Finn's Motel - Last Year's Leaves EP

 

I do like surprises. There is no better feeling than hearing an album out of the blue that just lights up your day. St Louis, Missouri's Finn's Motel were the biggest example of this last year. Fireworks Or Lightning was so ace that it made the IDHAS Best Albums Of 2022. You can read the review here.

This is the follow up EP and it is splendid. Four new songs and a cover of Tommy Keene's Baby Face and the latter was incredibly poignant to me. The two biggest hits that I felt personally were the deaths of both Tommy and Will Owsley and I'm not someone who gets emotional or generally hangs out with musicians.

Tommy was different. When we talked it wasn't really about his music, it was about Prog and Rock and our dogs, Coco his Labrador and Crash, my Lurcher. Musically, it wasn't all crashing Power Pop Riffs, Baby Face is a lovely moving song and lit up Places That Are Gone.

But here, the band offer a version that is even more moving with a wonderful closing piano piece from Scott Roever replacing the original jangle. It is heart melting and probably the least Power Pop song on an EP that is very Power Pop influenced.

Where as Fire Or Lightning was melodic Prog, Classic Rock and Glam influenced, Last Year's Leaves is very different, much more restrained, but just as melodic. That Makes Us Two Of Us could be a 90's Sitcom Theme song.

It's Not The Same (It's Better) starts off with a sort of Losing My Religion intro but heads into a territory somewhere between 70s Pop Rock and 60s West Coast Beat. Beautifully sung, there is an ace Jangle throughout and a catch all chorus.

Don't Read It jangles even more continuing the Power Pop vibe with a surprise diversion into a dreamy section then a retro chatty bit with an Ian Hunter Ballad Of Mott reference. It is as though the band are calling up all my musical heroes.

After All is a fine closer, more Americana than you'd expect, but still jangling and twanging. This EP is just as good as the previous album, but very different, more from the heart maybe. My only disappointment is that this isn't an album. I want more and more and more.

You can listen to and buy the EP here.

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