As Holy Fawn began their set at the First Unitarian Church in Philadelphia last week, it was clear that they were looking forward to it. That's not to say it was any different from any other show the band have played on their US headlining tour this fall, but there was clearly some extra magic in the air. It was Friday the 13th, and you'd be hard-pressed to find a band whose music complements the spookiest holiday--which miraculously landed in the same month as Halloween this year. A great deal of it has to do with the band's sound--lush, atmospheric post rock that lulls you into a sense of comfort, with crashing breakdowns lurking around every corner. It's a sound perfect for anything having to do with the supernatural or superstitious, and the band immediately thrived in that energy.
As the band opened with a two-piece combo of "Hexsewn" and "Blood Memory," the bookend tracks of their 2022 effort Dimensional Bleed, I was quickly reminded of how lucky anyone who was able to see Holy Fawn at this show and their previous Philadelphia headliner; last year's was held in September, on the exact release day that Bleed came out. Now, here I was--or, here we were-- again, watching one of the most unique bands out there playing yet another extra-special set. As you'd expect, the band's flair for brooding tunes with massive tones played very well in the intimate basement of the Church, as the only lights on in the building were the ones that perfectly shone from above each member's head. The band's set spanned their entire career, weaving from songs featured on Bleed like "Death is a Relief" and the long-awaited live debut of "Sightless," along with standouts from the band's debut full-length Death Spells like "Dark Stone" and "Drag Me to the Woods." There were also a few surprises thrown in as well, like the band's very first single released "Gloandi," which was featured on their debut EP (recently released for the first time on vinyl). A key highlight was when the band revealed they'd be playing a new song--one that vocalist/guitarist Ryan Osterman revealed didn't even have a name yet. It sounds just as moody and massive as the rest of the band's growing catalog, and if this new tune's inclusion in the setlist is an indicator that Holy Fawn ahs new music on the way, 2024's Most Anticipated Albums list has earned one of its strongest entries.
When you get lucky like I've been, seeing a band on the day their new album is released and then on Friday the 13th in back-to-back autumns, it's understandable to want that to continue forever. However, given the band's current touring pattern of opening for a legendary band in the spring, spending the summer abroad, and then returning home to the US for a headlining tour, it's highly unlikely I won't get these opportunities many more times. With that in mind, I have an idea: Holy Fawn should make sure they have a show scheduled evert time Friday the 13th pops up. Doesn't matter which month of the year it falls in, all that matters is that the quartet--Osterman and fellow guitarist Evan Phelps, touring bassist Candice Maritato, and drummer Austin Reinholz, are onstage to bring the spooky.
There are many reasons the Holy Fawn show at the Church was a rousing success, and two of the biggest reasons for that success were the bands that took the stage before Holy Fawn did. Minutes before the headlining set began, the Church crowd was treated to a homecoming in the form of Caracara. The Philadelphia indie/emo outfit released their own sophomore full-length album New Preoccupations in 2022, and their setlist featured a large number of the album's standout tracks, including "Hyacinth" and "Strange Interactions in the Night." There was a bit of a buzz that hummed throughout the crowd when the band announced they'd have a guest onstage to perform "Colorglut," since the album version of the track features emo royalty Anthony Green. Green's turn to perform the track is still pending, however, as another PA emo veteran -- Sean Huber, former drummer of Modern Baseball and current frontperson of Steady Hands-- added his vocals to the outro of the song. Like so many other great bands, Caracara appear to have put a lot of thought into how their songs are performed live, as several tracks in their set had sections added to them to expand the songs, and each of them paid off wonderfully. The band's set reached its apex as they performed "Better," one of the greatest emo songs written in the last ten years, which shifted the crowd into a frenzy. Caracara's sound is a unique one, and like the tour's headliner, they'd fit in on a lot of different tour packages. That's a great thing, because there's a good chance you'll be able to catch them with one of your favorite bands in the near future. I highly recommend doing so.
Opening up the evening's festivities was Canadian doom metal act lowheaven, whose dark lyrical themes and massive riffs made for a great introductory set for the band. Ripping through the songs from their debut EP Collapse, released this summer, as well as a sprawling instrumental track in the middle of their set. Vocalists Dan Thomson and Mikey Buchta exhibit a near-even split of the vocal duties, with each mixing both clean and screamed vocals, while Thomson's fellow guitaris Alex Pley brought a great deal of energy as he stood center stage between the two vocalists. While lowheaven's sound is much more aligned to a specific genre (although there are certainly a great deal of subgenre's the band's version of metal subscribes to), lowheaven made the most of their set by putting their obvious talent and passion for their work on display with each track they performed. They kicked off what will go down as a tour full of talent, and getting to see this show on a Friday the 13th helped make the night all the more memorable.
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