ARTIST: The HaveNots
TITLE: Never Say Goodnight
LABEL: Cooking Vinyl
GENRE: Rock
BITRATE: 195kbps avg
PLAYTIME: 0h 36min total
RELEASE DATE: 23 May 2005
RIP DATE: 21 May 2005

Track List

01. Underwater/Overland             1:47
02. Flyers                          3:08
03. New Lace Dress                  1:56
04. Papercuts                       2:40
05. Undecorated                     3:57
06. Sweetest Feeling                3:52
07. Up Like Starways                3:48
08. Ghost                           3:27
09. My Heart Is Like A Day          3:23
10. A Tiny Taste Of Death           2:49
11. Let's Just Start Again          5:24

Release Notes:

The HaveNots are Liam Dullaghan, aged 24, and Sophia Marshall, aged 21.  They’re
from Leicester.  They both sing, both play guitar and they both write songs.  So
far, so what?

Well, they played their first show in 2002.  Within a year, by the end of 2003,
they had released their first album, Bad Pennies.  A gruelling live schedule saw
them criss-cross the UK many times, opening for bands like The Sadies (Yep Roc),
living out of a van and sleeping in railway stations.  They began to gather acclaim
and fascination from those who heard them, perhaps as much for their unpredictable
live shows as for their heartbreaking harmonies.

Their profile began to rise and, like Strummer said it, London was calling.  High
profile shows followed – support slots at the Union Chapel and numerous appearances
at The Borderline.  They threw in a head turning performance at the Summer Sundae
Festival.  Their album was picked up by New York indie label Powerless Pop and a
couple of US tours followed.  When they played at the 2004 SXSW festival in Austin
Texas, the Austin Chronicle said “Forget the Thrills, Rejoice instead about the
HaveNots”  At the end of 2004 they signed to Cooking Vinyl and are due to release
their second album “Never Say Goodnight” in April.

The HaveNots have been labelled many things; indie folk, power pop, alt.country,
emo.  Perhaps because of their distinctive vocal harmonies people want to pitch
them as the new Gram and Emmylou.  However with their new record “Never Say
Goodnight”  The HaveNots defy expectation with a gorgeous record of poppy summery
love songs and sad sweet laments.

Recorded in both Leicester and New York with American artiste Chris Mills (Loose
Records) helping out with production, ‘Never Say Goodnight' heralds a pop direction,
with pianos and synthesisers fleshing out the hummable melodies.  The song Flyers
has an irresistible pop sensibility that reminds you of The Lemonheads, whilst
Sweetest Feeling is a full-on, no-apologies rock song, featuring a Sophia Marshall
vocal that recalls Fleetwood Mac at their peak.

“It’s a romantic love album. It’s that staying up all night feeling”. says Dullaghan
“I want this to be a make-out record for young lovers”.  Yet the album is also shot
through with a hopelessness and charm that recalls both the innocence of Phil Spector’s
early teen-symphonies and the angst of The Smiths.  “I’d kiss you on the cheek if I
was brave enough” sings Liam on Flyers, as he chases his love through the London
Underground, and when The HaveNots sing about “the Hammersmith and City line” it really
does sounds like a place where you could fall in love.  “Never Say Goodnight” is a love
story set in modern Britain - where the kids hold down a McJob and just “hang around
all day waiting to get paid”, dreaming of escape, as do The HaveNots on the song “Up
like Stairways” – a simple folk song that somehow ends up as twisted electronica.
When asked to sum up “Never Say Goodnight” Liam says “it’s Drop n Roll – like rock n
roll only sadder”.  Whatever it might be Liam and Sophia have created a fabulous pop
record that’s hard to tire of hearing, let’s hope we never say good night to The HaveNots.