Finnian has become a prominent rising star in the Irish music scene, following the success of his debut album Under The Influence he toured extensively as support with fellow Dundalk native David Keenan.
His latest song, “Without You,” is a Celtic/Americana confection that scratches an itch you didn’t know you had. Amidst weeping pedal steel and Zoe Conway’s mournful fiddle, Finnian spins a tale of loneliness that spans continents and time. Finnian co-wrote the song with award-winning songwriter Ciaran Lavery.
“The song was written within two hours. What began as a songwriting exercise turned into something else altogether. It is heartache skewed and warped through the eyes of the antagonist, or one who feels hard done by,” explains Lavery.
Finnian is also a member of the group Ceithre Cinn alongside Suzanne Savage, Matt McGinn and Ciaran Lavery.
Who are some of your musical influences?
Of modern times…it’s eclectic: Dan Auerbach (Black Keys), Marcus King, Declan O’Rourke, Michael Kiwanuka, The Olllam. I adore Black Soul music from the 60’s/70’s: Sam Cook, Aretha Franklin, Bill Withers, Sam and Dave, Marvin Gaye, Dusty Springfield, Curtis Mayfield — anything from the beautiful Atlantic Records/Muscle Shoals era that has gorgeous production, musicianship and iconic vocalists. I love Springsteen, Dylan, Steely Dan, Willie Nelson, James Taylor, Neil Young and too many more to mention.
Name a perfect song and tell us why you feel that way.
Ohhh this is so hard…There are so many songs that I love just for the way that song makes me feel and want to sing along or learn it on guitar.
There are songs that I appreciate and respect so much for ticking so many boxes in how the song is written, produced, performed etc. If I pick just one of a possible dozen I would say Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” for as I mentioned earlier, in my opinion – perfect and real production, powerhouse vocals and exquisite musicianship. It’s simple but powerful message delivered with unmatchable soul! And it’s hooky as Hooky can be. But as I said, I have a dozen or so more….
Do you have any songwriting tips you can share?
Listen to lots of different types of music, keep your ears and mind open.
Read lots of books. Play as much as possible, write as much as possible. Get enough sleep (this is my motto for life!) If you’re in a rut, pick a theme, could be just a word or subject matter, give yourself a deadline and write about it or let it take you to where it takes you for better or for worse.
Do you start off with the music or lyrics first? Why?
Usually I noodle on guitar first and just have fun and maybe a vocal melody or a word/idea might come along and I will build on it from there and spend some time on the structure and chords of the song after I have established the key. Of late, I scrutinize the lyrics a lot more than I used to. I get borderline pedantic about it. Sometimes I pick a key, write out all the possible chords and sequences and write the vocal melody and lyrics over that. The best songs are the ones that “feel” right when you sing ’em.
What’s the first concert you ever attended? What do you remember about it?
This is a whopper: Pearl Jam in the Point Depo in Dublin. I was 12, my older brother Conal brought me. It was a game changer. So many visceral experiences for my young mind in one sitting. I’m very grateful to him!
Very nice great voice. Weren’t you lucky to have a nice older brother like conal
Thanks for writing! I’ll make sure Finnian sees this. 🙂