For tender heartbreaks and fading memories that glimmer before they’re gone, “The Hudson” is your soundtrack. FINNEAS and Ashe transform heartache into art in their hauntingly beautiful second single as The Favors.
follow our Today’s Song(s) playlist
Stream: “The Hudson” – The Favors
The only truth I know is you…
* * *
Some songs don’t just play: They haunt, they hold, they echo.
“The Hudson,” the second single from The Favors, the new collaborative project between FINNEAS and Ashe, arrives like the last glint of sun on the water before nightfall, full of aching beauty and a wistful breeze that whispers through your soul. Following the cinematic shimmer of their debut, “The Little Mess You Made,” this track is a quieter, deeper breath, one that expands the emotional universe of The Dream, their forthcoming debut album.
From the opening notes, “The Hudson” invites us into a world suspended in time. A world of bare trees and even barer hearts. Ashe’s voice enters delicately over a sparse piano, full of tremble and truth, painting intimacy in grayscale:
“The trees were bare and naked, and so were we – two old strangers sharing really personal things.”
It’s a line that lands like a diary confession spoken out loud for the first time. There’s no artifice here, just honesty, laid bare in all its complex vulnerability.
Then FINNEAS joins, not simply as a harmony, but as a co-narrator. His voice doesn’t just blend, it deepens the mood, turning the song into a shared memory. Together, their harmonies feel like an old photograph found in a drawer, sepia-toned and dog-eared with time.
“All I’ve ever known is gone. I’ve got nothing but you to lose.”
There’s gravity in that line. A sense of being stripped down to only what truly matters.
As “The Hudson” unfurls, it blooms into a quietly grand production.
The percussion builds like footsteps on wet pavement, a gentle momentum that doesn’t disturb the reverie. And then there’s the guitar solo, restrained yet evocative, it flares like a match struck in the dark, illuminating just enough to feel the full weight of memory. It’s an echo of Fleetwood Mac’s emotional economy, or the raw urgency of Simon & Garfunkel in their later years.
Much like its sonic landscape, the song’s visuals, directed by Alex Lockett, live in a liminal space, flickering between the nostalgia of black-and-white and the softness of faded color. Set by the river, Ashe and FINNEAS become spectral figures of the past, lovers, strangers, artists, walking through a moment they can’t quite leave behind. The cinematography mirrors the music’s emotional arc: still, then swelling, then letting go.
It’s impossible to listen to “The Hudson” without reflecting on how deeply entwined Ashe and FINNEAS’ musical partnership has become. From the breakthrough vulnerability of 2019’s “Moral of the Story” to the apocalyptic romanticism of “Till Forever Falls Apart,” they’ve never shied away from grand emotions, but here, they trade fireworks for candlelight, melodrama for memory. It’s a quieter kind of devastation, and it lands all the more profoundly for it.
You took my coat to sit on the balcony
I’d catch a cold if it keeps you warm
The lake was frozen and so were we
But we both know we
won’t make it to spring
I don’t know where I belong
All I’ve ever known is gone
I’ve got nothing but you to lose
I don’t know what I believe
Please have faith in me
The only truth I know is you
This project, The Favors, may be new in name, but the chemistry between these two artists is seasoned.
There’s an unspoken ease to their interplay, a trust that allows for moments of fragility to breathe rather than be overproduced. It’s the sound of two kindred spirits giving space for each other’s ghosts to dance.
Let’s meet back here a year from now
Maybe then it works out
I’ll try not to think ’bout you in June
But, come December and come the storm
Fall back into my arms
Walk the Hudson, back to you
What makes “The Hudson” especially compelling is its timelessness. You could drop this song into a smoky 1970s bar at closing time or onto the main stage at a future Coachella sunset set, and it would feel right at home in both places. That’s no accident. The Dream, as an album, draws from the sun-drenched intimacy of Laurel Canyon’s golden years, think Carole King, CSNY, The Mamas and the Papas, but it never feels derivative. Instead, it translates those influences through a modern lens, creating music that’s nostalgic without being dated, and poetic without being precious.
Recorded between Nashville (where Ashe is rooted) and Los Angeles (where FINNEAS thrives), the geography of The Dream feels embedded in its DNA. And “The Hudson,” with its reference to the storied river that winds through New York, connects that cross-country thread, the way places imprint on love, and how memory finds its coordinates in landscapes. It’s not just a song about a breakup or a fleeting moment, it’s a song about how certain cities never quite leave you, especially when they become the backdrop for a beautiful unraveling.
In an era where singles often feel manufactured for the moment, “The Hudson” dares to be something more lasting.
It feels like a letter you forgot you wrote, a love you almost remember. And most of all, it feels like the truth, messy, melodic, and deeply moving.
With The Dream set for release this September, The Favors are already proving that their union is more than just the sum of two stellar solo careers. “The Hudson” is a moment suspended in time, a shared sigh between two voices that understand exactly what it means to hold on, and what it takes to let go.
I don’t know where I belong
All I’ve ever know is gone
And I’ve got nothing but you to lose
I don’t know what I believe
Please have faith in me
The only truth I know is you
As I mentioned in Atwood Magazine‘s review of The Favors’ debut single, “Some collaborations just work: Like lightning in a bottle, certain musical duos capture a rare magic that transcends a single song or fleeting moment.”
— —
:: stream/purchase The Dream here ::
:: connect with The Favors here ::
— —
Stream: “The Hudson” – The Favors
— — — —
Connect to The Favors on
𝕏, TikTok, Instagram
Connect to FINNEAS on
Facebook, 𝕏, TikTok, Instagram
Connect to Ashe on
Facebook, 𝕏, TikTok, Instagram
Discover new music on Atwood Magazine
© Alex G Harper
© Alex G Harper
:: Today’s Song(s) ::
follow our daily playlist on Spotify
:: Stream The Favors ::
