Devonshire singer-songwriter Ben Howard knows as much about surfing as any Englishman, taking advantage of the West Country‘s surf spots whenever possible. When not in the water he is busy recording, having released a track with Communion – the label run my members of Mumford & Sons among others – and will release his debut album Every Kingdom though Island Records later this year and he plays Groundswell music and surfing festival Festival in Hossegor France on 17 September. Here are his tracks to surf the summer to.
The Shins – New Slang
“New Slang just spells summer for me, any road trip, any time any place. There aren’t many perfect songs in the world, but this is definitely one of the them. In was on an old surf video called Shelter. I’m pretty sure I could have filled ten tracks here from that soundtrack.”
Wolfmother – Woman
“This song gets you into your wetsuit in the freezing cold. It was a toss up between this and Queens of the Stone Age, but Wolfmother squeaks it for me.”
Black Keys – Set You Free
“This tune reminds me of a France trip with two deaf friends. I wrangled control on the music front and would have this absolutely cranked wherever we went. I can happily say I was obsessed with this tune.”
Grouper – Heavy Water
“I got played this song by a friend when we were up in the early hours recording the album, we were all slightly tripped out anyway but this song just put us down and melted us. I listen to it on the way back from a surf quite a lot nowadays.”
Modest Mouse – Float On
“Float On always makes me smile and it makes me think of sunshine. I’ve always wanted to see this one live.”
Oumou Sangari – Seya
“Every tour we go on, this is the feel good anthem of the trip. In fact, if this song doesn’t make you smile then you have no soul. Go and listen to it, it is unbelievable.”
Foals – French Open
“Again this one goes in the pre surf amp section, and reminds of Red Bull and the Foals in February frost. We listened to this a lot when I lived in Cornwall. One year it rained non-stop all winter and we had this on every time we drove to the beach.”
The Doors – Riders on the Storm
“A friend had this on tape for years, it was magic and will always remind me of being a teenager, stoned, trying to find the sea in the middle of winter.”
Bon Iver- Blindsided
“I’ve listened to this record more than any other I think. My favourite album of the last five years.”
Willy Mason – Oxygen
“I’ve had this song in my head so many times in the sea and I never get tired of it. That monotonous rhythm guitar could accompany me anywhere. I always think of where a track would be cool to listen to, but this one breaks the mould: you could be sat in a field on a sunny day or you could be in New York in a hailstorm and it would work fine for both.”
Plus here’s one of Ben Howard‘s, Old Pine filmed live in Newquay:
Hear more music at Benhowardmusic.co.uk.
