craig finn – Vinyl Mag

Rundown Recap: Shaky Knees 2016

Posted on June 1, 2016May 31, 2016 by Chris Hunkele

It has long been known that spring officially begins in the South the weekend of The Masters tournament in Augusta. The ‘tradition unlike any other’ offers new beginnings with each dirt cheap pimento cheese sandwich and $3 domestic draught. However there’s a growing argument that spring doesn’t quite get rolling until Shaky Knees takes over whichever plot of Atlanta real estate its founders find suitable.

In four short years, this festival has risen to the top of the region’s music scene by offering up 3+ days of consistently solid lineups. Like most festivals, Shaky Knees offers full weekend passes, single day tickets and VIP treatment, but the biggest coup here is the late night sets at local clubs throughout the city. After each headliner finishes pouring it on at the Peachtree Stage, music spills over into some of Atlanta’s most happening spots including Terminal West, The Masquerade, Variety Playhouse, Center Stage, and The Earl. The late night sets allow further examination of a day’s new find or simply a chance for non festival-goers to see a huge act in an intimate setting. It’s the perfect ending to a sunny spring day.

Though in it’s fourth year, the festival has yet to find a permanent home and I can’t figure out why the festival keeps jumping around…Are the coordinators trying out every venue until they find one that sticks, or do they just keep getting kicked out for noise complaints? I know the Old Fourth Ward Park and Atlantic Station were too small, but I thought Central Park was a great host last year. The sports fields and parking lots provided plenty of room to spread out and shade trees were plentiful. This year’s installment was housed in Centennial Olympic Park and and on the lawn in front of the Georgia Dome. Atlanta’s Olympic memorial handled the large crowds well but didn’t provide much in the way of sun relief. Drinks were easy to get, restroom facilities were clean, and food options were great. I especially admired the incorporation of local restaurants into the various food courts. Food trucks were again front and center but one could also snag a BBQ sandwich from Fox Bros or a burger from the Grindhouse tent. Nice touch. I do wish festivals would take a page out of Augusta National’s book and stop charging $7 for a Dos Equis…but I digress.

Overall it was a well coordinated endeavor, aside from the pedestrian bridge over Marietta Street connecting the Peachtree, Ponce de Leon, and Buford Highway Stages to Boulevard and Piedmont in front of the Dome. At peak times the bridge became a log jam and forced 10-15 minute wait times to get to the other side of the park. Next time just pay whatever the city wants to shut down two blocks of traffic…

Now here’s a rundown of our favorite (and not so favorite) acts from this year’s fest:

The Front Bottoms

The hot afternoon sun didn’t stop the crowd from enthusiastically singing along to the catchy tunes of “Au Revoir (Adios)” and “The Beers.” With their earnest lyrics and witty banter in between each song, catching The Front Bottoms was like catching up with old friends over a few cold beers. – Camren Skelton

Craig Finn

Finn’s laid-back, confident style and thoughtful lyrics made for a performance that was more introspective than other acts of the weekend. Although taking in Finn as a solo act is different than hearing him with The Hold Steady, the performance is still just as captivating and intense. – Camren Skelton

Beach Slang

Although they were playing an early set, I was impressed at the large, engaged crowd these punky newcomers attracted. After taking requests from the crowd and making jokes throughout, Beach Slang put on an entertaining show that kept the crowd singing along until the very end. – Camren Skelton

Wolf Alice

Heading over to the main stages, I was able to catch British alt rockers Wolf Alice, and they did not disappoint. As people made their way into the gates, they trickled into the area around the stage, just as enthralled in the band’s folk/grunge/electronic elements as I was. Despite the hot Atlanta sun, the band brought a big crowd and put on a performance that was a favorite of the weekend. – Camren Skelton

Barns Courtney

The acoustic set Courtney delivered made for a performance that was unlike any other I saw throughout the weekend. Although he was standing on stage alone with his guitar, he filled the stage with a big sound and proved that he earned his spot on our Artists to Watch list. – Camren Skelton

Hop Along

This freak-folk/grunge-pop outfit from Philadelphia absolutely blew me away. Emotive vocals, angsty lyrics, and intricate guitar licks fuel their heavy pop sound. I love how lead singer Frances Quinlan’s voice perambulates the spectrum of screech-scream to delicate whisper through each song.

Catchy, painful, even epic at times. The soundtrack to your next breakup. – Chris Hunkele

Day Wave

If Weezer, Washed Out, and Real Estate were puréed in a blender, you’d end up with the smooth synth sounds of Day Wave.

Soundtrack to your next road trip. – Chris Hunkele

Baskery

Sirens, man…These Swedish sisters were everything of which Circe warned Odysseus. The self-proclaimed “banjo punks” commanded the stage with infectious, foot-stomping energy. It was impossible to look away as they flawlessly harmonized their way through the mid-afternoon Atlanta heat.

