,” from the same collection, is quite interesting, with a soft feel, reminiscent of Gilbert O’Sullivan from decades ago. But Finn is serious; something that I always felt O’Sullivan was not.
Then this New Zealander started pounding on the drums, exhibiting a level of energy that some may vaguely remember from their youth. This demonstration on national television was probably enough to draw in a few more listeners. In addition, the start to “Better To Be,” also from I’ll Be Lightning (Liberation 2007), invites the listener, as does “Lead Balloon.”
Finn is on the Liberation label in Australia and New Zealand, and on Yep Roc Records in the United States. He has a range of live dates set that will take him to Seattle and Portland in the northwest, as well as down the coast to San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Tags: independent music, indie, music, indie music, Liam Finn
