Meet Noah and the Whale – a magical band hailing from London who find inspiration in the films of Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach and sound a little like Neutral Milk Hotel, The Kinks and Belle and Sebastian.

Charlie Fink started playing the guitar when he was a young man. He started writing songs when he was a little older. He discovered the concepts of love, death and time shortly after this and soon could think about little else. The remainder of his formative years, Charlie spent with his ears inside headphones recording his own songs or listening to musicians with similar preoccupations.

The words and sounds of Dylan, Young and Wilson changed Charlie’s frame of reference. He obsessed about their sense of narrative and their scale, and their ability to combine wit and seriousness. With the proliferation of computer systems, Charlie discovered closer contemporaries. He soon felt empowered by the honesty, immediacy and authenticity of Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, Neutral Milk Hotel, Daniel Johnston and Jeffrey Lewis.

Eventually it occurred to Charlie that his compulsion to expel in song his deep-set morbid anxieties might serve some public purpose. Initially he ventured forth beyond his gravel drive on his own. Soon however, he decided that he better have his brother Doug on board otherwise he might get lonely and people might not listen properly. Doug plays the drums which can be quite loud, so Charlie took away his cymbals and forged them into a triangle and tambourine. The searing strings of classical violin prodigy Tom Fiddle had long impressed Charlie. Tom liked Charlie’s songs and ‘Noah and the Whale’ was conceived. They played their first gig in late 2006 to the sound engineer, Doug’s housemate and Tom Hatred. They all loved it. So began months of gigging in corners, on tables and inside cupboards.

At length it was decided that more instruments would be needed. It just so happened that an age-old child actor friend of theirs, the dapper chameleon and instrumentally dextrous Urby Whale, who had sunned with the Fink family in seaside Wales throughout the early nineties, was available having recently departed other projects. With his patented wardrobe, cultured dance moves and the ability to play bass guitar and glockenspiel simultaneously, Urby Whale represented the realisation of the famed and famous ‘Noah and the Whale’ stage show which continues to tour to this day. Check them out this summer at Lollapalooza!

‘Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down’ is set for US release September 16th, 2008 (August 11 in the UK).

‘Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down’ tracklist:

2 Atoms In A Molecule
Jocasta
Shape of My Heart
Do What You Do
Give a Little Love
Second Lover
5 Years Time
Rocks and Daggers
Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down
Mary
Hold My Hand As I’m Lowered

‘Peaceful The World Lays Me Down’ on amazon.co.uk

Noah and the Whale on amazon.com

Check out “5 Years Time” single on imeem

Myspace
Noah and the Whale YouTube
Noah and the Whale Official Website