Charlie Fink (born on 16 May 1988 in Twickenham, London, England) is a Brit… Read Full Bio ↴Charlie Fink (born on 16 May 1988 in Twickenham, London, England) is a British guitarist/vocalist, best known for fronting the indie folk-rock band Noah and the Whale. After attending The Mall School, Fink formed the band in 2006 along with fiddler and former classmate Tom Hobden, bassist Matt Owens and his brother Doug Fink. During the band's earlier years Fink had a relationship with Laura Marling, who appears on their debut album Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down. Their break-up was the inspiration for band's follow-up, The First Days of Spring.

The Howl
Charlie Fink Lyrics

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A bus is heading north
Descending through a mist
That was formed in the warmth
Where the sea and night air kissed

The passengers arranged themselves to sit in isolation
They spread out along the aisle avoiding conversation

When the engine started with a howl

Handling the road like a wild untrained colt
Creaking with its load the bus grinds to a halt
And I'm the only one awake except the driver
The night had been to take them all and left us two survivors
And then I heard the howl

The dog lay in our way
Spread out on the track
A long forgotten stray
An empty void of black

The driver tried to move her on but coward back in fear
She would either let us go or we'd be stranded here
But when I looked her in the eye I knew what I must do
I reached deep down in to my soul to my memories of you
And I gave a howl
A howl a prayer full of hope
Like every song every wrote
Born from a pit of despair
A sacrifice of truth to the air
And knowing the meaning of the song
She hung her head and was gone

Now the midnight bus is rolling on
The passengers wake up
One of them is bleeding and another's throwing up

Another two are fighting one begins to yell
And I wonder surely this is hell

Overall Meaning

The Charlie Fink song "The Howl" tells a story about a bus journey that takes a strange turn when the bus comes to a halt due to a stray dog lying on the track. The passengers on the bus are initially portrayed as being isolated, without communicating with one another. However, when the bus comes to a halt, the singer, who is the only one awake except the bus driver, hears a howl. The driver had tried to move the dog out of the way, but was afraid, and the singer, through remembering experiences of someone he loved, howls at the dog, leading to the dog moving out of the way.

The song uses the howl as a metaphor for expressing emotions that are contained deep within, which are sometimes painful to confront. The act of howling, in this case, was a way for the singer to confront the emotions associated with the memory of someone he loved. The experience created a sense of catharsis, which is conveyed through the act of howling. The howl creates a sense of release and liberation, which is also apparent in the way the dog is affected, as it is through a similar kind of release that it moves out of the way.

Line by Line Meaning

A bus is heading north
The bus is traveling towards the north

Descending through a mist
The bus is traveling downhill while passing through foggy weather

That was formed in the warmth
The mist is formed due to the combination of warm sea and cool night air

Where the sea and night air kissed
The mist is formed due to the collision of the warm sea and cool night air

The passengers arranged themselves to sit in isolation
The passengers are sitting separately from each other and are avoiding any kind of communication

They spread out along the aisle avoiding conversation
The passengers are avoiding talking to each other and are occupying different places in the aisle

When the engine started with a howl
The engine of the bus made a loud noise when it started

Handling the road like a wild untrained colt
The bus is moving on the road in a wild and unpredictable manner

Creaking with its load the bus grinds to a halt
The bus makes a squeaky noise while stopping as it carries a heavy load

And I'm the only one awake except the driver
The person singing the song is the only one awake except the driver of the bus

The night had been to take them all and left us two survivors
Everyone except the singer and the driver slept for the night and the singer considers this as surviving the night

And then I heard the howl
The singer hears a howling sound

The dog lay in our way
There is a dog on the road blocking the way of the bus

Spread out on the track
The dog is occupying a large area of the road

A long forgotten stray
The dog appears to be a homeless and forgotten animal

An empty void of black
The dog is black and appears to be a lifeless object

The driver tried to move her on but coward back in fear
The driver attempted to move the dog out of the way, but stepped back in fear

She would either let us go or we'd be stranded here
If the dog moves out of the way, the bus can continue to travel, otherwise it will be stuck in the same place

But when I looked her in the eye I knew what I must do
The singer knows what he has to do when he looks at the dog

I reached deep down in to my soul to my memories of you
The singer recalls his memories of someone important to him and draws from that memory for strength to act

And I gave a howl
The singer howls loudly

A howl a prayer full of hope
The howl is a prayer filled with hope and desperation

Like every song every wrote
The howl is similar to every song ever written as it is an expression of inner emotions

Born from a pit of despair
The howl is an expression of deep sadness and hopelessness

A sacrifice of truth to the air
The howl is a truthful expression of feelings that is released into the air

And knowing the meaning of the song
The dog understands the emotions behind the howl

She hung her head and was gone
The dog moves out of the way and leaves the scene

Now the midnight bus is rolling on
The bus is moving again and continuing its journey

The passengers wake up
The sleeping passengers wake up from their sleep

One of them is bleeding and another's throwing up
One passenger is injured and another passenger is vomiting

Another two are fighting one begins to yell
Two passengers are fighting and one of them starts yelling

And I wonder surely this is hell
The singer wonders if this situation is hellish