Faith in the Future (album)

Background and recording

Regarding the differences between his solo material and his work with the rock-based band The Hold Steady, Craig Finn noted: "From the get-go, when I met with Josh Kaufman, we made this decision to do something more 'age appropriate' with the new album. Something that, as a 44-year old, seemed natural, and also hopefully more elegant and hopeful."

Working closely with Josh Kuafman, the pair recorded the album mostly as a duo: "Most of the album was just me and Josh. Just two of us, and sometimes Joe, so the arrangements are pretty sparse and unadorned. And that’s a lot easier than having to say to a band member 'OK, you’re not needed on this one!'"

Writing and composition

In a similar manner to Finn's previous work, the album includes narrative-based songs that focus upon several fictional characters: "I always like writing new characters – in fact I think four of the songs on the new record have people’s names in the title! – because it frees you up from doing something confessional."

Most of the songs focus upon female protagonists with Finn noting: "For a while, I was writing a lot of songs about two people, just trying to write about couples, and then I stopped talking about the guy as much. It wasn't super intentional, but I realized I had all these songs about girls with very specific girls' names. When writing, putting a name to someone helps me envision them. I remember hearing the Donovan song "There Is a Mountain" in college, where the bridge goes, 'Oh, Juanita.' I was like, 'Who is Juanita? Where did we get to her?' I love those moments in songs."

Regarding the track, "Sandra from Scranton", Finn noted: "That one focuses on people who are aging hippies, still caught up in some kind of hipster lifestyle and trying to hang on to their youth by doing the same things that they did in their twenties. There are a lot of those people around, but I have a different way of looking at life these days: My version of growing older is not getting depressed or being in denial about it, but instead it’s 'Hey, we’ve survived!'"

Track listing

All tracks written by Craig Finn.