MR FINN

REVIEW: Debut EP Love From, Mr Finn Writer: Joe Maranta

Left To Right: Finn Easson, Sasha Zarew, Luca Cotroneo, Aysha Swanson

The last week of rain has been nothing short of cataclysmic. Unable to dry her clothes properly, her clean garments lay damp and dormant, haphazardly piled on an antique chair yearning for the sun’s healing rays. A small setback in isolation, but to her it’s the final straw – the camel’s back now entirely broken.

Seeking solace in a month-old Gatorade bottle, she packs her stress into a cone piece and unwinds. Slumping back into her outdoor couch she exhales and focuses in on the beautiful webs weaved by her local Golden Orb spider. The slender arachnid thrives in damp conditions, the moist bark of her backyard’s Eucalyptus trees and the rapidly growing grass provides ample structure and shelter. It’s something of a perspective changer, if her humble eight-legged friend can continue to thrive in the midst of an anthropogenic hell, her temporary tribulations shouldn’t be inhibiting her from thriving just the same.

It seems as if the web she’s woven for her own life lacks solidity, perhaps it’s time to take a leaf from the Golden Orb and adapt to the uncomfortable environment she’s found herself in.

On their debut project Meanjin sweethearts Mr Finn present a triumphant display of neo-psychedelia buoyed by deeply personal songwriting. The quartet wield a heavy hand on this EP, hard-hitting riffs and emphatic percussion are a mainstay, with frontwoman Aysha’s euphonic vocal performances serving as the perfect foil for the band’s unabashed psych-rock. But enough previewing - let’s jump right in to Love From, Mr Finn. 

A gentle yet foreboding guitar riff welcomes listeners to the EP, it’s tranquillity akin to the uneasy feeling felt before a thunderstorm. A minute later and the first lightning crack strikes, a wave of percussion and electric guitar ensues - the quiet, loud, quiet, loud, dynamic reflecting Aysha’s tumultuous experience of unrequited love in a relationship. The opening track is thankfully indicative of what to expect on the next four tracks, with the band giving us no reprieve before launching into their finest effort, Lucid Lucy.

Distilling their sound to its heaviest form, so far anyways, the EP’s second track is pure psych-rock bliss. Thundering guitars and an ethereal refrain permeate the track, building an all encompassing atmosphere which is suddenly stripped away in favour of a drawn-out guitar section, providing listeners a chance to catch their breath.

The quartet fully embrace the fantastical side of psychedelic rock with their next track, Juniper On Jupiter. Jangly guitars, dynamic tempo changes and whimsical lyricism provide this song with a perfectly playful aura, a great change of pace from their first two tracks. Up next is the band’s first ever composition, Rainsticks, it’s their most popular song by far amassing close to 100,000 streams since its release. Its themes centre around the uncomfortable feelings of being stoned, a topic which is sure to resonate with many of the band’s listeners. The final lyrics before the track’s outro, 

Breathe in my lungs a tar of fire

Trapped in my bed a net of wire

perfectly recreate the regret and anxiety felt after that last cone you definitely shouldn’t have punched. Following the verse comes the aforementioned outro, a swirl of ringing guitars and irregularly paced percussion, reinforcing the track’s ethos and no doubt reminding stoners of the first time they greened out. 

Closing out the EP is Music to Follow Behind, the most personal work of the project. Speaking directly to it's themes, the track’s writer Aysha reflects,

“I wrote it as an expression of how hard it is to love someone who doesn’t know how to love. I’m trying to explain that ‘loving so hard’ and ‘loving so deeply’ can be so easy if you just allow yourself.” 

It’s a fitting end to the EP, the head-nodding psych-rock at the beginning of the project eventually gives way to a sombre, almost ballad-like finale. Though still possessing a full-bodied sound, the bittersweet emotions that lay the foundations for the song are wholly transparent. 

Love From, Mr Finn is nothing short of an astounding first EP. The heights that the quartet reached for, were audacious, but despite their lack of experience they stuck the landing. It would be an admirable effort for a band in their 10th year together, let alone a band who are still in their infancy. This may be the start of something truly special for Mr Finn.

MR FINN | INSTAGRAM | SPOTIFY | EP LAUNCH AT SEASON THREE