Their second full length "The Answer is Never" (2004), presented Howards Alias as more mature, taking in a huge range of influences. The album was recorded mostly live, to give an honest account of the 'Howards Alias' sound and to get the intimacy of the songs and band across.
Over the next 12 months the band toured hard but growing up with the grass roots ethics of bands like The Police and The Beatles, the band were also keen to record another record, so they came back to work with 'TAIN' engineer Peter Miles. In April 2005 the band went into the studio and emerged with their third album "Beat, Heart Beat" (2005), packed with new songs and a more progressive sound. The album was very well received by fans and press alike, the press often noting the bands very unique sound and "Howards Alias sound much more at home with British rock counterparts Biffy Clyro and Reuben than their American cousins"
The band like to put forward a message of non-violence and anti-elitism, and like to consider themselves musicians playing music together, rather than a band that has to keep playing a certain type of music in order to conform to the punk rock cliche.
The band split up in 2005, then later reformed in 2006.
They are now set to record a new album, which will no doubt take them in yet another change in musical direction, with new songs on their MySpace page having a more rock feel, than the ska-punk sound which the album "The Chameleon Script".
On April 15th 2008, Matthew Reynolds announced that Howards Alias were to permanently disband. This was the first official announcement from Howards Alias in 2008, although Reynolds had been promoting his solo album - The Wreck of The Hesperus - throughout February.
Drummer Robert King had left the band in January to continue his career, and - following the initial shock - the band had decided to try to recruit a new drummer. In March, however, Matthew Roberts went on tour playing saxophone for Foals and subsequently started tour managing other bands; feeling that he could no longer commit the time to Howards Alias, he also left the band. With almost half of the core members of the band gone, Matthew Reynolds, Nicholas Horne and David Ransom agreed that it would be "a next to impossible task to replace them".
Although disbanding, Howards Alias released [ep.i.phan.ic] in a limited run for any fans who expressed an interest in pre-ordering a copy.
Exile
Howards Alias Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I gave my life, not an inch.
Exile, only made worse by the
Tiresome hours wasted away inside this cage.
Innocence, a word that shouldn't be used for such murky waters,
And yet, somehow fitting, finds it's way
Into my thoughts.
Social well-being is a state-of-mind,
It seems, vagrancy is all I have.
Exile, only made worse by the
Tiresome hours wasted away inside this cage.
Innocence, a word that shouldn't be used for such murky waters,
And yet, somehow fitting, finds it's way
Into my thoughts.
Into my thoughts, into my thoughts.
Innocence, a word that shouldn't be used for such murky waters,
And yet, somehow fitting, finds it's way
Into my thoughts.
Into my thoughts, into my thoughts.
The song Exile by Howards Alias appears to be a commentary on the loss of innocence and the feeling of being imprisoned, both physically and mentally. There is a sense of bitterness and regret, as the singer addresses someone who "threw it all away." It is not clear who this person is or what they did, but it is clear that it had a profound impact on the singer's life. The first lines "Believe it, you went and threw it all away, I gave my life, not an inch." suggests that the person who has thrown it all away has either betrayed or abandoned the singer. The use of the word 'exile' implies that the singer has been cut off from society or from a place of safety and comfort, perhaps because of something they have done, or perhaps as a result of the actions of the person they are addressing.
The sense of imprisonment is reinforced by the line "Tiresome hours wasted away inside this cage." This could be a reference to a physical space where the singer is being held against their will, or it could be a metaphor for the confinement they feel in their own mind. The repetition of the line "Into my thoughts" suggests that the singer is trapped by their own memories and regrets. They are unable to move on from whatever has happened to them, and the word 'innocence' keeps coming to mind, perhaps because it represents a time before everything went wrong.
The line "Social well-being is a state-of-mind, It seems, vagrancy is all I have." suggests that the singer is no longer part of society because they have been ostracized or because they have chosen to remove themselves from it. The use of the word 'vagrancy' implies that the singer is homeless and without a fixed abode, further reinforcing the sense of exile and disconnection.
Line by Line Meaning
Believe it, you went and threw it all away,
It is a fact that everything is ruined because you didn't appreciate it.
I gave my life, not an inch.
I sacrificed everything for you, without hesitation or regret.
Exile, only made worse by the
Tiresome hours wasted away inside this cage.
Being away from you is torture, and being stuck in a mundane routine only amplifies the pain.
Innocence, a word that shouldn't be used for such murky waters,
And yet, somehow fitting, finds it's way
Into my thoughts.
The notion of purity and simplicity is inappropriate in this complex and dirty situation, but it still creeps into my mind nonetheless.
Social well-being is a state-of-mind,
It seems, vagrancy is all I have.
Happiness is all in your head, but in my current state of homelessness and aimlessness, I can't seem to find it.
Into my thoughts, into my thoughts.
The recurring theme of innocence and misery constantly plague my mind and thoughts.
Contributed by Logan J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.