Much has changed in the Haven universe since their debut, Between The Senses was released in 2002. The boys from Cornwall-via-Manchester spent a chunk on time on the road in the US with Swedish rockers Division Of Laura Lee, the DOLL influence spreading further with each show, as Havenís guitar sound got bigger and bigger. More importantly, however, was the battle guitarist Nat Wason waged with Bellís Palsy. The facial paralysis pushed back the release of sophomore album All For A Reason for months, but with Wason in a better way, the album is now out for public perusal. ìChange Directionî kicks it all off, and Haven are in Dawsonís Creek theme song mode, but luckily that changes quickly. ìHave No Fearî is more of the uplifting, sweeping indie magic weíve come to expect from this Johnny Marr-produced bunch. The albumís title track is another nice mid-tempo, Britpop jam, with ìWouldnít Change A Thing,î ìTogetherís Betterî and the rocking closer ìGet Awayî all getting high marks for wedging their way into the brain on first listen. But there are two stars that far outshine the rest on All For A Reason and those are the effect-pedal laden rocker ìWhat Love Is,î Haven trading their melancholy for a beefier sound that befits frontman Gary Briggs vocal strengths, and the skyscraping, string-filled epic that is ìDonít Say A Word.î The latter encapsulates all that is wonderful about Haven: grand vision, lush orchestration, Briggsí soaring vocal and a hook big enough to hang a shark on. Itís been awhile, but open your arms again for Haven. They could use a hug.
