Fingerless is Ian Donnell Arbuckle, a 19 year-old college senior who admits to suffering from being clinically depressed. This condition adds some extra substance to his music and poetry - knowing the perspective that goes into some of the lyrics.
"Restraining Angels" portrays God watching the crucifixion of His Son. It evokes a heartbreaking picture of God telling the angels Michael and Gabriel that they cannot act, that they cannot intervene in this, the cruelest act in human history. The tune then closes with the Father asking the angels to hold back His own hand, so that the horrible work of Christ may be finished.
"A Road to Run" is a convicting piece about the guilt we bear for the death of Christ. It asks the question of us from Christ: "Will you kill me again?" "Doldrums" shows a man who can see the cure for his problems, yet is helpless to act in such a way to embrace the solution. "Drawn" pleads for hope, the idea that though its subject is imperfect, he is the way he is supposed to be because God wanted him to be that way.
Arbuckle's vocals are plaintive and sometimes hesitant, but their conviction is rock solid. This EP is disturbing, pleading, and painful in that it strips away our veneer to reveal our worst nature to God, which He already knows. It also shows the way in which we do not feel that way any longer. It remains to be seen if Fingerless is the beginning of something great, or if it is a one time effort. I can only hope that the spirit of the artist here does not get crushed, or masked behind drugs, or otherwise
blunted.
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