Noah and the Whale

Noah and the Whale
Noah and the Whale, including Laura Marling performing in 2007.
Background information
Origin	Twickenham, London, England, United Kingdom
Genres	Indie folk, indie rock, pop rock, bluegrass[1]
Years active	2006–present
Labels	Young & Lost Club, Cherrytree, Vertigo, Mercury
Associated acts	Laura Marling, Emmy the Great, Johnny Flynn, Jesse Quin & The Mets, Pull Tiger Tail, Slow Club, Jay Jay Pistolet
Members
Charlie Fink Tom Hobden Matt "Urby Whale" Owens Fred Abbott Michael Petulla
Past members
Doug Fink Laura Marling Emmy the Great Jack Hamson

Noah and the Whale (stylised "Noah & The Whale") are an English indie folk band from Twickenham, London, England formed in 2006.^[2] The band consists of Charlie Fink (vocals, guitar, ukulele, mandolin), Tom Hobden (fiddle/keys), Matt "Urby Whale" Owens (bass guitar), Fred Abbott (guitar/keys), and Michael Petulla (drums).

History

Early years and Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down (2006–2008)

The name 'Noah and the Whale' is a combination of the title of one of the band's favourite films, The Squid and the Whale, and the name of the film's director, Noah Baumbach.^[3] They are also avid fans of the film director Wes Anderson, who helped produce The Squid and the Whale; the group's e-mails, and many of their MySpace blog posts are signed "Sic Transit Gloria", a phrase frequently used in Anderson's film Rushmore.

After the release of a few singles the band's debut album, entitled Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down, was released on 11 August 2008. The release made it to Number 5 on the official UK Albums Chart and has received mainly positive critical reviews.^[4] Emmy the Great sang for short periods with the band, while the brass accompaniment on the CD is provided by Jon Carvell (trombone) and Sam Kinrade (trumpet). Lillie Flynn (sister of singer Johnny Flynn) and Rebecca Taylor of Slow Club have also filled the role of female vocalist during tours. Doug Fink, brother of singer, Charlie, originally played drums but left to pursue a career as a doctor. Until mid-2008, Laura Marling was a member of the band and performed with them as much as her solo touring schedule allowed. She also performed the background vocals on the band's debut album but left the band several months after its release.

The band has been compared to Neutral Milk Hotel, Bonnie Prince Billy and Belle & Sebastian,^[5] and the band cites both punk rock and folk as influences.^[6]

They have performed on Jeremy Warmsley’s internet television show, Welcome to our TV show, and have made several appearances at festivals including Leeds, Sasquatch! the Cambridge Folk Festival, Latitude, SXSW, V Festival, Oxegen and Glastonbury.^[7]

In May 2008, the group's side-project, The A Sides, performed a one-off show at The Push Club.^[8]

The First Days of Spring (2009)

From January 2009 onwards, the band started work on their second full length LP, entitled The First Days of Spring. Along with the album release, Charlie Fink wrote and directed a film that runs the entire length of the album, also entitled The First Days of Spring. Fink decided not to feature female backing vocals on their second LP due to the painful but inspiring departure of Laura Marling to pursue a solo career. Her separation from the band did however inspire a change from their traditional sound, signaling a new direction in the bands music and lyrics. The album was released on 31 August 2009, a little over a year after their debut. Three days prior to the release Doug Fink, brother of lead singer Charlie, announced he would be leaving the band to pursue a career in medicine. At the same time Fred Abbott was brought in on second guitar/piano and Doug was temporarily replaced by former Pull Tiger Tail drummer Jack Hamson.

"The First Days of Spring" was the first single release from the album and was made available for download from the band's website,^[9] while the first official single entitled "Blue Skies" was released on 24 August 2009 after the song received its first airplay on Zane Lowe's Radio 1 evening show earlier in the summer.^[10]

The band played the 2009 Reading and Leeds Festivals on the main stage, as well as a variety of other venues on their current tour.

