The serious, smooth and solitary sounds of Howie Day

When I retreat to my room, I usually want to relax and listen to my music. I am very tolerant in my musical style; I can listen to most everything and I look forward to the new beats. So naturally, when a friend of mine suggested I listen to some tracks by Howie Day, I was intrigued.

A day after my friend’s recommendation, I heard Day’s single “Collide” on the radio.

I loved it and had to have his CD. So after driving my brother crazy, helping me find his newest album, I raced home with the special edition of “Stop All The World Now” – which includes the bonus tracks, “This Time Around,” “Standing in the Sun” and the acoustic versions of “Brace Yourself” and “Collide.”

This album felt like a graduation for Howie – just four years after his decision to skip college, he released a record instead of receiving a degree.

Day’s music is different; it’s part of who he is. The single/songwriter explores the themes of loss, love and regret in his lyrics.

It’s surprising that a newcomer could sell 30,000 albums simply by word of mouth, but he pulled it off with his debut, “Australia.”

My favorite songs on the album are “Collide,” “This Time Around” and “Perfect Time of Day.”

Other songs include “Numbness of Sound,” and “She Says,” both of which are among the few to have a 25-piece orchestra incorporated into them.

Day explains “Perfect Time of Day” as the confusion of growing up without having anybody constantly guiding you anymore: “When you’re young, you can take a certain amount of comfort knowing that a lot of your life is mapped out for you, but as you get older, the map goes out the window and you have to find your own way. In a sense, this song is about me confronting the uncertainty that we all feel as we go through life.”

If anyone wants something smooth and insightful, yet serious and solitary – “Stop All the World Now” is perfect for you. It is simply a work of art.