By NATHAN WHALEN

Staff Reporter

It all started just over a year ago at Oak Harbor High School.

Four students formed a rock band for the sole purpose of competing in the school’s battle-of-the-bands competition. They called themselves Haden.

They had a week to form the band, write original songs and rehearse. They even missed school the day before to prepare for a three-song set.

All that effort paid off. Big time. Not only did they win the battle, but the band is still going strong. They’ve performed local shows, produced an album and even won second place in a larger Seattle competition.

“We got the best crowd response and we ended up winning,” said Jordan Schaff who plays lead guitar and sings back-up vocals.

Four teenagers comprise Haden. In addition to Schaff, Colby Cochran, lead vocals and guitar; Sam Allen, bass and vocals; and Connor Brunkhorst on drums, make up the band. Band members said it’s difficult to characterize their music but described it either as alternative, hardcore, post-hardcore, punk.

On Feb. 19, Haden was one of 27 bands who played in a competition known as Exposure. Many of the other bands had members older and more experienced than the high school students from an island.

“It was kind of overwhelming,” Schaff said.

They spent 12 hours at the competition, but spent 20 minutes performing their songs in front of a 500-person crowd. But that was good enough for a second-place finish and a $250 prize.

In the months after they formed Haden, they performed at several venues in Skagit County, including Kick Ash Bash last October in Burlington. They were one of three bands. The members were surprised with the positive crowd response. People knew the lyrics to their songs and sang along.

Back in school, Cochran and Schaff had met in auto shop. Cochran had been playing guitar for two years. Schaff played guitar off and on since the fifth grade. Brunkhorst met Schaff in band class, and Allen joined the rockers late after Haden’s original bass player left the band.

Formerly known as Hayden, the band had to drop the “Y” after searching the Internet and finding a Canadian artist of the same name. They originally came up with the band’s name while looking at baby names. They liked Haden and it stuck.

They also use the Internet has a cheap way to advertise. Haden has a MySpace.com account and all members have individual profiles on the online community.

“MySpace is a great way to promote your band,” Cochran said.

Since they debuted a year ago, they have slowly been upgrading their equipment and have a shack where they practice without bothering neighbors. The shack, which used to be a horse stable, has black walls, a make-shift wall, a couple of couches and their equipment.

Then, in November, they put together enough money to produce their first CD. They even have a press kit.

The band has several performances in the coming weeks. They perform March 24 at the Mount Vernon Moose Lodge; March 26 at the First Baptist Church; and March 31 and April 1 at the Blue Dolphin.

They all plan to continue with their music after they finish school.

“I couldn’t picture doing anything else at this point,” Cochran said.

Allen agreed. “The worse day of jamming is better than any day at school,” he said.