“Oh, wow! Old school. Look at that. Shame Ninja didn’t spring for a gatefold.”
Fin Greenall, lead man of the three-piece better known as Fink, is looking over a vinyl copy of his 2000 debut, Fresh Produce, that I’ve pulled from my shelves at home and brought to our interview. Back then, Fink was a one-man operation, mining samples for smoker’s delight trip-hop tunes. Good stuff, too. Five years ago he swapped the decks for acoustic guitars, and in doing so, helped lead Ninja Tune’s deep dive into singer/songwriter territory.
Biscuits For Breakfast (2006), Distance And Time (2007) and Sort Of Revolution (2009) were “the middle bit.” Simple, lush acoustic records backed by everyman songwriting that cropped up on more than a few tastemaker best of lists. After Greenall co-wrote the John Legend mega-hit “Green Light”—which garnered the Brit two BMI songwriting awards—Legend returned the favor with two Revolution collaborations: “Move On Me” and “Maker.” Then, late last month, came Perfect Darkness. Changing up direction on everything from the songwriting and recording process to the cover art, Greenall has created a masterstroke of an album, tastefully embellished and sonically elevated with the help of producer Billy Bush (Garbage, Eric Avery). The title track may be the best tune Greenall has ever written, and “Yesterday Was Hard On All Of Us,” the latest single, isn’t far behind.
I caught up with Fin at LA’s famed Village Recording Studio—where he’s working on another hush hush collab—to talk about the long, strange trip leading up to the release of Perfect Darkness. And chicks. Gotta talk about chicks.
