Metro Gallery in Baltimore is an intimate venue. The club recently played host to a trio of bands, headlined by shoegazers Holy Fawn. The show was opened by the bands lowheaven and Caracara.

Holy Fawn is a four-piece blackgaze band that hails from Phoenix, Arizona. They’ve recently re-recorded their first single “Glóandi” in honor of the upcoming vinyl reissue of their EP Realms.

Check out “Glóandi” by Holy Fawn on YouTube.

Holy Fawn’s signature sound is a dreamy shoegaze with lilting clean vocals interrupted by brutal distorted riffs and some screaming vocals. Additionally, on their recordings, they use some unusual ambient sounds that can add a definite spookiness to the songs.

At Metro Gallery on Oct. 9, Holy Fawn entered the stage, tuned up, and got right into things. The dark sound of the music was accompanied by a dark stage. I was really anxious to see how the band would translate their studio sound to a live setting.

The band is made up of singer and guitarist Ryan Osterman, guitarist Evan Phelps, drummer Austin Reinholz, and bassist Candace Maritato.

Holy Fawn played a total of 11 songs. And in a growing trend, the band does not play encores. And while I’d love to give everyone the setlist, I have been sworn to secrecy by the band. Seriously. I have been asked not to share the setlist so that audience members can be surprised when the band comes around.

So I will honor my oath and not divulge the setlist.

Even though I am not free to divulge the music Holy Fawn played, I CAN highly recommend seeing them live. If you like the musical contrast of light and shade, Holy Fawn knocks it out of the park. It’s a loud, powerful show and you should probably catch them now before they start playing larger venues, which is inevitable.

Here are some more photos of Holy Fawn performing at Metro Gallery on Oct. 9, 2023. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Marc Shea.