A record shop in the
sleepy Cornwall town of Penzance is the unlikely venue for
the creation of one of Manchester's brightest new bands.
However vocalist Gary Briggs, from London, met Nat Wason,
a guitarist, when they were both looking at the same Quiksilver
Messager Service record.
They started hanging
out writing songs together and introduced bassist Iwan Gronow,
from London, and Mancunian drummer, Jack Mitchell, to form
Haven - the name taken from the UK holiday park.
Playing the local Cornwall
circuit, news of the boys soon travelled upto Manchester
and, following a tip-off, Joe Moss (ex-manager of The
Smiths,
Marion,
and Northern
Uproar)
interrupted his holiday to check them out and sign them
up.
In 1999, they relocated
to Manchester, at first all four sleeping in a room in Joe's
house, before sharing a house together in Levenshulme. They
jammed with Johnny Marr and played regularly on the Manchester
circuit, including a weekly residency at Oldham Streetıs
Night & Day.
It wasn't until they
all moved to Manchester that Haven decided to have a proper
go at it. Popular amongst the vibrant music scene here,
they now refer to the city as their home and biggest influence
on their career.
Haven recorded their
debut album "Between The Senses" at Johnny
Marr's Manchester studio inviting the guitar legend to produce
it. Described as one of the best albums of 2002, the album
also spawned the brilliant single, "Say Something",
which received heavy airplay in Manchester.
Following, Doves,
Elbow and Starsailor, Haven have been touted as the next-big
thing from Manchester. The band though are firmly keeping
their feet on the ground, taking each day as it comes and
enjoying it whilst it last... which, with music this good,
will be a very long time.
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