The High Noon Saloon is no stranger to metal shows. I have seen some of the most intense acts in metal at the venue, including High on Fire, The Faceless, and the Dillinger Escape Plan. But the show this Sunday, June 22nd, might put them all to shame.
This is because this Sunday, the shoegazing black metal band Deafheaven rolls into town, with doom slingers Pallbearer and the experimental Wreck & Reference. Together, these three bands will bend minds and shatter worlds.
For the uninitiated, Deafheaven is best known for releasing one of 2013's best albums, the beautifully cathartic Sunbather. The album's cover is a pink carnation, simply featuring the album's name against the warmest of backgrounds. Undoubtedly, many unsuspecting individuals were shocked by the seeming disconnect between the art and the music. Deafheaven's music, at first brush, features the harshness and intensity of traditional black metal. Blast beats; 32nd note guitar figures; and tortured, raspy screams abound. However, listeners able to move past these potentially difficult elements are rewarded with a deeper beauty. The most intense passages of the album are tempered and juxtaposed with moments of sheer bliss. Rapid-fire drums give way to washes of slowly picked guitars, bathed in reverb and delay. The net result is a sound that recalls the ocean. At times terrifying, like waves during a hurricane; at times sublime, like watching a sunset from a secluded beach. In either situation, it is always beautiful. One can only hope that the band can bring the intensity of the album to the High Noon Saloon stage.
A lesser known band, Pallbearer, takes the stage immediately prior to Deafheaven's sonic assault. Where Deafheaven subverts metal tradition by injecting brightness into the bleak, Pallbearer dwells in darkness. Purveyors of true doom, their music proceeds at an almost glacial pace compared to that of Deafheaven. Guitars and drums plod like giant beasts, leveling all in their paths. To the enlightened, Pallbearer's music is strongly reminiscent of English act Sloth and slightly reminiscent of American stoner luminaries Sleep. For the merely curious, Pallbearer sounds like a Black Sabbath 45 being played at 33 1/3 RPM. The heaviest thing you previously knew cannot hold a candle.
Rounding out the set and acting as the opening band is the experimental Wreck & Reference. Unlike the two bands after them, Wreck& Reference eschew all traditional metal instrumentation for the simple setup of drums, vocals, and a computer. With these elements, the band has cobbled together a sound that flits between noise, drone, and industrial metal. Touchstones of their sound include the legendary Swans, the incomparable Sunn O))), and classic Suicide.
While wildly different from one another, these three acts together will put on an incredible show for the adventurous metal or experimental music fan. If all goes well, it will be loud and at times difficult, but altogether amazingly rewarding.
Deafheaven, Pallbearer, and Wreck & Reference will be playing at the High Noon Saloon on Sunday, June 22nd at 8 PM.
– Matt Cortner
Matthew's show review can be read here: https://wsum.org/2014/06/30/deafheaven-pallbearer-wreck-reference-review/
