NEIL FINN OUT OF SILENCE

Recorded during a single threehour session live-streamed on the internet, Finn’s fourth solo album is another departure: a sophisticated blend of strings, horn and intricate vocal arrangements I’ve had it in my head for many years to do an album in this manner. My interest in live streaming began long ago, I really enjoy the medium and I’ve done quite a bit of it over the years. I love the idea of not being curated, that there are no gatekeepers. Romantically, I thought it would be great to record it in one session, then have it out the next morning. Turns out you can’t do that! You need a week, even for a digital format, but we’ve still pushed the envelope. The music for six of the songs on the record was written during this big elongated piano jam one night. They were all indicative of a certain type of record – one that wasn’t pop, that wasn’t guitarbased, and that might feature piano, horns and orchestral elements. They all seemed to suggest big vocal arrangements as well. I thought it would be wonderful to work it up and then perform it all together. Rather than just a live album, or a stripped-back acoustic idea, I thought, ‘Why not try to make the most sophisticated record I’ve ever made in one go?’ It just seemed a more thrilling concept, something that was not compromising. The songs all have good traditional bones. I really worked on them, and I finished all my lyrics for a change before recording. I’m not sure I realised quite how intense it would be, a lot of sleep deprivation. I’ve got another record in the can that will be out early next year, that I made with my son Liam. I have an overabundance going on! Out Of Silence is out now