Deafheaven levels District Music Hall as stage and crowd collide
Walking into District Music Hall, the absence of a barricade says everything you need to know. The venue is now a staple for the local punk, metal and hardcore scene — plenty of floor space for a pit and a stage low enough to climb and throw yourself right back at the crowd.
Touring on their album Lonely People With Power released earlier this year, Deafheaven brought their distinctive post-black metal sound to Norwalk with one of the most intense and memorable shows I have seen at this historic venue.
I PROMISED THE WORLD
Opening Friday night was I Promised The World, a young post-hardcore band from Texas. It’s always telling to watch how a group takes the stage, and when frontman Hunter Wilson began pacing and ritualistically wrapping the mic cord around his hand, it set the tone for something tense and unpredictable.
They shrugged off an early tangle of guitar cables and launched into a set that was short, sharp, and well received. The crowd answered with early stage dives and crowd surfing, feeding off the band’s energy. By the last song, one fan climbed onstage, grabbed the mic for a few lines, and threw himself back into the pit. The band looked fired up just to be there and grateful for the exposure and making the most of their run with Deafheaven.
HAVE A NICE LIFE
Have A Nice Life pulled the crowd in a different direction. Their sound is rooted in post-punk and shoegaze, with a dark, moody and deliberate vibe — The Cure’s early catalog comes to mind or more modern acts like Night Sins.
What struck me wasn’t just the atmosphere in the room, it was how locked-in the whole band sounded. The frontman’s movements were intense, flailing and leaning back, but never tipping into theatrics. It felt raw, almost involuntary movement, and it gave the set a physciality that matched the sound.
And of course, I have to give a shoutout to one amazing single mom who braved the Friday night traffic from Brooklyn just to make sure her son could see them. That kind of dedication says everything about the connection this band has with its fans.
DEAFHEAVEN
Finally, Deafheaven closed the night with a set that swallowed the entire hall. With no barricade, the connection never broke. Frontman George Clarke locked eyes with the crowd, hands raised to interlock with theirs, at times motioning for everyone to push forward, throw themselves on stage, and then back into the pit.
The rest of the band followed his lead, taking turns leaning over the edge of the stage, guitars close enough for fans to strum. It was the kind of set that kept you holding your breath — not from fear, but from being pulled into the dark and unpredictable orbit of the band. Clarke’s vocals matched by the constant push-and-pull of energy in the room, promising before the end of the show that the band would return to District Music Hall.
At one point I counted as many as three people diving and surfing at once. By the end, the crowd was drained, but that rare post-show energy lingered as we filtered into the lobby. It’s the kind of energy that comes from a shared experience, one that will never play out in quite the same way again.
DEAFHEAVEN SETLIST
District Music Hall, Norwalk, Connecticut (9/19/2025)
Incidental I
Doberman
Magnolia
Brought to the Water
Sunbather
The Garden Route
Body Behavior
Amethyst
Incidental II (encore)
Revelator (encore)
Dream House (encore)
Winona (encore)
