The Dangerous Summer and Deaf Havana
LCR // Norwich, England // 4 November 2026
Photos and review by Stuart Peach
There are some albums that become tied to a particular time in your life, and Fools and Worthless Liars is definitely one of those for me. Released in 2011, it became a regular part of my listening during my first year at university in 2012/2013, so the chance to hear it played in full, 15 years on, was always going to be a nostalgic one. Returning to Norwich’s LCR to see Deaf Havana celebrate the album felt like a pretty special way to revisit that time.
Opening the evening were The Dangerous Summer, who also took the opportunity to perform their album Reach for the Sun in full. It was great to hear those songs again, and they sounded good live. There was something particularly enjoyable about having two albums from that era brought back to life in one evening, making the support set a fitting start to the night.
With Norwich being about as close to a hometown show as Deaf Havana get, the LCR was pretty full by the time they took to the stage. The band played Fools and Worthless Liars from beginning to end, sticking to its original track order. Hearing the record in its entirety brought back plenty of memories, with songs taking me straight back to those university days. “Hunstanton Pier” was a particular highlight, remaining one of my favourite songs by the band, while “The Last Six Years” was another especially great moment to hear live, a lot of memories tied with this album!
The performance itself was fairly understated. Deaf Havana aren’t necessarily a band known for constant movement or huge amounts of onstage theatrics. Instead, the focus was on the songs, with the band sounding heartfelt and authentic throughout. It suited an evening centred around revisiting an album that means so much to its listeners and clearly for the band too.
After completing the album, the band returned with a selection of additional songs, including “Everybody’s Dancing and I Want To Die”, “Fever”, “22” and “Caro Padre”. The encore brought another nostalgic moment, with Ryan Mellor joining the band for “Friends Like These”. It was particularly nice to see him back with Deaf Havana for the first time since 2011, before the evening wrapped up with “Smiles All Round” and “Happiness”.
For anyone who grew up listening to Fools and Worthless Liars, this tour was a chance to revisit an album that may well have soundtracked a significant chapter of their lives. For me, hearing it again in full brought back a lot of memories of my first year at university, and reminded me just how much those songs still mean. Fifteen years on, Fools and Worthless Liars remains an album worth celebrating, and the LCR was a fitting place to do it.
