Music: Brand new Day

Singer-songwriter Howie Day rises from grassroots origins

By Mike Prevatt

Before Boston-based singer-songwriter Howie Day signed with Epic Records, he would play as many as 300 times a year, most of the gigs taking place on university campuses across the country. Little did he know at the time that he had a marketing tool giving him more exposure than any radio station could offer--Napster.

"I think that Napster thing, when it was at its height, was the exact right timing for me," says the 23-year-old, baby-faced pop troubadour. "I was touring a lot of colleges and people didn't have any idea who I was when I'd show up on campus, but if they saw posters up, they'd go to their dorm room and download a couple of songs. So we were drawing people."

Epic might not appreciate that, but it sure does relish the word of mouth that has made Day's career thus far--close to eight years of writing and playing music, and only two during which he could legally drink--an unmitigated ascent. The artist sold 30,000 copies of his first, self-financed and independently distributed album, 2000's Australia, mostly through his Rep Program. Early gig-goers were given 10 copies of Australia to sell. If someone pawned off all 10, they got free admission to Day's shows.

It was grassroots strategies like the Rep Program and tireless self-promotion that helped Day build his fan base. "That's the most difficult thing, going from that first step where you go to a city and have no fans, to having your first 50," he says. "It's really the most difficult thing to do because...it has to come from you in a way. There was no one talking about you, so you have to kind of start talking about yourself."

After constant touring and racking up dates with mainstream artists such as the Wallflowers and Sheryl Crow, Epic scooped up the Maine native, re-released the album and sent him to London to record his major-label debut. That album, Stop All the World Now, was released last year to general praise, with its first single, the uplifting "Perfect Time of Day," scoring significant radio airplay.

With Stop All the World Now, Day could hire a good producer to expand and enhance his songs, and he found a worthy soundscaper in Youth, who produced the Verve's lauded 1997 album, Urban Hymns. Day could also afford to work straight through the recording process. "The biggest shift for me was having the amount of time to create it, rather than paying for the album myself and watching the clock as I recorded tracks," he says. "It was the most normal life I've had since I was 18, in that we'd record Monday through Friday and have the weekends off, lived in one place for three months, and really got to concentrate on the album."

Day doesn't deviate far from the guitar-based, singer-songwriter sound, but he's no clone either. His vocal intimacy and emotional timbre are reminiscent of singer-songwriter Joseph Arthur, and his tunefulness isn't too far from that of Pete Yorn or David Gray. Most distinct is the ease with which he switches from rasp to falsetto, while retaining the levels of passion and vulnerability he's trying to convey--undoubtedly a main connection point for both curious onlookers and devoted fans.

It's safe to say Day has no gripes with the success he's had so far, but he's not going to allow himself to plateau anytime soon. "I remember at one point, maybe when I was in high school or something, if I could just be a musician and make enough money, that's all I had to do and I would be happy," says Day. "And obviously I've far surpassed that point, and I'm shooting for the next thing now. I don't think there's ever a point of total satisfaction."