Ben Howard review - End of the Affair

It's been a long time coming, but yesterday finally saw the radio and online debut of singer/songwriter Ben Howard's new track, End of the Affair. After the success of his first album Every Kingdom and of the Burgh Island EP, as well as new material being played at recent festival appearances, anticipation for new studio releases has been building.

First played on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 show last night (05/08/14), End of the Affair is a whopping 7 minutes 49 seconds long. Listen to it below:



With this song, Howard has moved on from the happy-skipping-through-fields melodies of Every Kingdom, to a much darker approach, which we first heard on the Burgh Island EP. The first 4 minutes 50 seconds are a slow build up with plenty of bass notes supporting the lighter plucks of his trademark acoustic guitar. There's a feel of stormy nights - perhaps a hint of pathetic fallacy - and he even mentions "the thunder's rumbled sound". Admittedly, it's easy to get a bit distracted during this first half of the song, but until you really pay attention you don't realise the true subtle beauty of it. As you get past the five minute mark, the pace picks up and drums are introduced, providing a strong backbone for Howard's ever dramatic vocals as they ask "What the hell?!" as though they're the last words he'll ever speak. I imagine this latter part of the track being ridiculously fun live; the atmosphere created through the instruments and echoes drags you into the depths of thought and emotion and whatever Howard was going through as he wrote it. Honestly, this song is beautiful. Listen to it, then listen to it again. Then tell a friend to do the same. Pass the genius of it onto as many people as you can.

Written by Molly McGrath

Best Covers

The internet's a great place, for many reasons. A hugely obvious benefit is the vast amount of music online; many a hidden gem can be found nestled in the suggestions on YouTube or Soundcloud, and often these gems are not original tracks, but covers. Search for '[insert band name here] cover' and I can almost guarantee that someone will have uploaded a video or soundclip of that band doing a cover of something (mostly thanks to BBC Radio 1's live lounge). To demonstrate this, and also celebrate it, I have compiled a list (in no particular order) of some of the best covers out there, hopefully most of which you won't have heard before.

Jamie T - If I Were A Boy (Beyonce cover)



I'm just gonna go ahead and say it: this version is approximately 5000000x better than the original (which I do quite like). Although devoid of his usual rapping, Jamie's husky voice and gentle guitar melodies make this track one hundred percent listen-able. It's not widely celebrated, but I'd certainly say this is one of the best Live Lounge covers there is.

David Bowie - Waterloo Sunset (The Kinks cover)



Not so long ago, I was listening to the original of this on YouTube and miraculously stumbled across this absolutely brilliant version. The added synths and Bowie's trademark vocals make it almost as good as the original, but not quite. (While we're on the subject, skip to 5:52 here)

The Maccabees - Lonely Boy (The Black Keys cover)



The beautiful Given To The Wild aura runs all over this cover, so much so that I could imagine it being a track on the album itself. With none of the rawness of The Black Keys but all of the elegance and magic of The Maccabees, this version certainly does the original justice (and then some).

Deap Vally - Lightning Bolt (Jake Bugg cover)



With harmonica a-plenty and frontwoman Lindsey's fantastic, authentic Californian vocals, Deap Vally successfully turn this mod favourite into a country classic. I imagine that much line-dancing would ensue if this cover were to be played at any party.

Ben Howard - Call Me Maybe (Carly Rae Jepsen cover)



With this cover, Ben Howard and his somewhat giggly team of musicians have managed to make the thoroughly annoying Call Me Maybe not only tolerable, but massively enjoyable. There's no bouncy girl-pop involved here; it's all depth and darkness and drama. Would definitely recommend, 100%.

JAWS - Everlong (Foo Fighters cover)



Brummie band JAWS released this entirely different version of the classic Foo Fighters song not so long ago as a free download for fans. Whereas when listening to the original you'd be inclined to let out your inner mosher, this cover just makes you want to sway and ponder about the little things in life.

Foster the People - Feels Like We Only Go Backwards (Tame Impala cover)




Foster the People frontman Mark Foster's vocals on this cover sound entirely more mature than those on their debut album; in my humble opinion, his new, deeper voice suits this song down to a tee. The psychedelic element is much less obvious than in the original, but there's no doubt that this is a great cover.

San Cisco - Get Lucky (Daft Punk cover)



This awesome cover of huge Daft Punk hit Get Lucky by Australian four-piece San Cisco features slap bass, a wonderful guitar solo and bongos - need I say more? This is a definite must listen.

I hope this post has enlightened you with some excellent covers that you may not have been aware of before, and reminded you of some which have graced your life previously. If you have any suggestions of other covers, please do comment them in the comment section below. We'd love to hear them!

Written by Molly McGrath