On 30 September 2009, BBC News reported that the band's equipment including guitars, bass instruments and their drum kit, were stolen from a car park near the Club Academy in Manchester, England.^[11] The theft occurred on the night of 29 September 2009. The equipment was recovered in late December 2009.^[12]

Their song, "Give a Little Love" was used in an episode of Cougar Town titled "Here Comes My Girl" which first aired on 25 November 2009. The single "Blue Skies" was also used in an episode of One Tree Hill titled "Some Roads Lead Nowhere" which first aired on 7 December 2009.

Last Night on Earth (2010–present)

In January 2010, it was announced that Noah and the Whale were heading to the recording studio soon to prepare their third album, for which the band was considering the title Old Joy,^[13] however, in an interview with the website SoonerMusic.com, lead singer Charlie announced that the album would be called Last Night On Earth. On 3 December 2010 the band released a track from the upcoming album on their official website, titled "Wild Thing". The first official single from the album, "L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.", was released on 23 January 2011 and has (so far) peaked at number 14 in the UK Singles Chart. Last Night on Earth was released on 7 March 2011 through Mercury Records.

The song "Waiting for My Chance to Come" appears in the series 5 finale "Everyone" on the E4 British teen drama Skins.

Discography

Main article: Noah and the Whale discography

• Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down (2008)
• The First Days of Spring (2009)
• Last Night on Earth (2011)

References

1. ^ By Louis (2009-05-01). "On 'World,' Noah and the Whale blow indie scene out of the water - The Bowdoin Orient". Orient.bowdoin.edu. http://orient.bowdoin.edu/orient/article.php?date=2009-05-01&section=4&id=7. Retrieved 2011-11-02. 
2. ^ "Noah and the Whale « Live on 35mm". Valerio Berdini. http://liveon35mm.wordpress.com/2008/08/17/noah-and-the-whale/. Retrieved 2008-10-07. 
3. ^ "Artist of the Week: Noah and the Whale « BreakThru Radio Blog". BreakThru Radio Blog. http://breakthruradio.wordpress.com/2008/09/02/artist-of-the-week-noah-and-the-whale/. Retrieved 2008-10-07. 
4. ^ Elan, Priya (2008) "Noah and the Whale - Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down" (review), The Times, 2 August 2008
5. ^ Lester, Paul (2007) "New Band of the Day 233: Noah & the Whale", The Guardian
6. ^ "About Us", BBC London
7. ^ Morton, Lewis, "Noah and the Whale - Interview, Noize Makes Enemies
8. ^ "Noah And The Whale announce side project", NME
9. ^ "First Days of Spring information from the band". Noahandthewhale.com. http://www.noahandthewhale.com/FDOS.html. Retrieved 2011-11-02. 
10. ^ "Noah & The Whale - Blue Skies". idiomag. 21 August 2009. http://www.idiomag.com/peek/97443/noah_&_the_whale. Retrieved 2009-08-28. 
11. ^ "Band devastated by guitar theft". BBC News. 30 September 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/manchester/8283684.stm. Retrieved 20 May 2010. 
12. ^ "Stolen band equipment recovered". BBC News. 22 December 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/manchester/8427485.stm. Retrieved 20 May 2010. 
13. ^ I’m toying with the title ‘Old Joy’ at the moment but that will most likely change. Noah and the Whale

External links

• Official website
• Interview at musicOMH
• The Comment Tree interviews Noah and the Whale
• Interview on Platforms Magazine
• Jazzy the cockatoo dances to 5 Years Time on YouTube
• Abbot, Stephen (2008) "Noah and the Whale, FREEDM Studio, Roundhouse, Camden, London (review)", The Guardian
• Appearance on Plus1TV.com
• Take Away Show on Blogotheque
• Charlie Fink's IMDb page
• First Days of Spring at IMDb
• Noah and the Whale on Obscure Sound
• Acoustic Session with 'They Shoot Music – Don't They'
• The Independent: Feb 2009