Belle Haven break their release silence with 'Moving On'

Belle Haven break their release silence with new pop-punk track, 'Moving On.'

Want to know some horrible irony? I genuinely forgot that Belle Haven's last single, 2019's 'Forget Me,' was even a thing until I saw their newest release up online this morning. Talk about awkward! Well, there's no time like the present, so let's address 'Moving On,' the group's first song in almost 18 months. (Word on the street is that they've spent much of 2020 working on new material.)

With mixing, producing and mastering duties upheld by guitarist Christopher Vernon, who also adds in backing vocals to this new track, the song's features a larger emphasis on pop-punk than what is normal for the Aussie band. It's not to my tastes, but maybe you'll dig this slight tweak in sound? Yet in another ironic twist, for a song that's called 'Moving On,' it sure is stuck in the past of post-hardcore circa 2006 and great bands like Saosin dropping great records like this. That Saosin comparison isn't one I randomly pulled out of my arse; the influence of that band upon Belle Haven is extremely noticeable (influence by itself is totally fine, let's be clear), but it's so blatant and heavy-handed with the guitars and melodies here that it's difficult for me to hear it as anything but them overtly worshipping a staple 2000's post-hardcore act.

Music aside, the actual idea around 'Moving On' and the lyrical content of Saosin's Belle Haven's latest single is in the name; moving on from old relationships, past regrets and mistakes made long ago. If anything, 'Moving On' is a sad Christmas song, and how the festive season can be a dissonant time for many, dotted with various Xmas lyrical imagery of trees and unwrapping gifts. (There's a reason why the lyric video below shows a Christmas ornament with a Belle Haven logo on it.) The clear intent is for the song to be welcoming and thoughtful, to emphasise with people doing it rough this time of year, but to be brutally honest, it's kinda tacky. Something not aided by the cheesy pop-punk style, either. For instance, the line "This present sucks so you can have it" is some of the hardest lyrical cringe I've had wash over me lately. Frontman David De La Hoz has a phenomenal voice, technically delivering these lines very well, but the lyrical substance - let alone the actual musical content - of this latest Belle Haven song doesn't click with me.

So for the second time ever, there's a Belle Haven song that I don't like. ('Hollywood' bad.) I suppose it was bound to happen again one day. Survival rates on a long enough timeline, and all that. Oh well, still love these guys! And hey, if you're feeling lonely this holiday season, please know that there are resources available if you need help or someone to listen to you. Take care.