WHEN Lee Harman came up with the idea for Warrington Music [WAM] he just wanted to support his mates.

Many of the former Woolston High School pupil’s friends were in bands and he would often end up lending them a hand.

He said: “I always wanted to be a film director but all my friends were musicians so I was dragged into directing videos at shows and it developed from there.”

One of Lee’s highlights was shooting a video for The Ambersons’ song Vampyres in the middle of the night on Halloween at Lymm Dam.

The 25-year-old added: “The band wanted it to be a Blair Witch style video and we had a lot of fun doing it.

“But the police came out wondering what we were doing with lights on at midnight!”

Then when Lee attended Warrington Music Festival last year and saw all of the town’s talent flying under the radar he decided to take his idea one step further.

Lee, who used to manage Warrington’s 7 Day Weekend and clinched a gig for them with Feeder at Parr Hall, said: “Bands that played last year raised their game.

“The stage inspired them to play well. I saw some fantastic bands which were just as good as what you see in Manchester or Liverpool.”

So [WAM] was launched a month later in September 2012 to help promote live music in Warrington.

Lee used the skills he picked up on his media studies course at Priestley College to give bands a platform of another kind - a website dedicated to the music scene.

“I’ve worked with more than 100 bands since then,” he added.

“Whether it’s reviewing live music and interviewing artists, it’s been great for engaging with people.

“There is some fantastic talent in Warrington and any success for [WAM] comes from the strength of the artists in the town.”

Since then [WAM] has hosted gigs, sponsored various music events, launched a magazine and organised the talent search The Next Big Thing.

Meanwhile, fans have downloaded more than 1,700 tracks through Lee’s not-for-profit site.

Lee said: “I’ve had some fantastic feedback and praise from bands involved and fans of the music who have been following the site pretty much from the start.

“I’m very pleased with how it’s developed. It started as a website but since then we’ve worked with bands and artists and it’s become something else.

“Bands have gone on to get record deals and radio play after being featured with [WAM].

“If any artists need help or have any issues we’re there to advise them and it’s only going to get bigger really.”

So how can Lee see [WAM] developing in the future?

He told Weekend he is concentrating on his new magazine to engage with Warrington people who are not familiar with the website.

“I want to get [WAM] from the internet and into the hands of the regular people of the town,” Lee added.

“That’s why we did the bus station concerts - to get music out of the usual venues to where new people and families would hear it.

“We want the music to be a very universal thing.”

To visit the [WAM] website, go to warringtonmusic2012.wordpress.com