Live Report: FINNEAS mesmerises 3Olympia with deft pop-rock

"This song is dedicated to my sister," said FINNEAS, as a prelude to 'Family Feud', halfway through his performance last night at the 3Olympia Theatre, earning himself one of the night's biggest roars from the audience. Although he is best known for his work as a co-writer and producer of his superstar sister Billie Eilish, with whom he has won two Academy Awards and ten Grammys, what the singer-songwriter proved last night is that he shines perfectly well on his own.

Off to a funny start, FINNEAS walked unexpectedly onto stage – the lights had not dimmed or gone out – alone and with a nonchalant sway, and sat down to a keyboard to play the initial chords of 'Starfucker', with a look that seemed to emulate Kurt Cobain: mid-length hair, a khaki polo shirt with green stripes, baggy grey pants and Converse sneakers.

The band members walked into stage as he played, and, after the first chorus, they delivered a frenetic breakdown, driving the track away from its stripped-down piano chords to a full-blown, romantic rendition.

'Starfucker' is an example of a perfectly executed pop-rock song – one of many offered on the night. It was followed by several other tracks from his latest album, For Cryin' Out Loud: the tranquil bedroom rock of 'Lotus Eater', the breezy, rhythmic indie rock of 'Cleats', and the funky 'Sweet Cherries', for which the singer paraded his vintage mic stand around stage while he gave seductive looks to the audience.

FINNEAS' set offered a dynamic mastering of the concept of tension and release, with frequent contrasts in volume and textures. 'I Lost A Friend' began with classic, quarter-note piano chords, before giving way to distorted guitars and a last chorus infused with crash cymbal smashes – while 'Break My Heart Again' introduced some ponderous, offbeat drums halway through, that resembled one of Lykke Li's beautiful ballads on her 2014 album I Never Learn.

Finneas at 3Olympia Theatre on April 13th, 2025. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

'Family Feud' was another highlight, featuring some tender guitar picking, and the nimble acoustic guitar backbeat strum. From time to time you could hear Billie in FINNEAS' voice: they both share a similar intonation, a similar twist in the corner of their mouths for some vocal runs.

The night had also its varied selection of ballads, from the devoted 'Angel', to 'Till Forever Falls Apart' a duet with pop singer Ashe, whose part was sung by backup singer Lucy Healy, and to the piano glissandos and arpeggios of 'Break My Heart Again'. The latter felt like an hymn, with its melodramatic melodies beautifully delivered by FINNEAS as well as by an audience that sang surprisingly well.

Even though the singer alleged he was shy ("Whenever I'm feeling shy, I like to look at the ceiling, but here there's floors full of you guys," he said at one point), he strutted around stage from time to time with a confident, self-assured smile on his face. The already mesmerised, full audience went crazy every time this happened, and girls screaming "I love you", either to the singer or to guitarist Ricky Gourmet, succeeded one another through the night.

Finneas at 3Olympia Theatre on April 13th, 2025. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

There were also some fun moments: at two different points in the set, someone from the audience threw their phones at the singer, who recorded himself and the audience while playing, and at some point even recorded himself kissing guitarist Gourmet on the cheek. An audience member attempted this for a third time but their phone dropped to the floor.

The night's best moments took place towards the end, with 'Let's Fall in Love for the Night', one of the singer-songwriter's better known tracks. The first verse was followed by a playful pause before the beat dropped, with everyone beginning to dance to the rhythm. The delivery was nice and easy, and the ending was beautiful: the tempo dropped to half while FINNEAS repeteadly sang the word "ever" (from "I know better than to ever call you mine") and did adlibs.

If there is one criticism to be made, is that the performance was at times a bit too indistinguishable from the studio tracks. It made you wish for a bit more improvisation, and some more adlibs  – which FINNEAS is perfectly capable of doing.

Hohnen Ford supporting Finneas at 3Olympia Theatre on April 13th, 2025. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

Supporting act Hohnen Ford's set was remarkable. Sitting down to her piano for the whole set, she played songs whose harmonies sat somewhere between pop and jazz, at times with a dreamy, La La Land feel, at times treading classic 21st-century singer-songwriter ground.

Her voice alternated between her velvety, full-bodied middle and lower registers, and her projected yet gentle head voice. During several moments of her set, I thought her music resembled Birdy's, particularly her Joni Mitchell-inspired 2021 album Young Heart. For this reason, I could not help but let out a smile when she said she had a song with Birdy herself coming out next week.

FINNEAS closed the night with 'For Cryin' Out Loud', a high-octane, enveloping rendition which left everyone energised. He gave plenty of thanks to everyone: band members, staff, audience members. "Thank you for buying the tickets and letting us have this cool job," he said.

His humility has not been erased by the megastardom achieved by his work, which is an incredible and heartwarming feat, if you take into account most of his songs have been created with no big budget, no major record label resources, but instead in the simplicity of his home studio, and in the sole company of his sister.