Photos: Gary Chancer

SAN FRANCISCO — Gaze music took over The Independent with Deafheaven and This Will Destroy You. Both bands were engaging, but the animated stage presence of Deafheaven lead singer George Clarke roused the room more than anything.

The San Francisco blackgaze band showed why they’re so good at their genre. Eerie church bells swept over the stage as the band drifted toward their positions. Clarke stormed the stage with godlike presence. Standing front-and-center with his arms spread out wide, Clarke made himself the focal point early.

On opening track “Brought to the Water,” a collective headbanging frenzy broke out. When Clarke wasn’t headbanging, he was strutting, touching himself suggestively or getting intimate with the crowd. He would get face-to-face with fans and scream in their faces, running his fingers through their hair.

“Baby Blue” and “Come Back,” off 2015’s New Bermuda, continued the intimacy. Heavy drum rolls and Clarke’s high-pitched screeching dominated these songs.

Following the new songs, Clarke explained how Deafheavan intended to play a bit of everything from its seven years together. The band went back to 2011 with “Language Games” and “Unrequited,” off debut album Road to Judah. Clarke played air-piano on the fans’ fingertips and held their hands. He pulled crowd surfers onto the stage, just to throw them back.

Deafheaven then showed its diverse artillery with a cover of “Cody,” by Mogwai, which could only be described as a screaming opera. Most of the songs the band performed reached upward of nine minutes, turning from metal to shoegaze. If Metallica, Ghost and Explosions in the Sky had a baby, it would be this Deafheaven.

Next they brought it back to their 2013 critically acclaimed sophomore album, Sunbather, with “Dreamhouse.” Clarke nearly hit the floor when he softly fell backward into the crowd during the fan favorite. Both Sunbather‘s title track, and “The Pecan Tree” followed, and  led to an encore of “Daedalus.”

Shoegaze band This Will Destroy You, notorious for its slow and emotional sets, began quietly with “The Mighty Rio Grande.” As the set continued, songs drifted into one another in a dreary and contemplative manner, and one-by-one, the wall of sound engulfed the stage. Even without lyrics, they were trying to get something really heavy off their chests.

Emma Ruth Rundle opened, but struggled with lighting throughout her act. The Los Angeles grunge artist requested that the lights be dimmed because of her limited sight, and trouble with her eyes on this night. Rundle kicked off her shoes and closed her set with a whispering solo performance.

Follow writer Joey Reams at Twitter.com/Joeyreams94.