The Musical Box

It was an intriguing but intense few minutes when Liam Finn dug into Second Chance, one of the many fine pop delicacies from his debut solo album I’ll Be Lightning, in February on the Late Show with David Letterman.

First up was a fetching melody on acoustic guitar over which Finn’s airy and emotive vocals quietly sailed. Then Finn turned the guitar line into a computerized loop that played on by itself. Next, he tapped in a few guitar colors to embellish the groove. Those also bounced about in independent repetition.

With the delayed effects creating an orchestrated backdrop of sorts with help from vocalist/percussionist EJ Barnes, Finn moved over to the drums and bashed about like a child bent on making all the playful racket he could muster. Finally, without warning, the mix of live and delayed music stopped, Finn shot off the drum stool and the performance was over.

The effect of having a musical mood pieced together in almost piecemeal technological fashion and then halted with the immediacy of a light switch being turned off was rather dramatic. Even the tough-to-impress Letterman seemed momentarily stunned when Finn got to his feet.

“I’ve always played a lot of instruments and I’ve always dabbled with the loop pedal in the privacy of my own home,” said Finn, who performs tonight at The 930 Art Center in Louisville as part of a double bill with Oregon songsmith Laura Veirs. “So when I started doing live solo shows and trying my songs out, I knew how to utilize what I do on different instruments to make things more interesting than just a singer-songwriter kind of show.”

Such a singular performance sound backed by a solid sense of pop songcraft has given Finn a rich musical voice of his own. And when you’re a Finn, standing out among the family ranks, let alone a torrent of other new indie acts, is a tough task. After all, he is the son of Crowded House leader Neil Finn and the nephew of Split Enz founder, veteran solo artist and one time House-mate Tim Finn.

“I’ve tried hard not to use the family thing to get a leg up on anyone,” the younger Finn said. “But people are always going to ask about it.

“I mean, I love my dad’s music. I love my uncle’s music. I’m proud to be a Finn and would never be embarrassed by it or want to get away from it. But I’ve tried to make my music my first and foremost thing. And hopefully, that music speaks for itself.”

So far, it has and then some. I’ll Be Lightning has earned wildly enthusiastic critical praise since its release in late January and has kept Finn continually on the road for nearly a year.

As far back as last summer, Finn opened for, and served as an auxiliary member of, Crowded House. Then as recently as last month, he served as a warm-up act for Eddie Vedder’s first solo tour.

“That was amazing,” Finn said. “We got to play in some really beautiful theatres. I also got to play a few songs with Eddie himself each night, which was a real buzz. It was a luxurious little tour in the middle of all this little person touring.”

 Laura Viers and Liam Finn perform at 8 p.m. Friday at the 930 Art Center, 930 Mary St. in Louisville. Tikcets are $13. Call (502) 635-2554.