Hold Steady frontman Craig Finn keeps it intimate and personal, debuting new FNL-inspired album at Frank →

This was a pretty under-the-radar show, for the first-ever performance of solo material by the guy from a still-popular indie rock band. (Also: Lot of hyphens in that sentence, huh?) Craig Finn did a warm-up set in advance of his solo tour behind his upcoming Clear Hearts Full Eyes at my favorite hot dog restaurant in Austin, because of course he did.

The show was pretty great, honestly — it’s usually both exciting and kinda weird to hear a set of all-new material for the first time, especially when it’s by someone whose other work you’re very familiar with, and my plaid shirt and thinning hair should confirm that I am very much in the Hold Steady’s demographic. Finn’s lyrics are usually more like short fiction, but the new stuff is largely personal essay, and it’s cool to hear how he adapts. Read the full review at CultureMap for early impressions on his new solo material.