Album Review: Craig Finn- I Need a New War

The National’s I Am Easy to Find is a tiresome slog.  I understand why fans insist there’s plenty to admire about the overbearing project, but I’ll turn to the latest release by Craig Finn if I’m inclined to listen to a new collection of sad sack songs by an aging rocker.  The Hold Steady’s front man sounds as drunk and exhausted as ever on I Need a New War.  With the glory days of the Hold Steady in his rearview mirror, Finn confronts the predicaments of middle aged Midwesterners struggling to keep it together on his grim solo album.  More direct and less bloated than I Am Easy to Find, I Need a New War hits uncomfortably close to home.  I need to keep away from sharp objects as I listen to depressive songs like “Grant at Galena”.


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I selected the top ten concerts of the summer for The Kansas City Star.

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I write weekly concert previews for The Kansas City Star.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)