George Clarke sat in the basement of the Opera House during Live in Limbo’s interview with his gaze directed towards an unknown distance. He was shy with a calm tone in his voice and a collected demeanor. He was kind, patient and grounded. As the interview ended, he shook my hand, went upstairs to join the rest of Deafheaven with their soundcheck, and he jumped in without skipping a beat or forcing the band to halt the song. It was their newest single, From the Kettle Onto the Coil, that he joined in. As if he wasn’t even away from the band at all, this reserved gentleman started belting out the cries of a fallen angel. I wasn’t watching the band at this point, so this was merely an introduction to this mysterious show I would be watching hours later. That time came around, and the entire band quietly set up their own instruments. The crowd cheered, but the band barely reacted. They walked off stage with an ambient track playing. This same track led them onto the stage. It’s as if they didn’t have to leave at all, yet they left their collected selves at the back of the Opera House.
As soon as they were set to begin, Clarke went from being a statuesque man of humility into a possessed being in the state of sorrow. His eyes rolled into the back of his head, his sweat poured all over the stage, and he foamed at the mouth. Whe he wasn’t screaming into the microphone, he danced uncontrollably all over the stage. He has the suavity of Morrissey and the anger of Lucifer himself. With the shoegaze mentality of being conservative, all of these emotions weren’t definitely explicit, but enough of them were revealed enough to show his torture. Enough of his feelings were contained to keep the mystery alive, as whatever it is that is troubling him will continue to do so. Clarke is a genuine frontman, and one of the best of this new batch of musicians in recent years.
Everyone in the band kept this theme going, where every instrumentalist was operating outside of their own body. Kerry McCoy kept to his own corner of the stage for most of the show but would occasionally step to the front of the stage and interact with the crowd. He pulled off guitar solos that were different from the album versions within the same songs, and they brought a whole new element to each song. He showcased himself as a versatile and gifted guitarist, and proved furthermore why he is one of the top guitar players to keep an eye on. Daniel Tracy’s drumming was so precise that it felt like there was a drum track being played to the music. He sat perched at the very back of the stage and proved to be very unobtrusive. He pounded away at his kit but it never overtook the music. Both Stephen Clark and Shiv Mehra had the same strategy in mind, where they supplied enough to the music to create excitement but not too much to detract from the bigger picture. Every band member was as into the music as the fans, but they had the difficulty of containing their joy. As the show came to a close (a show where Clarke kneeled towards the drum kit as if he was in a musically meditative state), all of the string players held their instruments above the crowd for the lucky ones in the front to attack, with McCoy actually letting go of his guitar temporarily. We strummed the strings, played with the whammy bar, and got to touch this weapon. The amps were left blaring when McCoy, the last to leave the stage, finally paced off, and we were stuck in a daze until the noise was finally cut short. It is true that Deafheaven are a marvel, and they are not only one of the best metal acts on album but also one of the best live.
