Blew were an English indie rock band, formed in Cornwall in 1996. The band consisted of singer Gary Briggs, guitarist Nathan Wason, bassist Iwan Gronow and drummer Tom Lewis. They later changed their name to Haven, when Jack Mitchell replaced Lewis. The name Haven came from a local Haven Holidays resort.
The band formed after Gary Briggs moved to Cornwall and met Nathan Wason in a record shop in Penzance in 1996. After recruiting drummer Tom Lewis and London born Iwan Gronow, the band moved to Manchester in 1999 after being discovered by the former Smiths' manager Joe Moss who set them up with a regular slot at The Night and Day Café.
In 2001, drummer Tom Lewis left the band and was replaced by Manchester drummer Jack Mitchell and the group became Haven. Through Moss's Smiths connections they also played support slots for Johnny Marr's band The Healers, and others including Badly Drawn Boy. The band's first release was the Til The End EP in May 2001, with further singles following, including the top-75 UK hit "Let It Live" and their top-30 breakthrough "Say Something". They also appeared on New Music Television, presented by Marc Almond for ITV1 in 2001.
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Links to Peel[]
Peel met the band whilst filming for Sounds Of The Suburbs: Cornwall and interviewed the group for the episode, as well as seeing them perform. Their track, In C, was added to the John Peel's Sounds Of The Suburbs compilation album released in 1999. The group were unsigned and when the band evolved into Haven, Peel didn't seem to be interested in their music and never played any of it on his radio programmes.
Shows Played[]
- 09 March 1999: In C (LP - John Peel's Sounds Of The Suburbs) Shifty Disco
- 18 March 1999 (Radio Eins): In C (LP - John Peel's Sounds Of The Suburbs) Shifty Disco
- 21 April 1999: In C (LP - John Peel's Sounds Of The Suburbs) Shifty Disco