Best Music of 2015: #11 Craig Finn - Faith in the Future

The Hold Steady's run of four consecutive studio releases in my top ten ended last year, but only four other artists can claim as many (or more) top ten finishes in the 20-year history of this list: Drive-By Truckers, Steve Earle, Wilco and one other to be revealed later.

Did I mention this is my 20th year of compiling at least a top ten list? I wasn't sure if that makes this year or next the 20th anniversary, since the list was first conceived in 1996. I also thought about burning a 20th anniversary CD and sending it to my three or four fans. I think they all still own CD players.

Both of Finn's solo albums can boast 11th-place finishes, which is about as satisfying as finishing 5th in the CFP standings (sorry Iowa).

I'm going to pair Faith in the Future with Pipeworks Citra, because in both cases, the title is a bit deceptive. Citra (aka Citra Ninja) packs a punch that belies its sunny name, while Faith dabbles in hopefulness, but the overall tone is far from bright and cheery.