Optimist

by FINNEAS

Overview

After quickly rising to fame as co-writer and producer for his sister Billie Eilish and winning big-category Grammys for his sleek, intimate approach to both disciplines, Finneas O'Connell makes his full-length solo debut with Optimist. It follows a second chart-topping Eilish album, Happier Than Ever, by three months. Taking its title from a reluctant line in the first track, Optimist is somewhat of a departure from the brooding, often suffocating tone of his kid sister's prior releases while at the same time indulging and repurposing his trademark sound. The most notable difference between the siblings is FINNEAS' warmer, more assertive vocal presence on an album that's immersed in the absurdities and anxieties of its time. Released about a year-and-a-half into an ongoing pandemic with lingering touring ramifications Stateside, it opens with lead single "A Concert Six Months from Now." Part lockdown fantasy and part un-breakup song, it looks forward to the possibility of both a show and a reconciliation in the distant-but-not-too-distant future. Beginning with strummed acoustic guitar, a flash of crowd noise, and melancholy, double-tracked octave vocals, it introduces distorted rock guitar and drums at the midway point, coinciding with lines like "I've been thinking too much/And it's ruined my nights" and "My heart doesn't slow down/When you kill the lights." The song closes on acoustic guitar, soft strings, and an invitation. The overcast-but-hopeful outlook continues on "The Kids Are All Dying," a song whose teasing tone, playful toy keyboard timbre, and stomping beat are offset by lyrics questioning the act of writing songs about sex, drugs, and rock & roll when the day's news -- and planet's future -- is so grim. Later, the slinky pop tune "The 90s" romanticizes a simpler time without smartphones. That song underscores lyrics about the heavy mental burden of worry with woozy, processed vocal effects. Contrasting these thoughtful Zoomer anthems are tuneful piano ballads like "Love Is Pain" and the heartrending (and again hopeful) "What They'll Say About Us," as well as catchier R&B-pop ("Happy Now") and the eerie, intimate electro-pop of "Around My Neck." While Optimist makes a good case for FINNEAS' skills around a pop melody and a perceptive viewpoint, he also drops the instrumental piano piece "Peaches Etude" in the middle of the track list. Accordingly, the album plays like a portfolio, perhaps fitting for a musician still sorting out and amplifying his potential. ~ Marcy Donelson

Product Details

Release Date:	10/15/2021
Label:	Interscope
UPC:	0602438501014
Rank:	29156

Tracks

1. A Concert Six Months from Now
2. The Kids Are All Dying
3. Happy Now?
4. Only a Lifetime
5. The '90s
6. Love Is Pain
7. Peaches Etude
8. Hurt Locker
9. Medieval
10. Someone Else's Star
11. Around My Neck
12. What They'll Say About Us
13. How It Ends

Album Credits

Performance Credits

FINNEAS   Primary Artist,Bass,Piano,Guitar,Vocals,Synthesizer,Sound Effects
Isaiah Gage   Cello
Yasmeen Al-Mazeedi   Violin

Technical Credits

Paul McCartney   Composer
John Lennon   Composer
Rob Kinelski   Mixing
David Kutch   Mastering Engineer
Aron Forbes   Mixing
Casey Cuayo   Mixing Assistant
Justin Gammella   Vocal Editing
Finneas O'Connell   Composer
FINNEAS   Producer,Drum Programming,Vocal Arrangement
Johan Lenox   Arranger
Eli Heisler   Mixing Assistant