DEAFHEAVEN - Live In Brisbane
Blackgaze And Chill
Sunday 12th July 2026
Written by Tom Wilson
Photographed by: Rashid AlKamraikhi
We Won’t Settle For NOTHING.
It feels appropriate that I’m writing a review of a black metal show with cold hands. “Blackgaze” agitators DEAFHEAVEN are ending their Australia and NZ tour on a chilly Sunday night in Brisbane, and it hasn’t been smooth sailing to get here. One of the original supports, US shoegaze act NOTHING, have had to drop off the tour due to visa issues, leaving promoters scrambling to find a replacement. Now, it all ends here, under the ornate ceiling of the Princess Theatre, and I’m trying to warm my hands in the pockets of my hoodie as PEACE RITUAL take to the stage. As a heavy music writer, I’m used to seeing a name like “PEACE RITUAL” and assuming it’s ironic (it would be the perfect name for a grind band, just saying), so I’m slightly surprised when they kick off some very pleasant alt-rock. Their tranquil new single Seconds goes down a treat, and their singer showcases a massive voice backed by a rock-solid rhythm section, so while we didn’t get NOTHING, we certainly didn’t have to settle for “nothing”.
Pictured: PEACE RITUAL
Pictured: PEACE RITUAL
Pictured: PEACE RITUAL
Pictured: PEACE RITUAL
If PEACE RITUAL were gently shaking the crowd awake, Californian hard-cases SPY take a different route, and their set is like being woken up by a haymaker to the face as Labor Dispute sees the first pit of the night break out. Squealing feedback, bludgeoning riffs, grinding bass and booming drums get the two-steppers moving, and during an extended lull between songs – probably sorting some technical difficulties – someone shouts from the crowd, “You guys are fucking sick!” The whole Princess Theatre roars in agreement. This is their second time in Australia, and from the reaction they’ve got tonight, a third visit is assured.
Pictured: SPY
Pictured: SPY
Pictured: SPY
Pictured: SPY
The lush synths of Incidental I swell from the PA, and the silhouettes of DEAFHEAVEN glide onstage and plunge into Doberman, the opening of their stellar album Lonely People With Power. Like FULL OF HELL pushing grindcore into arty territory, DEAFHEAVEN takes the icy snarl of black metal and thaws it in the warm sunlight of shoegaze, eschewing corpse paint and stage outfits in favour of street clothes and unrestricted creativity. It’s hard to take your eyes off frontman George Clarke, who swings his arms around like a cross between a concert conductor and a ballet dancer, conjuring roars from the crowd with the slightest movement of his body. I haven’t seen a fit bloke sweat through a black t-shirt that fast since Henry Rollins did his last spoken word tour.
Pictured: DEAFHEAVEN
Pictured: DEAFHEAVEN
Pictured: DEAFHEAVEN
Pictured: DEAFHEAVEN
The trembling opening note of The Garden Route – played on a guitar and distorted to sound like a violin – gets a massive roar, and as the riffs hit their peak, the crowd is in rapture. It’s truly stunning. After a jaw-dropping rendition of Amethyst, they leave the stage, and Incidental II starts playing over the PA. Halfway through the song, the band re-emerge and take over as the first explosion of black metal devastates the theatre, George’s head rolled back, face contorted in a sea of white light. Revelator is an explosion of evil riffage and clattering blastbeats, before they drop into the epic sprawl of Dream House, the track that made me a DEAFHEAVEN fan. It’s impressive, and it looks like the band are having as much fun playing it as we are listening to it, George signalling for crowd chaos with the slightest wave of his hands. They sign off with the magnificent Winona, and the stunned audience is left to wander out into the cold and process exactly what we’ve just witnessed.
Pictured: DEAFHEAVEN
Photos by: Rashid AlKamraikhi
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