Your girlfriend’s favorite band, your new guilty pleasure. – Chris Hunkele

Silversun Pickups

Holy Crap! – who thought shoegaze could be so intense? The plan was to watch through “Lazy Eye” and head over to see Huey Lewis & the News, but an hour later I found myself trying to shake Brian and Nikki’s fuzzy guitar tones from my ears. I never expected a performance that good. – Chris Hunkele

The Decemberists

The unexpected dig of Silversun’s set made me late for The Decemberists, which honestly wasn’t a bad thing – ’twas damn near impossible to slide into melancholy after such an energetic performance. It was kind of a bummer as I was really looking forward to seeing the Portlanders for the first time, but my gut tells me they’re the kind of band that requires four walls to really lock you in. – Chris Hunkele

My Morning Jacket

I made my way over to the big stage (aka Peachtree) looking to get sucked into an epic Jim James performance, but all I saw were a lot of theatrics. I was hoping to hear something to make me fall in love with MMJ again, but the half a dozen or so songs I stuck around for only served as affirmation that my ears will never hear anything the way they first heard 2005’s Z. – Chris Hunkele

Murder By Death

The second night of Shaky wrapped up with a late night Murder By Death set that absolutely rocked. As tired as I was, it’s never hard to get in the mood to belt out “Lost River” or “I Came Around”. I Scooped up these tickets the day it was announced and am really glad I was able to power through to the 1am start time. – Chris Hunkele

Parquet Courts

These guys rip. Saw ’em at the 40 Watt last year and was curious to see how their sound would translate to the great outdoors. I definitely recommend seeing them in a club, but if all you have is a festival chance, get there early and try to move up front. – Chris Hunkele

Nothing

I was so looking forward to this I sat through their sound check. The heaviness of their new record was replicated on stage, but the vocals were…well…just bad honestly. Almost cringeworthy. Though they did do a pretty sick cover of Radiohead’s “Creep”. – Chris Hunkele

Deftones

Completely blown away by Chino and the boys. Any heaviness or on point vocals I was hoping to get from Nothing, I received tenfold from Deftones. If this year’s Shaky Knees was an episode of Supermarket Sweep, their set would’ve been the Farmer John golden wrapped hams. – Chris Hunkele

Shaky Knees 2016: Craig Finn X Vinyl Mag

Posted on May 17, 2016July 6, 2016 by Camren Skelton

If there’s one thing to learn from Craig Finn, it’s how to weave an intriguing story. While the Hold Steady frontman knows what it’s like to rev up an audience as a loud rock band, he appeals to the more mellow side of things as a solo artist. We sat down with Finn following his Friday set at Shaky Knees to talk inspiration, Purple Rain and the importance of telling a story through rock ‘n’ roll.

Vinyl Mag: So have you played Shaky Knees before?

Craig Finn: Yeah I played with Hold Steady in 2014, had a really good time then. I’ve never seen so many guitars at a festival, it kind of feels like nice as a rock ‘n’ roll band to feel like it’s a rock fest.

VM: Are you gonna check out any other sets while you’re here?

CF: Well, we have to get to Nashville tonight but we played at an after party last night and I saw Beach Slang, and we have a ton of friends here, so that’s been fun.

VM: So what was the transition like from going as a band with the Hold Steady to going into a solo career?

CF: You know there’s ups and downs to both, obviously you have the camaraderie with a band, a history, you have different side jokes and all that. But the cool thing is I write so much. The solo thing is able to work on my schedule a lot more. If I want to record two songs, I’m going to get who’s available to try and record with me, rather than try to make everything work for all, or get schedules with all different people. And also the solo thing allows me to play with different people, under the umbrella of the solo thing so that’s really rewarding and helpful. So there’s great parts to both, I just sort of like getting to flex two different muscles.

VM: So in the future do you see yourself branching out into a solo-only career or do you want to stay with the Hold Steady?

CF: Well we already have a couple shows with the Hold Steady in the fall, but we haven’t played in 18 months or so, so right now I’m concentrating on the solo thing. I’m trying to do, I think it will probably be a mix of everything. My first band Lifter Puller played a show last summer. So I feel like it’s just all the things I do. I’m hoping to do a different type of writing. So that’s kind of my idea of where it goes. But I think now that I have the solo thing there will always be the solo thing. It’s one of the reasons I wanted to do it, you can’t break up with yourself. Like my next record could be electronic, but it’s still Craig Finn. And then it’s like you’re still building a body of work.

VM: So do you think your audience as a solo artist is different than the Hold Steady? Or was there a lot of crossover?

