Craig Finn
Craig Finn
Craig Finnis an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is best known as the frontman of the American indie rock band The Hold Steady, with whom he has recorded six studio albums. Prior to forming The Hold Steady, Finn was the frontman of Lifter Puller. Described by Pitchfork as "a born storyteller who's chosen rock as his medium". During a five-month break from The Hold Steady, Finn recorded a solo album, Clear Heart Full Eyes, which was released in January...
song writing thinking
I don't really pursue writing songs for other people. I guess one of the things I always think about is a good line in a song should be something I can hear myself saying.
song writing people
I've tried to write songs for other people and it usually requires them singing it and then changing the phrasing. I can put a lot of words in a song, and one of the reasons is, I'm not that good of a singer, so I don't hold a lot of notes.
writing firsts different
One thing I have a tendency to do is not write choruses, or write choruses that have different words. The first chorus will have different words than the second chorus.
new-york fall writing
I really want to write a novel. A few years ago I went so far as to do the cliché thing and rent this house in upstate [New York]. I still have the story, but I got 15,000, 20,000 words in and it was like, This is falling apart. I can't figure out.
writing thinking people
My style of lyric-writing is very specific and has a lot of details, and I think people react most to that.
writing thinking littles
Sometimes things reveal themselves to you a little bit. I think it was Joan Didion that said, "We write to find out what we're thinking." And sometimes that happens.
memories writing firsts
Ironically, when I was playing in my first band, I would deliberately not write down any lyrics. I have a really good memory and I would just keep them in my head.
song writing tone
In the end, when you're writing a really good song, it strikes the right tone.
song writing thinking
I think you want to write a song that's like the songs you are into.
real writing hair
Springsteen on that record started writing less about having your wind in your hair and turning the radio up and more about being dragged down by adult things. Regular people trying to get ahead. A little less mythical and romantic, and more real. It's a really spectacular record for that reason.
allow band bring hold members music special steady understanding
We feel that Vagrant will allow us to bring our music to even more people, while also understanding the things that make the band special to The Hold Steady fans, and to the band members themselves.
girl band bars
I would never talk to a girl in a bar, like a pick-up thing. But I could talk to anyone if they wore a t-shirt of a band I like.
song coffee want
I'm able to draw outside my own personal experiences. No one wants to hear the song about what I really did today, which is go get coffee and clean my apartment.
ideas giving kind
Just looking into something kind of analytically can give a lot of ideas.