Promise

Ben Howard closes his debut album, Every Kingdom, with this track on which he declares "winter shall howl at the walls," one of several references to the colder seasons. Speaking to Spinner, Howard admitted to a fondness for the bleaker times of the year. "I think I like the autumn, because it's kind of ominous. Winter's just behind it, but everything's sleepier and it's quite cool, but you know everything's going to get dark real soon," he mused. "There's definitely something looming on the whole record," Howard continued. "But it's not a depressing record. In places, it's definitely melancholic. A lot of time and thought went into it, so there's some songs that are pensive, but hopefully it's obviously not too downbeat. I try to paint a positive spin on stuff."