Neil Finn and Son Liam Get Dreamy on Lightsleeper

“Lightsleeper is the result of another crowded house at the Finn residence. The album principals, father Neil and son Liam, get the rest of the family involved – mother Sharon, son Elroy, nephew Harper – and also provide room and board to one of Neil’s new Fleetwood Mac bandmates, Mick Fleetwood.” A review for the album appears in The Washington Post.

“On the surface, Lightsleeper is closer to the Finn family’s foundational Split Enz era than to the more renowned Crowded House productions, with dreamy atmospheres, multi-section song structures and hazy shades of melody providing the framework, not tight pop songs with instantly memorable refrains,” Pablo Gorondi writes.

“Most of the tracks are father-and-son co-writes, but Neil wrote album opener ‘Prelude-Island of Peace’ with an uplifting, congenial choir, as a gift for Liam’s wedding.

“As with any music involving a Finn, the vocals are one of the main reasons for listening and the father-son combo more than meets expectations. Neil’s voice is still a tad sweeter but Liam’s phrasing is very similar and no less expressive and they complete each other fabulously.

“Ideal for late-night listening, Lightsleeper demonstrates that with talents such as these at hand, it makes sense to keep it all in the family.”

Neil Finn, 60, tours with Fleetwood Mac in North America beginning 3 October in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Original article by Pablo Gorondi, The Washington Post, August 23, 2018.

Photo by Inertia via AP.