My introduction to Tim Finn was his entry into Crowded House, his brother Neil's band of the time, on the album Woodface. Most people, however, were already familiar with the brothers Finn from Tim's previous band, Split Enz. Both bands exact their influence on this album, Tim's second solo one, but I personally find this album stronger overall than anything else I've heard either man in. The key word there is overall, for both Split Enz and Crowded House had some great singles--it was just that there seemed to be a lot of filler between those great songs, whereas on Before and After every song is as strong as any other.

The Finn's songwriting style is similar to that of Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford of Squeeze: pure pop with strong hooks and clever lyrics, which always strays just slightly from the standard three-and-a-half minute pop formula with some surprising element or two. For instance, here in "Always Never Now," the spoken lyrical line is incongrous with the smooth chorus, as intimate as being right next to the singer at a concert. Or how about the fake "scratching" (accomplished by a sample through a synth?) on the song, "I Found It." Many of the songs utilize multi-tracking, such as "Strangeness and Charm," and even when the other voice isn't Tim's but his brother Neil's, their voices are so complementary that it sounds like a doubled track.

I do have a couple of favorite songs here, although I like them all. "Protected" has a wonderfully engaging base-line and is an excellent use of a minor key for a song that somehow still manages to sound positive. My absolute favorte Finn song, however, has to be "Persuasion," and it's a song where he didn't even write the music. The song was originally written as an instrumental by Richard Thompson for the soundtrack to the film, The Sweet Keeper. Finn liked the music so much that he asked Thompson if Thompson wouldn't mind Finn adding lyrics and recording the song. The combination shows off both men's talents--Finn's lyrics do not sound at all like an afterthought. Thompson must think so, too, as he now performs the song live with Finn's lyrics.

There is a similarity of sound to this set that derives from the early-90s style of drum programming, likely a remnant of Finn's creative process which seems to con centrate less on time-signature changes or unusual percussion in favor of vocal or melodic instrument variations. This album has faded in my preference over the years, but I listened to it quite heavy in the 90s and it's just the thing I want to listen to every few months.