Deerhunter's Spectacle of Sound

Deerhunter, the self-described "ambient punk" band, has a reputation for unconventionally weird live shows that often feature the male lead singer in a sundress, or the occasional smear of fake blood across his face.
But at their March 31st show at the Wexner Center in Columbus, lead singer Bradford Cox went against these expectations, clad in a simple grey striped t-shirt and jeans.
One of my fellow concert-goers initially expressed her surprise at the fact that this performance was, in comparison to high expectations of eccentricity, "kind of boring."
This may have been true in regards to Cox's lack of cross-dressing, but as far as the music goes, the concert left this writer feeling anything but bored.
Opening with the swift and rhythmic head-bob-inducing "Cryptograms" from the 2007 album of the same name, the group set the tone for a show that emphasizes cyclic riffs and combinations of seemingly incompatible noise for an unexpected but surreal kind of sound that somehow is able to produce a unique listening experience for every individual in the crowd.
As the show progressed, it became obvious that Deerhunter is the rare kind of band that specializes in perfecting a show that can be experienced to the fullest extent without any need for visual aid. Accompanied by nothing more than unremarkable dim lighting and the black and blue backdrop of the Wexner's Mershon side stage, the band members relied solely on their instruments and amps for a spectacle that requires ears only.
This quality of creating vision within sound is characteristic of the subgenre of alternative rock under which Deerhunter falls – the category called "shoegazing," named for its distinctively introverted performers who seem to be staring at their shoes during the majority of the show.
While bearing much similarity to their influences David Bowie and My Bloody Valentine, Deerhunter stands out in the contemporary scene today with their overwhelming ability to convey a strangely moving melody amongst the musical fusion of balance and distortion.
After playing an hour-long set, the band left the stage in a vibrating whir of stirring soundwaves from the remaining audio feedback emanating from the instruments still left onstage, returning minutes later to loud applause and requests from the audience for an encore when they played the popular "Agoraphobia" to a cheering crowd.
The lyrics of the song summarize the atmosphere of the concert and the band's philosophy of music simultaneously: "After some time/ I know I would go blind/ But seeing only binds/ The vision to the eye."

Gretchen Dellner
April 5, 2010
Journalism: Review