Album Review: Old Souls by Deaf Havana

The evolution of Deaf Havana has seen them shed members and dramatically change their sound, yet their ability to produce catchy hooks and singalong choruses is as rife as ever on Old Souls. The sonic transition between their gritty 2009 debut Meet Me Halfway, At Least and Old Souls is vast and displays a considered move away from the heavier post-hardcore-influenced riffs and dual screamed/sung vocals to the straight-up pop/rock that took root in their sophomore release Fools and Worthless Liars. The addition of two new members -- adding keys and extra guitar muscle -- expanded the band into a six-piece outfit, which duly broadened the boundaries of lead man James Veck-Gilodi and allowed him to think more stadium rock than rock club.

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It’s hard not to like Deaf Havana. The band formed when they met at school and, while some of the faces have changed since then, they have plugged away with their straightforward brand of rock and built up a dedicated fanbase. Their biggest success came with second album, 2011’s Fools And Worthless Liars, which saw Deaf Havana move away from the punk roots of their debut Meet Me Halfway, At Least.

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The clues were there on Deaf Havana’s second full length ‘Fools and Worthless Liars’. In fact they were there in the very first track of that album ‘The Past Six Years’ where silken-voiced frontman James Veck-Gilodi declares “I made plans of being more than just that band who had that song about friends and not much else” in reference to wanting to push past what was, at the time, the band’s break out track. His intentions, obvious.

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