Fink | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Fin Greenall |
| Born | (1972-11-27)27 November 1972 (age 52)[citation needed] St Ives, Cornwall, England |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1993–present |
| Labels |
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| Members | Fin Greenall Tim Thornton Guy Whittaker |
| Website | finkworld |
Fin Greenall, known professionally asFink, is an English singer, songwriter, guitarist, producer and disc jockey born inCornwall and currently based inBerlin and London. From 1997 to 2003, he focused on electronic music and DJ'd internationally, releasing in 2000 his debut albumFresh Produce onNinja Tune. Since the 2006 release of his albumBiscuits for Breakfast, the name Fink has also referred to the recording and touring trio fronted by Greenall himself, completed by Guy Whittaker (estranged son ofRoger Whittaker - bass) andTim Thornton (drums).
Most recently, he has written in collaboration withJohn Legend,Banks,Ximena Sarinana andProfessor Green. WithAmy Winehouse, he co-wrote the song "Half Time", which appears on Winehouse's posthumous collectionLioness: Hidden Treasures. In 2012, Fink collaborated and performed with theRoyal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam, resulting in the live albumFink Meets The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. Fink's recent albums have been released on his own label, R'COUP'D Records, once a subsidiary ofNinja Tune and now independent.
Greenall was born 1972 inCornwall and grew up inBristol. Greenall recalls "the one thing of his dad's that he wasn't allowed to touch was the old Martin acoustic guitar." Greenall said, "It was his one possession where he said, 'everything in this house is owned by everybody – apart from that.'"[2] Their presence influenced his future in music. "The great thing about growing up in a house where music is a big factor... was the fact that music being part of your life was a perfectly natural thing." During his teenage years, he accumulated eclectic musical interests, gravitating towardsThe Cure,The Smiths, The Orb, African music, and Japanese hardcore, before discovering electronic and dance music atUniversity of Leeds.
He earned his degree in History and English at University of Leeds and, with student friends, formed the short-lived dance act EVA, who signed to Kikin' Records in 1993.[3] For the remainder of the 1990s and much of the early 2000s, Greenall worked in the music industry for various London-based labels, includingVirgin's Source,Def Jam, andSony. Simultaneously, he pursued a musical career, remixing and producing for various artists, includingRyuichi Sakamoto andElbow but also as a DJ.[4]
Fink's serious recording career began withNinja Tune subsidiary N-Tone's release of his debut single "Fink Funk" in 1997,[5] followed by the albumFresh Produce in 2000, which was well received. In the following years, he continued to produce other artists, includingMartin Taylor,Michael Pitt andRobert Belfour.
Towards the mid-2000s, Greenall developed a disillusionment with dance music and being a DJ and began to turn to more traditional musical avenues. It was this feeling which resulted in 2006'sBiscuits for Breakfast, the first album to feature current collaborators Guy Whittaker andTim Thornton, with whom Greenall had been friends for a few years but had not yet worked. Built around his bluesy voice, finger-picking acoustic guitar and the stripped-back live rhythm section, the self-producedBiscuits boasted a fledgling pop sensibility while retaining some of the signature Ninja Tune sonic hallmarks. He became the label's first singer/songwriter.[4] The album, along with single "Pretty Little Thing", helped define his style and began to bring his name to a wider, and higher-profile, audience, notablyZero 7, who invited Fink to support them on their UK tour.
During the extensive European and American tours which accompaniedBiscuits, Greenall began to write songs for the follow-up album. For this, he collaborated both with his bandmates and third parties, teaming up withBlair MacKichan for the writing of the "This is the Thing", and producer Andy Barlow ofLamb. The eventual album,Distance and Time, was released through Ninja Tune in October 2007, and was immediately recognised as a more robust, band-led affair than its predecessor, withmusicOMH stating that "the soft-spoken confessionals of their debut are more accomplished this time, taken to the big city and returned home just as wounded, but more worldly-unwise than their little brothers."[6] The tour followingDistance's release took Fink to new territories such as Germany, South Africa and Canada, and also saw the band supporting Italian rock bandNegramaro at their climacticSan Siro stadium show inMilan.
