Search - Tim Finn :: Feeding the Gods

'Gods' Shines

Eliot Wilder | Boston, MA USA | 10/02/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"It must gnaw at the elder Finn that younger bro Neil has accumulated accolades over the years while Tim's equally evocative but woefully underrated work has languished in near obscurity. Last year's low-key "Say It Is So" was both tasty and textured, but who knew it was ever released? Now the former member of Split Enz and Crowded House has teamed again with producer Jay Joyce and returned with "feeding the gods," an album whose central theme, Finn says, is about giving back to the world his gift of music. In a better time and place the world would be listening, because these 11 songs are imbued with an understanding of and a compassion for the human condition. They are also among the least-fussily arranged of Finn's curlicue career. "I just wanted to rein it in and be more simple with it this time," Tim says, and the relatively straightforward production on the new record allows his songwriting and affecting tenor to shine like a spring morning, especially on tunes like the otherworldly "Subway Dreaming" or the hard-charging "Say It Is So" or the impassioned "What You've Done." With not a duff track on it, "feeding the gods" is the work of a true classicist. Now if the gods would only feed his record sales."

Feeding the Gods Electric Guitar

Lee Armstrong | Winterville, NC United States | 01/11/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Tim Finn is one of my favorite artists. I gravitate toward the pop sound like the classic "Good Together" from his last "Say It Is So." This CD still combines some of those hooks, but thrashes a lot more with electric guitar. A throbbing keyboard opens "Songline." Tim's lyric originality remains strong, "You got a mind from the 18th century; you tried to prove the world is flat when you turned your back on me." "I'll Never Know" is representative of many of the song arrangements on the CD: a heavy wash of electric guitar with a great pop chorus. "Subway Dreaming" slows things down a bit with a softer sound and another hook-laden chorus. "Say It Is So" sounds a lot like U2 to me with the crunching guitars. More thundering guitars, hooks for the chorus, and a delightful bass that runs all over the place near the end mark "What You've Done." "Sawdust & Splinters" is slower, "Sawdust & splinters at your feet; nobody shall go home in defeat." "Dead Man" is interesting because it alternates from slow to fast and back again. I don't really have a clue about the lyric, "lemon tree is growning lemons again." "Commonplace" is more on the pop side, "It's banal but it's so lovely" Finn sings on the soft chorus punctuated by more guitar thunder. "Waiting for Your Moment" is a breathy wispy techno track I usually forget to listen to. "Party Was You" alternates between classic rock & arena rock. Another U2-like wash of electric guitar comes with "Incognito in California." This CD is less of a favorite for me than "Say It Is So" because it is more of a hard rock sound without the knockout melodies. Sometimes I compare Finn's work to Paul McCartney; and this could be like Paul's new "Driving Rain" in that regard. Tim Finn is an artist who always delivers some great new songs. Enjoy Gods!"

Picking up where Say It Is So left off

Earl Green | 01/01/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Tim Finn has become almost notorious for completely overhauling his sound between solo albums, so "Feeding The Gods" was a bit of a shock - this is, more or less, the same sound style he embraced with his previous album, "Say It Is So," teaming up with many of the same session players and producer Jay Joyce. The result is a collection with some fantastic tracks - the anguished, thrashing "Commonplace," the lovely "Waiting For Your Moment," the almost latter-day-Split-Enz-esque "Party Was You," and a song I can't stop listening to, "Subway Dreaming." If you thought Tim's lost his touch, get "Feeding The Gods" and think again."