Greenhaven: “It feels like finally arriving at the identity that had been there all along”

What started as two teenagers in New York sharing a love for dance music has grown into one of the more distinctive projects in the Wake Your Mind orbit. Nicolas Mendoza-Conner and Trevor Haimes first connected through DJing, eventually turning their curiosity about the music they loved into the Greenhaven project and a sound that moves through dark atmospheres, intricate rhythms, and melodic tension.

Their connection with Cosmic Gate has been a particularly important part of that story, from early support and releases on Wake Your Mind to their collaboration on “Retrospection”. Now, the duo is entering another stage, dropping “DJs” from their name and introducing a new release, Mind Gaze, under the simpler Greenhaven identity.

We caught up with the duo to talk about where the name came from, their evolution alongside the Wake Your Mind family, the thinking behind Mind Gaze, and what this new chapter means for Greenhaven.

Q: You first met through the Greenhaven neighborhood in New York, and before long, its name became your own. Back then, did you ever imagine it would one day be recognized by trance fans around the world?

A: Not in the slightest! We were just two teenagers with a shared affinity for dance music. Early on, we were simply trying to understand how records we loved were made. Instead of diving headfirst into production, we made the decision to focuson DJing as a form of musical education; exploring different genres of dance music, including hard trance. Cosmic Gate came up as an early favourite of ours, so having them organically discover our music, support it, and eventually sign it and collaborate with us was truly a dream come true.

Q: From releasing on Wake Your Mind to collaborating with Cosmic Gate on Retrospection, you’ve become a familiar part of the family. What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned from working so closely with artists who’ve helped shape trance for decades, while still keeping the Greenhaven sound unmistakably your own?

A: As far as the “Greenhaven” sound, we would point to our affinity for darker, techy elements. We try to inject cinematic atmospheres and techy rhythms, paired with tension and unpredictability. Having worked with Cosmic Gate, one of the biggest lessons we learned in the studio has been to not overproduce a track. In the course of working on a complex project, you often reach these points where the interrelationships between your elements have alchemized into a cohesive tapestry that is simply magic. It’s very easy to polish that magic away from one session to the next and not even realize it; so saving often and having the humility to go backwards and reference against earlier versions is critical to our workflow.

Q: You’ve just dropped the “DJs” and are now simply Greenhaven. It may seem like a subtle change, but does it mark the beginning of a new chapter?

A: DJing was the foundational pillar that educated us and shaped our taste, which still guides all our production decisions. Over time, the project became much broader than the name suggested. Dropping “DJs” feels less like starting over and more like finally arriving at the identity that had been there all along. We are proud to be known as the Greenhaven DJs, but we also don’t want that lack of context behind our name to confuse new listeners. Greenhaven feels like the natural evolution of our brand.

Q: The title Mind Gaze immediately sparks curiosity, and as the first release under your new name, it feels like a deliberate statement. What made this the right record to introduce the next phase of Greenhaven?

A: “Mind Gaze” captures a lot of what Greenhaven represents. The idea behind the title is turning your attention inward and ruminating on memories or imagination with humility. The record itself has that same duality. It’s physically powerful and energetic, but there is also something hypnotic and introspective happening when you get into it. We love music that can work on a dance floor while also pulling someone into our own world through headphones, and this record feels like the right blend of it to kick things off with!

Q: If someone had never heard Greenhaven before, how would you describe your sound without mentioning a single genre?

A: Dark, cinematic, hypnotic and techy. We like sophisticated rhythms, atmospheric spaces and melodies that have emotional weight to them. There is usually a sense of tension that gradually opens into something bigger, but we don’t want the destination to feel completely predictable. Ideally, there is always a little mystery in the record.

Q: If Greenhaven was a real place people could visit, what would it look like, and what soundtrack would be playing in the background?

A: Probably somewhere that feels familiar and slightly surreal at the same time. Dark, atmospheric and cinematic, but with moments of warmth and nostalgia coming through. The soundtrack would constantly move between futuristic, melancholic and hypnotic music, with plenty of interesting percussion. In a way, it would probably feel like our memories of discovering electronic music as teenagers filtered through everything we’ve learned since.

Q: If “Mind Gaze” is the first glimpse of this new era, what else can fans look forward to from Greenhaven?

A: More music that pushes the project forward without abandoning what brought us here. “Mind Gaze” is the first introduction to the next phase, but the name change doesn’t mean losing the friendship, influences or emotion behind our music. If anything, it solidifies our decision to explore those things at a deeper level. We want to keep evolving the production, take unique creative decisions and make records that challenge us and that we are excited to go back and listen to.