Ben Howard | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Ben Howard is a mercurial British singer/songwriter who rose to prominence -- alongside contemporaries like Benjamin Francis Leftwich, Ed Sheeran, and James Vincent McMorrow -- on the basis of his 2011 LP, Every Kingdom. His soulful croon and deft guitar work initially drew inspiration from the 1970s British folk scene, but later works like 2014s I Forget Where We Were and 2018s Noonday Dream utilized more contemporary pop touchstones. Born in London in 1987, Howard grew up in South Devon, where his mothers collection of folk records helped instill a love for Joni Mitchell, Donovan, and Richie Havens. Howard also developed an interest in surfing, briefly moving to Newquay, the surf capital of the U.K., where he received class credit for working at a surfing magazine. Howard dropped out of school six months shy of graduation, though, convinced by the surf communitys enthusiastic response to his music -- which, despite its acoustic folk sound and beachy vibe, sounded more like John Martyn than Jack Johnson -- that he should ditch the newsroom and focus on songwriting. The surf community proved to be a big stepping stone for Howard, who found himself playing to packed audiences long before his music spread beyond the U.K. beaches. A European tour with Xavier Rudd helped him build a wider audience in late 2008, as did the release of EPs like These Waters and Old Pine. By the time Howard finished recording his full-length debut, Every Kingdom, in 2011, hed signed a major-label deal with Island Records (the same label that once released music by John Martyn) and graduated to headliner status, thanks to growing fan bases in England, Germany, France, and Holland. Every Kingdom proved to be a breakout release in the U.K., earning Howard a Mercury Prize nomination and two BRIT Awards for British Breakthrough Act and British Solo Male Artist, and eventually going platinum. For his much-anticipated sophomore set, I Forget Where We Were, he took a somewhat more electric approach and was rewarded with strong reviews and sales; it debuted at number one on the U.K. charts. In the spring of 2017, Howard took part in a collaborative project alongside several other artists including Mickey Smith and India Bourne. The mysterious sextet, called A Blaze of Feather, began appearing at high-profile U.K. festivals throughout the year, releasing a self-titled full-length a few months later. The year 2018 began with the announcement of Howards impending third LP, which he introduced with the dreamy seven-minute single "A Boat to an Island on the Wall." The resulting Noonday Dream arrived later that June. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 8 Title: Games in the Dark Released: 2008-04-01 Tracks: 5 Duration: 25:02 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Games in the Dark (04:50) 2 Are You Ready (05:26) 3 Empty Corridors (04:42) 4 Wouldnt Be a Lie (04:22) 5 Keep Your Head Up (05:42) |
 | Album: 2 of 8 Title: These Waters Released: 2009-07-14 Tracks: 6 Duration: 25:43 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 The Wolves (04:03) 2 Cloud Nine (03:26) 3 London (05:13) 4 These Waters (03:27) 5 Move Like You Want (04:02) 6 The Fire (05:32) |
 | Album: 3 of 8 Title: Keep Your Head Up Released: 2011-01-01 Tracks: 2 Duration: 00:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Keep Your Head Up (?) 2 Depth Over Distance (?) |
 | Album: 4 of 8 Title: Old Pine Released: 2011-04-04 Tracks: 4 Duration: 17:15 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Old Pine (E.P version) (04:18) 2 Further Away (04:28) 3 Three Tree Town (03:36) 4 Follaton Wood (04:53) |
 | Album: 5 of 8 Title: Every Kingdom Released: 2011-09-30 Tracks: 10 Duration: 50:05 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Old Pine (05:28) 2 Diamonds (04:06) 3 The Wolves (05:09) 4 Everything (04:45) 5 Only Love (04:09) 6 The Fear (04:20) 7 Keep Your Head Up (04:24) 8 Black Flies (06:21) 9 Gracious (04:57) 10 Promise (06:26) |
