LIVE REVIEW: Deafheaven @ O2 Academy 2, Birmingham

Coming off of a divisive album that saw DEAFHEAVEN stray from their black metal roots, it’s not surprising that the O2 Academy’s second room is less than full – that and the fact that it’s possibly the coldest Tuesday night of the year so far. Regardless of your feelings on the band’s fifth full-length (we at Distorted Sound happened to love it), it’s undeniable that the shift split the band’s fanbase and saw some casual fans fall away.

As music fans slowly file in, proceedings are kicked by a curious choice of support act – baroque pop artist LAUREN AUDER. Much like tonight’s headliners, Auder possesses a captivating stage presence. Her delicately vulnerable movements juxtapose beautifully with her quietly defiant vocals as she moves gracefully from song to song. While her melancholy ballads don’t exactly animate the crowd, they certainly capture their attention.

Rating: 8/10

As the headliners take to the stage, the room is busier but still far from full. Mitigating circumstances aside, the mood feels noticeably mellow. However, much to our relief, DEAFHEAVEN are still utterly captivating. From the moment the first notes of Shellstar ring out the five-piece are irresistible, drawing the audience in further which each noisy riff slowly building momentum. Starting with the pure shoegaze cuts from Infinite Granite, DEAFHEAVEN eases the crowd into their noisy and dreamlike sound, bringing everyone in the room into their orbit.

The pace quickens as the band delve into their back catalogue, launching into the thunderous black metal of Honeycomb. Kerry McCoy’s thrilling guitar work shines on this track as galloping chugs give way to soaring tremolo-picked melodies. Enigmatic vocalist George Clarke plays his role of conductor pitch perfectly, effortlessly engaging as he stalks the stage crooning, screaming, and snarling. His spellbinding stage presence is enough to hide his weaker vocal moments – namely the delicate cleans on In Blur and Great Mass Of Color. His screams are as piercing as ever, cutting to the emotional quick of their masterfully constructed post-metal songs.

From The Kettle Onto The Coil is arguably the most ‘metal’ moment of the night, as Clarke switches to full demon mode, transitioning from chilling growls to throat-shredding shrieks with blistering intensity. Then it’s time for Worthless Animal – the epic 11-minute closer from Ordinary Corrupt Human Love. The glittering slow-burn of the track’s first four minutes gives way to a positively euphoric guitar solo that lifts the audience to heaven with gorgeous rising and falling melodies.

After this intense high, alt-rock track The Gnashing provides a moment of respite, before the multi-faceted Mombasa stuns with its stark transition from dream pop to howling blackgaze. The encore brings the undeniable highlights of the night – the vicious Brought to the Water followed by the anthemic Dream House. True to form, Clarke breaks his ethereal persona to embrace the crowd for the band’s most famous song, ending the night on a high.

It’s undoubtedly an interesting transitional point in DEAFHEAVEN’s career and the mixed reception to the variety of material on offer reinforces that. But despite the odds, the band still pour every bit of themselves into their performance and we can’t ask for anything more than that.

Rating: 8/10

Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Birmingham from Max Adams Photography here: 

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