Noah and the Whale - Last Night On Earth

After the cinematic and introspective 2009 epic The First Day of Spring, it would appear on first blush that Charlie Fink and band -- aka Noah and the Whale -- have traded Spring's dramatic strings and lyrics detailing a dissolving relationship for a more upbeat, straight-ahead affair with Last Night On Earth (March 15, Cherry Tree/Universal). Former bandmate/bedmate Laura Marling may have left her mark on the besotted Mr. Fink -- as he dissected in the acclaimed Spring -- but as he states in new lead track "L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N." ...well, you get the picture. Shades of a Tom Petty melodic/ironic inflection leak through here and there as Fink's distinctive voice imparts a redoubled focus now that the protagonist is "going your own way."

Even more promising is "Wild Thing", a sweeping, brilliantly conceived track that frankly wouldn't have seemed out of place on the more conceptual scope of The First Day of Spring. A scintillating, richly detailed production of radiant electronics punctuated with a  reverbed guitar twang builds slowly and methodically around a mournful Fink vocal, a Lou Reed Sally Can't Dance nocturne updated with plush upholstery and the warmth of a morning sun. Recorded in L.A. with producer Jason Lader (Brandi Carlisle, Julian Casablancas), the ten-track, brief (33 minute) Last Night on Earth is what Fink describes as a collection of "story songs". After penning tunes early in 2010, Fink, the band and Lader fleshed out the demos. "Once we got into production", he tells Sooner.com, "that's where it got even more adventurous."

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Noah and the Whale - "Wild Thing" (from the album Last Night On Earth)

Noah and the Whale - "L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N." (from the album Last Night On Earth)