When a fisherman led Heather Nova out through the reefs of Bermuda, and showed her the wreck of her childhood home, the yacht 'Moon' lying on the seabed, it sparked off a series of songs that would become the central theme of Heather's eighth studio album '300 Days At Sea’

"I can't describe the feeling" says Heather "to be floating in the water above my childhood home, and to see her ruined on the seabed."

The fisherman, a fan of Heather's music, had dived down to retrieve the ship's compass from the wreck and returned it to her. The compass had found its way home.

"I was overcome with emotion and started to cry. So many memories came flooding back from my childhood: The magic of those days, the incredible adventure that my parents had taken us on in order to fulfill their dream – and that they had risked so much for. The symbolism of the compass finding its way back to our family was intense.“

Heather was inspired to start writing, and from this an album about childhood, memory, loss and hope grew . It marks a return to the full band sound Heather used on 'Oyster’ and 'Siren’, reuniting her with the original musicians and production team from that period.

"These songs needed a band" said Heather " there was more passion and feeling that I wanted to bring out in the music. I recorded it beside the sea in Bermuda to catch the restless feel of the waves here. I felt I was bringing my music home to where I belonged after 20 years of touring. It was as if I had not only pulled up the compass, but that the songs too had followed me up from the deep." 

Raised on a sailing boat, Heathers' travels in life started early. She missed a lot of school , and grew up in the ports and on the waves of the Caribbean, in a simple boat hand-built by her father. The wind generator on the deck was used to power a tape deck and from this grew a love of music. By the age of 14 she had sailed across the Atlantic, and as an adult she has roamed the world touring. Heather is a Bermudian and great-grandaughter to it's most famous pirate! She still lives in the same area her family lived in 300 years ago. This connection to nature and the sea has always been at the heart of Heather's music and is part of what has marked her out as different to many other artists. In the same way an artist like Springsteen is forever rooted in New Jersey, Heather is tied to both Bermuda and the ocean. 

In 1990, after going to art school, she decided to start out on a path as a songwriter. She threw the i-ching coins and got the message 'Go across the great water', so she moved to London. She lived in a squat in West Kensington, played gigs at a cafe in Waterloo station and worked on her songs. A collection of demos led to a deal with Big Cat Records who released them as her first album, 'Glowstars’. "A stoned black olive among drab greens" said the NME of the album. After putting a band together, a live album called 'Blow' followed, which gave Heather a strong European following. In 1995 her first real studio album 'Oyster' emerged, featuring the Youth-produced hit single 'Walk this World ' taking Heather to over a million sales and around the world several times, and setting her up for a 20 year career to date.

After a number of studio albums, including the acclaimed 'Storm' (produced by Mercury Rev), crossover hits with Eskobar and ATB, combined with a decade of touring, Heather returned to Bermuda. Now an independent recording artist, and in the peace of her home country, the songs came thick and fast. Heather dove into her childhood memories, looking at ways she connects with family and the ocean and in 'Save A Little Piece Of Tomorrow’, looks to her son's future in a changing world.

Almost a year of writing followed, sparking the title of the album:

" '300 Days At Sea' is how it feels when you are deep in a songwriting session. There is no sense of arriving, just the peace or the storm of being in the moment with the music, but finally both the land and the songs appear and you realize you have arrived somewhere."

The album was recorded in Heather's home on a small island using only solar power. "I wanted to make a big rock record, all about atmosphere and texture, so I went back to both the guitarist, David Ayers, and the producer (and my husband) Felix Tod, from many of the 'Oyster’ sessions . Geoff Dugmore, who played on ‘Siren’, played drums. Sometimes we would wait all morning 'til the batteries were charged and we could turn the amps on again. Then we would play into the night. We tried to get the vocals done before the treefrogs started up after sunset , recording a song a day for 20 days straight. It was pretty intense, but wonderful."

Some of the songs are like short stories dealing with memories and stories from her past, and others talk of hope for the future and the resilience and strength of the human spirit. Heather supports numerous projects, like, for example, lastmile.org, for whose founder she wrote the song 'Higher Ground’:

"An article written by Matt George inspired me to write 'Higher Ground’. Matt was a surfer and a journalist until the big tsunami in Indonesia in 2004. He and some friends including a doctor, hired a boat and took supplies and relief to the outer lying islands that the aid wasn't reaching. After this he started his organization, ‚Last Mile’, specializing in reaching remote areas after a disaster. When asked what made him do it he said it was the look in the eyes of the people he rescued that made it all worth it.“

Heather says:

"I feel like standing still is no longer an option for me. My songs have moved me through life and connected with people in the most wonderful ways, and I continue to follow them and hopefully make a difference through my music" 

With it's soaring melodies, rocking guitars and the shimmering vocals that are heather's trademark, "300 days at sea" is a true return to form - it's the rock and roll the sea would make, or at least a rebellious mermaid.