Liam Finn

First you form a one man band. This involves knowing how to play a variety of instruments, and sometimes several of them at the same time. This hasn't been a problem for Liam Finn, member of Betchadupa and heir apparent to the Finn family's musical talent (his father is Neil Finn of Crowded House). He has recently given live audiences in London, LA, Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland a bit of a thrill by singing, playing guitar lines, bass lines and the drums onstage at his solo gigs, with only a looping effects pedal (and even more recently E.J. Barnes) for company. He has also been on the road in the US opening for the reformed Crowded House, joining them on stage at the famous Coachella festival.

Liam spent two months at the beginning of 2007 in a central Auckland studio, Roundhead, playing, recording, engineering and producing 'Ill Be Lightning'. I didnt want to compromise or collaborate, he acknowledges. I wanted to record these songs the way I heard them in my head. And I had a very clear idea of how I wanted them." Finn has been writing the songs that appear on this album for the past few years while he and his band have been resident in Australia and the UK. Initially he imagined some of the songs being used by Betchadupa -- the group are currently taking a break but will record together again -- but, as Finn says, the stuff I was writing was very personal and pretty intimate. These songs are very honest, they're like the story of my life over the past few years and I think they're some of the best songs Ive ever written."