Finneas O’Connell, better known by his stage name Finneas, dropped his EP Blood Harmony on October 4, which is his official entrance to the world as a solo singer. With the Blood Harmony tour following the release, Finneas has taken some rein over his career.
Anyone who has heard of the pop sensation Billie Eilish knows that her older brother has been there by her side since day one, co-writing most of her music and often performing backup vocals for her. Now Finneas has written and produced a mini-album of his own, creating his own path for success.
The EP title, Blood Harmony, refers to what it sounds like when siblings sing together. Finneas stated in a Genius interview, “I would love for this title to remain ambiguous to listeners and for everyone to be able to imbue it with their own meaning and justification.” Blood Harmony, consisting of 7 songs ranging from pop-rock to ballads, takes listeners on a journey over a range of genres, experiences, and feelings of a relationship which creates a unified body of work.
The sixth track, “Let’s Fall in Love for the Night” provides a dreamy and poppy vibe to the mini-album. Starting off with a vintage feel, it quickly leads into a steady tempo. The track resembles a love letter with the singer falling in love and asking their lover to give them a chance. Having such an endearing sound, it almost makes the listener want to fall in love too. The track ends with Finneas laughing, helping unify the wholesome, sweet aspect of the song.
The third song, “Lost my Mind” is a cover of a song Finneas wrote for Alice Kristiansen back in 2017. The track gives off a more dark and eerie aura, mixing the genres of pop and soft rock ballad. Lines from the chorus like, “Am I in your head, Half as often as you’re on my mind? If I don’t make sense, please, forgive me, I can’t sleep at night, At least, not alone,” leave the listener with an image in their head of someone they, perhaps, can’t get out of their head. With the feeling of hopelessness around the track, the raw emotion, vocals, and song composition somewhat differing itself from some of the EP.
The last track “Die Alone” is a hard-hitting piece and one of the longer songs of the EP. Finneas explains in an interview the meaning of the song as a whole, relating it back to coming of age and love. The listener can hear this song and think about someone who they won’t lose hope on and won’t let go despite the circumstances. “Die Alone” is a track with strong vocals, piano accompaniment, and harmonies that overall give the listener a sense of comfort and security despite the lyrics being quite melancholy.
While it was refreshing to get a taste of what Finneas would be like as a full-time soloist, he has stated that he prefers touring and producing with Billie rather than his solo career. Though he will be busy helping Billie as her superstardom is sky-rocketing, we can hope to expect great music from him in the future.