One ofDistance and Time's tracks "If Only" attracted the attention of American singer-songwriterJohn Legend, with whom Greenall collaborated on tracks for his albumEvolver. The hit single "Green Light", featuringAndré 3000, won aBMI Award for Greenall in 2010.[7] Legend reciprocated by collaborating on songs for Fink's 2009 albumSort of Revolution. Greenall decided to return to production duties for this set, resulting in a more experimental approach that theBBC's Keira Burgess described as a "sublime study in the art of pleasing yourself without drowning in indulgence".[8]Radiohead became a fan of Fink's work at this time, posting the song "Q&A" on their website playlist.[9]BBC Radio One DJGilles Peterson, who commissioned a live session for his late-night show, recorded at the BBC'sMaida Vale Studios.[10]
Sort of Revolution's accompanying tour was more extensive than previous outings, taking the band to China and Australia for the first time. In the latter country, Fink headlined a three-night stand at theSydney Festival.[11] It was during this trip that Greenall metProfessor Green, and the pair decided on a collaboration for Green's upcoming debut album, 2010'sAlive Till I'm Dead. The track, "Closing The Door", features a rap from Green, a sung vocal from Greenall and instrumental backing from Thornton and Whittaker. The experience led Green to request a further partnership, this time for his 2011 releaseAt Your Inconvenience, another full-band collaboration on "Spinning Out", a reworking of ThePixies 1987 classic "Where Is My Mind".
On the American trip for theRevolution album, Fink was invited to perform at a tribute concert forR.E.M. at New York City'sCarnegie Hall. Greenall performed a solo rendition of "The Apologist" from the band's 1998 albumUp.[12]
Songwriting sessions for Fink's fifth full-length album began in early 2010. For this album, Greenall's process was very different. Greenall recounted in an interview that "after all the live shows and all the fun we'd had on stage, we jammed first as a band. No vocals, just these massive soundscapes. We did about 30 of them. Then a couple of weeks later, go through them, pick the best bits. "Perfect Darkness", the song, was one riff, one bass line and one moment of a 20-minute jam."[13] The band travelled to Los Angeles to record the subsequent album with producerBilly Bush.
On 27 March 2011, the track "Perfect Darkness" was made available for free download via the band's website, followed by the album release on 13 June. The critical reception the album received was positive, withThe Guardian's Caroline Sullivan describing it as a "delight... achieves such loveliness you don't want it to end",[14] and theBBC's Ian Wade calling the set "a writhing, surprisingly meaty addition to the over-crowded singer-songwriter genre."[15]
To support the album, the band took the decision to enlarge their stage show considerably, not with additional musicians but with a visual production, designed by 59 Productions, famed for working withJónsi and on the stage showWar Horse. Says Greenall: "They’ve been part of the album big time since the moment we started to write it because we knew that they would be involved with the stage show. They've custom engineered the show that doesn’t overpower the music but just kind of embraces you and it emphasises some of the atmospherics in the music."[16] The live show involved a frame to which 48Anglepoise lamps were screwed, and eight gauze visual screens. The subsequent tour took Fink on 49 dates in fourteen countries throughout autumn 2011, including London'sUnion Chapel, whereThe Times' David Sinclair found the show "a perfect storm of profound, brooding emotion."
In 2012, Fink featured alongsideProfessor Green on "Read All About It, Pt. II", a new version of Green's hit single "Read All About It" featuringEmeli Sandé. The song was recorded forQ magazine. In November 2012, Fink played their largest UK headline show to date, at London'sShepherd's Bush Empire.
In October 2011 Fink were approached by theRoyal Concertgebouw Orchestra of theNetherlands, and Dutch classical music charity Entree, to perform with the orchestra on the traditional Queen's night concert the following year. The concert took place on 29 April 2012 at theConcertgebouw in Amsterdam, and featured classical pieces chosen by the band, along with exclusive arrangements of 6 songs from across Fink's catalogue, scored by Jules Buckley of theHeritage Orchestra. Also performed was Buckley's arrangement ofHenry Purcell's "What Power Art Thou", sung by Greenall. Claudia Cuypers ofOOR stated that "the orchestra gives [Fink's] songs a new, unexpected power and lightness... in this hall his songs become complete, even though you'd thought they already were."[17]
The orchestra commissioned a specialiPad application for the event, on which worldwide viewers could stream audio and video footage of the concert live, in real time: the first time such an application has been used for this purpose in the Netherlands.
On 14 October 2013, a live album of the concert was released throughNinja, entitledFink Meets The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.
On 19 March 2014, Fink released the first song from their new album, "Hard Believer". The song was made available for free download from the band's website, and streaming onSoundCloud.[18] A week later, Fink confirmed that a new album entitledHard Believer would be released in summer 2014.
Hard Believer was released on 14 July 2014 through a new Ninja Tune imprint R'COUP'D. Like its predecessor, it was produced byBilly Bush. Buoyed by the radio success of the single "Looking Too Closely", the album charted in several territories, including a top 10 appearance in the Netherlands (number 8), number 25 in Germany, and at Top 30 slot on theBillboardHeatseekers album chart in the US.
