The Hold Steady frontman Craig Finn has revealed the details of his fifth album A Legacy of Rentals, out May 20, along with first single “Messing With The Settings.”
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Recorded in May 2021, with longtime collaborators, producer Josh Kaufman and engineer D. James Goodwin, the ruminating “Messing With The Settings” is one piece of A Legacy of Rentals blending Finn’s poignant storytelling and song as he sings through the pensive chorus Somehow it feels like I’m riding a train I’m not on.
“Memory is a major theme through A Legacy of Rentals, and I wanted the first song on the record to open on that note,” said Finn on the song. “This song is literally a eulogy. It’s delivered by someone who has lost touch with the recently deceased but still finds them important. Musically, it really explores the line between talking and singing, which was something we leaned into on this record.”
Finn added, “We wanted to make this song an incantation of sorts. It also features the beautiful 14-piece string section that played on a lot of these songs. I wanted it to have a cinematic feel, like Gone With The Wind or something like that.”
Digging deeper into memory, The Legacy of Rentals lyrically crosses over different spaces, places, people, and events in life backed by expansive, orchestrated sound. The album features regular musical collaborators, including backing vocalists Cassandra Jenkins and Annie Nero, bassist Michael Libramento, drummer Joe Russo, and saxophonist Stuart Bogie, along with a 14-piece string section arranged and recorded by Trey Pollard at Spacebomb.
“The title A Legacy of Rentals acknowledges that we can never completely hold any of our possessions and that our bodies are merely a temporary residence for our souls,” said Finn, who also released a video trailer of the album, directed by David Kelling and Barbara Georges.
“All moments are fleeting,” added Finn. “After the destruction of the past few years, I believe that there is joy in each and every living action, however mundane—walking to the kitchen, missing a train, spilling coffee, cleaning it up, meeting a friend for a meal. We all want to be remembered. We all want our time here to be consequential. In taking these daily actions, we engage in hope, and we guarantee our unique place in history.”
A Legacy of Rentals track list:
1. Messing With The Settings
2. The Amarillo Kid
3. Birthdays
4. The Year We Fell Behind
5. Due To Depart
6. Curtis & Shepard
7. Never Any Horses
8. Jessamine
9. A Break From The Barrage
10. This Is What It Looks Like
Photo: D. James Goodwin
