{"id":67993,"date":"2018-08-06T14:00:38","date_gmt":"2018-08-06T13:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=67993"},"modified":"2023-01-24T14:21:53","modified_gmt":"2023-01-24T14:21:53","slug":"review-deaf-havana-rituals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/review-deaf-havana-rituals\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Deaf Havana – Rituals"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"For some bands, change can be a real struggle. For Norfolk\u2019s\u00a0Deaf Havana<\/strong><\/a>, however, change seems apparent in their nature as a band. Having floated between various genres over the course of their 12-year stint together, the five-piece show no signs of stopping on their fifth studio album \u2018Rituals<\/em>\u2019, proving they can still refresh their sound brilliantly.<\/p>\n

The first thing you notice when delving into this record is the distinct lack of guitars. Prior to its release, frontman James Veck-Gilodi confessed he was concerned the record was “going to alienate some people” due to the more pop-focused direction the group have taken. While he\u2019s probably right, it is still a Deaf Havana\u00a0<\/strong>through and through, just with more of a \u00a0programmed, electronic front instead of distorted guitars. Singles \u2018Sinner\u2019, \u2018Hell\u2019\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0\u2018Holy\u2019\u00a0<\/em>all pointed to this \u2013 with the latter even featuring on an episode of this year\u2019s Love Island, which just emphasises the type of sound the group have gone for.<\/p>\n