Following the success of theHard Believer album Greenall made an alternative version of the album using some more of the atmospheric sounds from the record, which emerged in May 2015 asHorizontalism.[19]
On 10 March 2017, Fink released a more blues-oriented album calledFink's Sunday Night Blues Club, Vol. 1. Considered a side project, "after the pressure of Hard Believer, and the studio time of Horizontalism, to do something raw, rough, and live, a record that just was, for its own sake", it was recorded in Fink's apartment in Berlin. The album was produced and mixed by Fink and Flood. Each track was recorded "fast, live, using one vintage mic, and one vintage amp."[20] The track "Cold Feet" was later used in the television showBetter Call Saul.[21]
On 15 September 2017, again through R'COUP'D, Fink released the albumResurgam, with prior releases of the singles "Cracks Appear" on 31 July and "Not Everything Was Better in the Past" on 29 August. The album was recorded entirely at the Assault & Battery studios in London, with producerFlood. Fink subsequently announced an autumn tour with more than sixty dates across nineteen countries, with the band including two drummers for their live performances.[22]
Fink's eighth studio albumBloom Innocent was released in October 2019. It was once again produced byFlood.
Announced on his own website, Fink's albumBeauty in Your Wake was released on 5 July 2024.
In 2005, Greenall sings the track "Dead Man" onNitin Sawhney's album Philtre.
Fink appeared onBonobo's 2006 albumDays to Come for the track "If You Stayed Over" (an adaptation of which became "Make It Good", from Fink's ownDistance And Time album).
In 2008, Fink appeared on theJohn Legend albumEvolver, having co-written "Greenlight" and co-produced and co-written "Set Me Free".
Fink also continues to operate within the dance music scene under the name Sideshow on Will Saul's Simple Records, with seven releases to his name. An album,Admit One, was released in January 2009. He also continues to record under various guises, currently Quantum Entanglement with Berlin-based DJ Lee Jones.
In November 2011, he has spoken of his early sessions withAmy Winehouse, saying, "the songs were there, her voice was there, and she was genuinely who she was, and that was obvious even at 17. She was a no compromise, full-on artist. It was just awesome to work with her."[16]
In 2012, Fink appeared on the Season 2 pilot episode of an Indian musical show calledThe Dewarists along with composerSalim–Sulaiman fromIndia andShafqat Amanat Ali fromPakistan.
In 2013 Fink collaborated withJohn Legend on thesoundtrack album to12 Years a Slave, having co-written and performed "Move".
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK Indie [23] | UK Indie Break. [24] | AUT [25] | BEL (Fl) [26] | FRA [27] | GER | NED [28] | SWI [29] | ||
| Fresh Produce[30] |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Biscuits for Breakfast |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Distance and Time |
| — | — | — | — | 139 | — | — | — |
| Sort of Revolution |
| — | — | — | — | 136 | — | 60 | — |
| Perfect Darkness |
| — | 6 | — | — | 149 | — | 32 | — |
| Hard Believer |
| 14 | 3 | 37 | 45 | 72 | 25 | 8 | 21 |
| Horizontalism |
| — | — | — | 123 | — | — | 84 | — |
| Fink's Sunday Night Blues Club, Vol. 1 |
| — | — | — | 53 | — | — | 53 | 59 |
| Resurgam |
| — | — | 47 | 72 | 171 [31] | 84 | 39 | 39 |
| Bloom Innocent |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 83 |
| Beauty In Your Wake |
| 2 | 1 | — | – | — | 20 | – | – |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||||
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | BEL (Vl) [26] | NED [28] | ||
| Wheels Turn Beneath My Feet[32] |
| — | 156 | — |
| Fink Meets the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra |
| — | 159 | 78 |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Fink Funk[33] |
|
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK Indie [34] | UK Indie Break. [35] | NED [28] | |||
| "Pretty Little Thing"[36] | 2006 | — | — | — | Biscuits for Breakfast |
| "So Long"[37] | — | — | — | ||
| "This Is the Thing"[38] | 2007 | 34 | 18 | — | Distance and Time |
| "Yesterday Was Hard on All of Us"[39] | 2011 | — | — | — | Perfect Darkness |
| "Perfect Darkness"[citation needed] | — | — | — | ||
| "Looking Too Closely"[40] | 2014 | — | — | 89 | Hard Believer |
| "Shakespeare"[41] | — | — | — | ||
| "Cracks Appear"[42] | 2017 | — | — | — | Resurgam |
| "Not Everything Was Better in the Past"[43] | — | — | — | ||
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