Howard Kern "Howie" Day (born January 15, 1981) raised in Brewer, Maine, U… Read Full Bio ↴Howard Kern "Howie" Day (born January 15, 1981) raised in Brewer, Maine, USA is an American singer-songwriter. Beginning his career as a solo artist in the late 1990s, Day became known for his extensive touring and in-concert use of samplers and effects pedals in order to accompany himself. He self-financed and self-released his first album, Australia, in 2000.

Day eventually signed a recording contract with major label Epic Records in 2002 and has since re-released his debut as well as producing a follow up, Stop All The World Now. Despite initially sluggish sales, Stop All The World Now was certified gold in early 2005 and has produced a number of singles, including "Collide", Day's most successful to date, and the hit "She Says". The track became Epic Records’ first platinum single, eventually selling 1.5 million downloads.

After a five year tour before the release of Stop All The World Now followed by a three year tour, Day took some time off and focused on writing music. Since then Day released his Be There EP in May 2009 which will be followed by Sound The Alarm in September 2009.

Stop All the World Now (2003–2008)

After the EP's release, Day relocated to London, England to record Australia's follow up, which was provisionally titled From a Northern Sky. The album, which would eventually become Stop All The World Now, was recorded in London's famous Olympic Studios with Martin "Youth" Glover, the bassist for British band Killing Joke, whose previous production credits included The Verve's Urban Hymns, one of Howie's favorite albums.

While certain tracks on Australia had featured session musicians, Stop All The World Now saw Howie joined for the first time by a permanent backing band, consisting of multi-instrumentalist Les Hall, drummer Laurie Jenkins and ex-Verve bassist Simon Jones. In addition, the majority of the album's songs were co-written with either Better than Ezra frontman Kevin Griffin or Jump Little Children's Jay Clifford.

A full band tour to promote Stop All the World Now began on September 27, 2003. Due to other commitments, Simon Jones was unable to tour with the group and was replaced by Jeremy Curtis. The album was released one week and three days later on October 7 to tepid critical reactions. Rolling Stone's Pat Blashill referred to Stop as "not bad" but "indistinct", but Popmatters' Devon Powers noted that though Australia had been an album one falls for passionately, "Stop All the World Now is an album you have a crush on, not one you fall deeply, complexly, and foolishly in love with. And crushes have a way of disappearing suddenly, without a trace."Stop

Sales of Stop were initially sluggish, but slowly began to rise beginning in late 2004 with the single release of ballad "Collide", which became a popular radio hit and was featured on TV shows such as Scrubs, Grey's Anatomy, Bones, and One Tree Hill as well as soundtracking a promotional trailer for the 2005 film adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Stop was finally certified gold in early 2005. Fan favourite "She Says", which was first released on 1998's White EP, was released as a follow-up to "Collide", although as of 2006 it has not achieved the same success, it became a mid-level hit.

Boosted by the slow burning success of Stop All the World Now, Epic released the Live From... EP on December 6, 2005. The 7-track EP contains live renditions of songs from Australia and Stop All the World Now as well as a cover of Crowded House's "Don't Dream It's Over". The EP has not been widely reviewed, though Allmusic referred to the release as "holiday market product," "tepid", and "directionless".

Sound The Alarm (2009)

Howie Day released his third full length, "Sound The Alarm", under the Epic music label on September 8, 2009. After an extensive tour schedule following the release of "Stop All The World Now", Day decided to take some time off, during which he sorted through his emotions by writing songs, many of which have made their way onto Sound the Alarm. “I toured for five years straight before Stop All The World Now came out, then for three years non-stop after it was released," Day says.

To get his desired range of sounds and moods, Day recorded in a variety of locations, including Los Angeles, New York, London, Minneapolis, and Bloomington, Indiana, between the spring of 2006 and fall of 2008. He also collaborated with several musicians and producers, including Martin Terefe (Jason Mraz, KT Tunstall), Mike Denneen (Aimee Mann, Fountains of Wayne), Mike Flynn (The Fray, Augustana), Warren Huart (The Fray, Augustana, Better Than Ezra]) and Better Than Ezra frontman Kevin Griffin — each one of them an expert in pulling superlative performances out of the artists they work with.

Trouble In Here
Howie Day Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

All that you wanted to say
I'll never come here again
All that I wanted to say
All gone

Springtime is always in hand
Almost as if you were there
Making a hole under me again

Hold on

Cause I couldn't make up
A thing that you say, love
There's trouble in here
Hold on
Thing that I fear

Take all the love outta me
So I'd never see it again
Lost, where are we
On our plane
Ah, yes

Cause I couldn't make up
A thing that you say, love
There's trouble in here
Hold on
Thing that I fear

Cause I couldn't make up
A thing that you say, love
There's trouble in here
Hold on
A thing that I share
Hold on

There's trouble in here
Thing that I fear, yeah

Overall Meaning

In Howie Day's song Trouble In Here, the lyrics paint a picture of a strained relationship that is on the brink of falling apart. The song starts off with the admission that everything that the singer had wanted to say is now gone, meaning that the chance to express their feelings about the relationship has passed. The harsh reality of this is emphasized through the chorus, where the singer acknowledges that they could not understand or make sense of the things that their partner was saying. This communication breakdown, coupled with the realization that their love has been taken away, makes the singer fearful of what is to come and uncertain of whether or not they should hold on to the relationship.

The lyrics also touch upon the idea of personal responsibility and how it relates to the state of the relationship. The line "Making a hole under me again" suggests that the singer feels powerless and trapped by the situation, as if they are the reason for the troubles that they are facing. This is further emphasized in the second verse, where the singer acknowledges that they have lost sight of where they are and where they are headed. This sense of confusion and powerlessness is what makes the song so emotive and relatable.

Line by Line Meaning

All that you wanted to say
You had things to say that you never shared with me

I'll never come here again
I won't stay here anymore because it's overwhelming me

All that I wanted to say
I had things to say that I never shared with you

All gone
Those things that I wanted to say are now lost and unfulfilled

Springtime is always in hand
Hope is present and within reach

Almost as if you were there
It feels like you're still present even though you're physically gone

Making a hole under me again
Feeling vulnerable and exposed, like there's no ground beneath me

Hold on
Stay strong and don't give up

Cause I couldn't make up
Because I couldn't come up with

A thing that you say, love
Anything that would make this better, my love

There's trouble in here
Emotional turmoil is present