Craig Finn – Faith in the Future

Even if you have only a passing familiarity with the music of Craig Finn, the characters and settings that take root in his second solo album, Faith in the Future, won’t be unfamiliar to you. The women all seem to be at a crossroads, either shying away from the turmoil of their lives or wholeheartedly embracing it. Finn, as ever, is a mostly passive narrator; sometimes teaming up with, or fighting against, the secondary characters, but never straying far from his self-designated role as a fly-on-the-wall chronicler. The cities, whether they be New York (whose character looms larger on this than perhaps any record Finn has created to date), or the ghost of Minneapolis, operate as a blank stage for Finn’s character studies; they lend their twisty side streets and nightlife to the songs, while not dominating the overall scene.

“So, uh, this is just a typical Hold Steady record then?”, you might be thinking to yourself. And in some ways, you would be right. But, Faith in the Future, which eschews the meaty classic rock of Finn’s day job in favor of either acoustics or distinctly War on Drugs-esque layers of hazy riffing, is the most versatile Finn effort in years. Like his solo debut, 2012′s stellar Clear Heart, Full Eyes, Faith in the Future lets Finn’s engaging storytelling stand out. His narrative voice, which has been mostly obscured in the confusion of the two most recent Hold Steady records, has only grown in scope and power with age.

There’s Maggie in “Maggie, I’ve Been Searching For Our Son,” “Christine,” Sarah from “Sarah, Calling From a Hotel” and there’s “Sandra From Scranton.” All four of these characters feel like dots on the wall of a larger tale, whether they’re discussed in the form of a spare acoustic ballad or a late 80′s Springsteen-style rocker. These women are never objectified or mythologized, though; you can hear how their actions and thoughts affect Finn’s descriptions almost by the second. This Finn is a more sober one; still capable of dizzying wordplay, but committed to seeing the world through something other than beer goggles.

In a fascinating interview with Vulture that accompanied the stream of this record, Finn discussed how Faith’s atmosphere was informed by the death of his mother. And while there isn’t a truly devastating event within the record’s boundaries, one can sense that the album’s protagonists are at a low ebb in their lives, a point where no amount of booze or prescriptions can alleviate the crushing realities they face. So, even if Faith in the Future’s restless, introspective urban dwellers take you back to the days of Ybor City and being stuck between stations, just realize that, though his settings are the same, this is a different Craig Finn that you’re listening to. He might be a bit more wizened, but he’s just as tuned in to his surroundings, and just as enthralling.