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Craig Finn has released “Bethany,” from his eagerly awaited new solo album Always Been. “Bethany” is the album opener and second song released ahead of the LP, arriving via Tamarac Recordings/Thirty Tigers on Friday, April 4. A visualizer is streaming now on YouTube. The album is available digitally as well as on CD, standard vinyl, and limited-edition colored vinyl. Pre-orders and pre-saves are available now. Pre-orders also include an option for Lousy With Ghosts, a limited-edition 92-page companion book that features 11 works of fiction by Craig Finn. These stores take place in the same universe as the record, giving deeper looks at the characters within.
"This was the first song I wrote that brought me into the world of this album,” says Finn. “It’s the first song I showed producer Adam Granduciel when we talked about making a record. It’s the first song we recorded. It’s the first song on the album, which feels right spiritually. It introduces the record’s main character, a guy who became a clergy person without having actual faith, and the aftermath of his fall from grace. When we got the take of this song, I knew we were on track to make something really cool. Adam’s guitar solo still gives me chills.”
LISTEN TO “BETHANY”
WATCH THE “BETHANY” VISUALIZER
PRE-ORDER/PRE-SAVE ALWAYS BEEN
Produced by GRAMMY® Award-winner Adam Granduciel (The War On Drugs) at his studio in Burbank, CA and mixed by 3x GRAMMY® Award-winning engineer Jonathan Low (Taylor Swift, The National, Hurray For The Riff Raff), Always Been features musical performances by Granduciel and other members of The War on Drugs, as well as guest vocals by Kathleen Edwards and Sam Fender. Always Been marks the sixth LP in a solo discography that sits alongside Finn’s finest work as frontman and vocalist of The Hold Steady.
“I believe this to be the most narrative record I have made,” says Finn. “Most songs concern a protagonist who pursued a career as a clergyman despite a lack of faith. The record tells the story of his rise and fall and redemption, while also filling out the details of his travels and the world in which he lives. I am very proud of what we made, I hope you enjoy.”
Always Been was heralded last month with the album’s first single, “People Of Substance,” which Rolling Stone hailed as “vintage Finn in many ways, especially when it comes to the musician’s distinct vocal delivery and lyrics as he sings from the perspective of a flailing guy trying to make good, while also looking for excuses,” and noted that “the track bears the sprawling, shimmering sonic hallmarks of Always Been producer, Adam Granduciel of the War on Drugs (though not without a little bit of old punk grit).”
LISTEN TO “PEOPLE OF SUBSTANCE”
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