I finally had my opportunity to experience Deafheaven on a chilly, Sunday November 8th at Cat’s Cradle in Carrboro, NC. Cat’s Cradle has been a long-standing venue housed on Carrboro’s Main St. For the past 40 years, it has been a launching pad for upcoming acts as well as a grandstand for well-established bands. Deafheaven have been out touring across the United States since the middle of October with the support of Sweden’s Tribulation and for a small portion of the tour, Japan’s enduring hardcore band, Envy. Deafheaven’s current meteoric ascent to the metal stratosphere meant Cat’s Cradle would provide the perfect location for them as they toured in support of New Bermuda.
Unfortunately on this stop for the tour, Envy was not in attendance. However, Tribulation was still on the bill. Tribulation released Children of the Night this past spring and were doing promotion of their own for their latest album. Tribulation opened the show by coming out to a haze of incense and an orchestral track which was played through the venue’s colossal hanging speakers. The Swedish quartet has a definite flair in their stage presence. Tribulation adorned corpse paint and paced around, swinging their guitars and climbing the speakers on the stage to gaze off into the crowd. The charismatic Swedes played a number of tracks off their new album, including “Strange Gateways Beckon” and “In the Dreams of the Dead”. In total, their set lasted roughly 45 minutes as they included songs off their previous albums as well. My brother, who has never heard of Tribulation or heard any of their music, managed to snag a drum stick as they cleaned up their instruments.
I have read and heard on numerous occasions about how Deafheaven’s live show is something to be experienced firsthand, and finally I have the opportunity to say the same. Deafheaven is something that must be experienced live. The raw emotion that seeps from their music is immensely amplified during their live set. The instruments of Kerry McCoy, Daniel Tracy, Stephen Clark, and Shiv Mehra along with George Clarke’s voice sound just as phenomenal as they do on Deafheaven’s albums. It shows a testament to the dedication these gentlemen possess for perfecting their craft. George Clarke’s stage presence is undeniably tireless and exuberant. His frenetic headbanging and off-kilter sways to the rhythm sections adds a panache to Deafheaven’s emotionally-charged brand of metal. Their set consisted mainly of New Bermuda, which was played in its entirety while fitting “From the Kettle onto the Coil” in between “Baby Blue” and “Come Back”. At the conclusion of “Gifts to the Earth”, they left the stage briefly before returning to play “Sunbather” and “Dream House”.
I had myself firmly planted at the front of the crowd by the time their set started. At this point, everyone who had tickets to the show had trickled in and packed the open floor in anticipation for the California black metallers. It took less than 30 minutes for Deafheaven to set up and start playing “Brought to the Water”. The crowd immediately erupted into mosh pits and pods of metalheads matching the intensity to which Clarke threw his head back and forth on stage. As the set rolled on, the atmosphere became much more fierce. Everyone was entranced in Clarke’s movements and the blistering speed that McCoy and the rest of the group played their instruments with. The crowd bobbed back and forth during the spacey lulls in music and threw each other around when the music came crashing back through the speakers.
On a personal level, Deafheaven was a deeply cathartic experience for me. In an effort to bring to light what I had been feeling, I have to admit I have been going through some rough weeks lately. I have a strong tendency to internalize everything and not share my feelings with people. Trying to internally manage an uncertain future and an ever-growing pile of some personal frustrations that a mid-twenties guy goes through from time to time begins to congeal. Metal has always provided me solace and a way to release emotions I do not outwardly display or actively endure. In seeing Deafheaven Sunday night, I was not only afforded the opportunity to hear one of my new favorite bands, but to let go of these frustrations (mainly by screaming out the lyrics to “Baby Blue” and “Come Back”.) Deafheaven’s music reaches into emotional depths that may otherwise go untouched by other bands. In looking through the crowd, I found I wasn’t the only one influenced emotionally by the music. There were people moved to tears and some who stood in awe, hands overhead, taking in the onslaught of ardent energy emitted from the stage.
The best part of the night by far was during the first song in the encore, “Sunbather”, Clarke climbed the barrier between the stage and the crowd and jumped into the first couple of rows where my brother and I were standing. I caught Clarke in a bear hug and sang along with him and about five other people for a few moments. Clarke, dripping in sweat and hair completely disheveled, climbed out of the crowd and back on to stage to finish “Sunbather” and conclude the night with album opus, “Dream House”. It was a delight to get to hear “Dream House”, as it rounded out a marvelous set from the sensational band.
Unable to move my head and neck, a little hoarse from singing along, and covered in bruises from other attendees, I would say the night was a rousing success. Deafheaven live up to all of their much-deserved hype and deliver one of the most incredible live performances I have ever seen. I want to say a quick thank you to my brother, Bailey, for going along with me to see Deafheaven. I know black metal is typically not your thing, but you got a drumstick from Tribulation and a sweaty hug from one of the best frontmen in metal out of it, so I know you had a great time.