| Every Kingdom : Allmusic album Review : Risking arriving a little too late to the party, Devon-born 23-year-old Ben Howard is yet another young troubadour whose sound appears indebted to the 70s pastoral folk of John Martyn and Nick Drake. His debut album, Every Kingdom, therefore, has its work cut out for it from the offset if its to make itself heard above similar recent efforts by the likes of Marcus Foster and Benjamin Francis Leftwich. But its clear from the opening track, "Old Pine," a slow-burning epic that begins with some hushed choral harmonies before building into a strident slice of nu-folk, that this is a more intriguing affair. Indeed, considering that much of the album features nothing more than Howards intricate fingerpicking guitar skills with the occasional flourishes of cello and percussion, its remarkable that its only toward the closing minimal acoustic balladry of "Gracious" and "Promise" that the evocative autumnal vibes begin to lose their appeal. Thats partly down to Howards versatile and intense vocals, which manage to capture the understatement of José González, the gruffness of Ray LaMontagne, and the soulfulness of James Morrison, without ever sounding like a tribute act, and partly down to the inventiveness displayed throughout its ten tracks, whether its the military beats, sea shanty melodies, and howling wolf calls on "The Wolves," the burst of grandiose post-rock that interrupts the somber breakup song "Black Flies," or the buoyant campfire singalong of "The Fear." Its not clear whether Howards stripped-back approach will cross over to the mainstream, as other than "Keep Your Head Up," a slightly more energetic rebel-rousing slice of folk-pop that found its way onto the Radio 1 playlist, its charms are more slow-burning than immediate. But its an impressively timeless debut that suggests Howard should have no problem standing out from the overpopulated nu-folk crowd. | ||
 | Album: 6 of 8 Title: The Burgh Island EP Released: 2012-10-31 Tracks: 4 Duration: 23:35 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Esmerelda (04:44) 2 Oats in the Water (04:59) 3 To Be Alone (05:37) 4 Burgh Island (08:13) |
 | Album: 7 of 8 Title: I Forget Where We Were Released: 2014-10-20 Tracks: 10 Duration: 53:14 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Small Things (04:41) 2 Rivers in Your Mouth (05:12) 3 I Forget Where We Were (04:41) 4 In Dreams (03:33) 5 She Treats Me Well (05:18) 6 Time Is Dancing (06:49) 7 Evergreen (04:04) 8 End of the Affair (07:46) 9 Conrad (06:08) 10 All Is Now Harmed (05:02) |
| I Forget Where We Were : Allmusic album Review : Compared to his contemporary British folk-rock brethren, Ben Howard isnt hidebound to conventional notions of what constitutes folk. He clutched his acoustic throughout his 2011 debut Every Kingdom but where Jake Bugg and Ed Sheeran cant go a moment without strumming, Howard indulges in deep aural pools throughout 2014s I Forget Where We Were. Its not simply that there are abundant electric guitars on the album but that the production by Chris Bond (who doubles as the singer/songwriters drummer) is painterly, filled with shimmering, evocative echo and light flourishes that accentuate either the nimbleness or meditation of his melodies. I Forget Where We Were is quite clearly a record made in the wake of Radiohead (not to mention Jeff Buckley) -- theres a distinct emphasis on languid, moody introspection -- but Howard is indeed a singer/songwriter first and foremost, so the seemingly amorphous whorl of the production gathers focus upon his songs. Certainly, this means the record sacrifices immediacy for sly assurance, but its nice to hear a singer/songwriter so confident in his work that he doesnt rely on wide-eyed shtick: Howard expects you to meet him on his own terms and provides just enough aural enticement to give him not just one listen but a second, which is when I Forget Where We Were really begins to sink in its hooks. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 8 Title: Noonday Dream Released: 2018-06-01 Tracks: 10 Duration: 50:20 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Nica Libres at Dusk (06:34) 2 Towing the Line (03:55) 3 A Boat to an Island on the Wall (07:10) 4 What the Moon Does (05:20) 5 Someone in the Doorway (04:56) 6 All Down the Mines (interlude) (00:46) 7 The Defeat (05:53) 8 A Boat to an Island, Pt. 2 / Agatha’s Song (04:53) 9 There’s Your Man (04:38) 10 Murmurations (06:15) |