I Need a New War

He, producer Josh Kaufman, and the supporting musicians have added lovely flourishes along the way. This album luxuriates at times in languid, jazzy ambience, while female backing vocalists coo in response to Finn’s lead and brass coexists winningly with synths.

Regardless of the song or sentiment, Finn's skill for detail never wavers. In that, I Need A New War ranks among his best.

He’s gone as far as he can go, done all he can. He’s lost in a bursting world of endless storefronts, in an America he no longer recognizes. He hasn’t a clue what he needs, only that he needs it. Songs as easy to imbibe to as to heave a sigh to, these are fogged, fading portraits for the ages. We all need a new war.

What these songs capture is the darkness of life, of America, of the cities and surroundings inhabited by the characters in the songs, of the systems in place that lead to the richest country in the world being home to some if its most broken, desperate people.

There’s not necessarily any closure here as Finn brings his trilogy to an end, but there is a sense of completion. After examining these characters in different lights, from various angles, it’s as if he has done what he can to make their stories resonate. Whatever he decides to do next will indeed be the start of a whole new war.