CF: I think it’s quite honestly a lot of the same people. Hopefully you grow into, and some of the tours I’ve done in the last year have grown. I went out with Jason Isbell and Heartless Bastards and certainly met a lot of people at those shows. That’s always encouraging. But you’re also getting people who were at the Hold Steady. Hold Steady is a lot louder rocking band, so some people are disappointed they aren’t going to be able to throw beer in the air, but hopefully those people are also getting more mellow as I am, so hopefully it’s at least the Hold Steady people.

VM: It’s nice to have a good mix.

CF: Yeah, I mean I hope it will appeal to people of all ages. And we’ve done a lot more shows with the solo thing that are seated shows, which is kind of nice, a different energy, and hopefully it will appeal to a different group.

VM: Yeah, you get to play a lot of different types of venues I guess.

CF: Yeah, we did Lincoln Center in February and I did a lot of small theaters with Jason Isbell. Just kind of different. Again, it’s like flexing a muscle. Playing down south with Jason is a lot different than playing Chicago with the Hold Steady. Playing Bristol, Tennessee, that was a really small town in the south and no one knew who I was and that’s cool, that’s a challenge. You’ve got to be funny and you’ve got to try to charm them a little bit.

VM: So to someone who’s never heard your music before, how would you describe it?

CF: I would say it’s rock, with a focus on storytelling. Cause I think that’s one of the defining things that my songs are—stories.

VM: I like that. Do you pull inspiration from your own experiences?

CF: Yeah I do, I think we all do. I think novelists—I forget who said it, someone said “there’s one hero in every novel and that’s the author.” Gregory Dunn said that. But when I write, it’s myself but it’s also stories. And books. Like reading novels, cause I still just read, going on tour, traveling, walking around, looking in a house, and saying ‘what happens in there?’ Picking up a story, trying to entertain myself.

VM: So what has been your favorite venue to play at, in all the time you’ve been touring?

CF: So I’m from Minneapolis, and First Avenue is the club there, and it’s not only that it’s my hometown, but I think if you ask me, and most people would say that for a club this size, that and the 9:30 club in D.C. are probably the two best. But especially, First Avenue is where Purple Rain was filmed. And so there’s a lot of nostalgia, and it’s also my home town. But also I just think it’s the best club, and now that Prince has left us there’s a special nostalgia. I watched Purple Rain in 1984 when it came out, and then I watched it for the first time in full last week—it’s so good. I thought it was terrible when I was 13. But now I love it. I guess I’m in a sympathetic mood. It’s bizarre, but it’s entertaining,

VM: Yeah, seeing it from a new perspective of him not being here anymore.

CF: Yeah it’s very melodramatic. It’s not real feminist I have to admit. When they put the girl in the dumpster…

VM: Yeah it definitely has some bizarre moments. Well that’s about all I have for you, but is there anything else you want to share with Vinyl readers?

CF: No, I think we’re good. Just thanks for having me.

VM: Thanks for talking to us, and good luck on the rest of your tour.

Craig Finn (The Hold Steady) – “Maggie I’ve Been Searching For Our Son”

Posted on July 28, 2015July 27, 2015 by Kelsey Butterworth

The Midwest tends to churn out intensely earnest, emotive, self-searching musicians. From Guided By Voices to American Football to The Hold Steady, small towns that get flown over by big-time coast inhabitants end up being the most cinematic and the most worthy of our attention. The Hold Steady is probably the best at these narratives – down-and-out losers, drug addicts, sexual assault survivors, and kids just trying to get a leg up in life: every flatland dog has its day. Lead singer Craig Finn’s maximum nasal intonations and almost spoken word cadences strengthen the swell of pride and importance fans find around every downtrodden corner. So you can imagine that his solo work is utterly fantastic… you’d be right.

Lyrically, “Maggie I’ve Been Searching For Our Son” is almost indistinguishable from a THS track. Like a modern day Springsteen (more on the importance of this name check shortly), Finn’s central antihero has a baggage-filled past with Maggie, his love. He’s been from Arizona to Colorado looking for someone or something – keep in mind that Finn a) can be deceptively metaphorical, and b) is nearly incapable of writing a song that doesn’t allude to Christianity. Speaking of which, Finn’s Catholic guilt hangs over him throughout; trucks and false prophets abound in this nameless struggling town; and, eerily, Finn references the Aurora movie theater mass-shooting. But amidst the dreary darkness, the overwhelming hopelessness, hope does soar. In every Born In The U.S.A. chorus, every joyfully distorted guitar solo, every 2 and 4 downbeat. Though it may be just out of reach for now, it’s there. Can’t you feel it?

The song is being exclusively streamed on the Wall Street Journal of all places – listen here, but only over a pint at a local dive bar.