Always Been (album)

Last updated
Always Been
Always Been by Craig Finn.webp
Studio album by
Craig Finn
ReleasedApril 4, 2025
Studio Boulevard Recording, Hollywood One Cue, Burbank
Length44:12
Label Tamarac Recordings and Thirty Tigers
Producer Adam Granduciel
Craig Finn chronology
A Legacy of Rentals
(2022)		Always Been
(2025)
Singles from Always Been
  1. "People of Substance"
    Released: January 24, 2025
  2. "Bethany"
    Released: February 28, 2025

Always Been is the sixth solo album by the American musician and the Hold Steady member Craig Finn, released on Tamarac Recordings and Thirty Tigers on April 4, 2025. [1] The album features the members of the War on Drugs backing Finn. [1]

Contents

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Mojo Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
MusicOMH Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [3]
New Noise Magazine Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [4]
PopMatters 6/10 [5]
Record Collector Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [6]
Spectrum Culture78/100% [7]

Writing for Mojo Magazine, Andrew Perry states that it "charts the fall and redemption of a clergyman lacking in faith, but such is the novelistic depth of Finn's fiction that there’s ample room for familiar blue-collar tropes (fiscal strife, domestic tension, drinking, upping sticks to start over), plus lashings of trademark Catholic guilt." [2] In a Paste Magazine review, Hayden Merrick wrote that the album "presents Finn’s most cohesive overarching story. Usually working with capsule standalone vignettes that connect thematically but not directly, he instead constructs an extended epic centered on an ex-reverend", noting that "What’s unique about Clayton compared to other Craig Finn-penned protagonists is that his protracted journey of self-improvement necessitates a rejection of the road", he concludes by saying that "Craig Finn gives us more hope than ever within Always Been's pages, but that hope only arrives after tragedy." [8]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Bethany"5:49
2."People of Substance"2:59
3."Crumbs"3:43
4."Luke & Leanna"3:30
5."The Man I've Always Been"4:07
6."Fletcher's"5:39
7."A Man Needs a Vacation"4:49
8."I Walk With a Cane"4:36
9."Clayton"3:55
10."Postcards"8:05
Total length:44:12

Charts

Weekly chart performance for Always Been
Chart (2025)Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC) [9] 38
UK Americana Albums (OCC) [10] 12
US Top Current Album Sales ( Billboard ) [11] 47

References

  1. 1 2 Sacher, Andrew. "Notable Releases of the Week (4/4)". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved 2026-01-30.
  2. 1 2 Perry, Andrew (May 2025). "Craig Finn – "Always Been"". Mojo .
  3. ↑ Murphy, John (2025-04-04). "Craig Finn - Always Been | Album Reviews". musicOMH. Retrieved 2026-01-30.
  4. ↑ Porter, John (April 4, 2025). "Album Review: Craig Finn - Always Been". New Noise Magazine. Retrieved 2026-01-30.
  5. ↑ Levine, Jeremy (2025-03-31). "Craig Finn's Narrative Songwriting Doesn't Achieve Liftoff » PopMatters". www.popmatters.com. Retrieved 2026-01-30.
  6. ↑ Harley, Kevin (2025-04-18). "Craig Finn: Always Been". Record Collector .
  7. ↑ Hohenstatt, Ben (2025-04-15). "Craig Finn: Always Been". Spectrum Culture. Retrieved 2026-01-30.
  8. ↑ Merrick, Hayden (April 3, 2025). "Craig Finn Ties it All Together on Always Been". Paste Magazine. Retrieved 2026-01-30.
  9. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart on 11/4/2025 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Official Americana Albums Chart on 11/4/2025 – Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Craig Finn Chart History (Top Current Album Sales)". Billboard . Retrieved January 30, 2026.
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