A BEGINNERS GUIDE TO SLEEP TOKEN

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What’s going on everyone?! Welcome to the No Skip Blog, today I’m here to introduce you to our A Beginners Guide series, where we provide the info you need to know to go from a casual fan to a superfan by the end of the post. To kick off the series our first band is mainstream rock giants, Sleep Token.

For a band Sleep Token is an absolute enigma. Despite being possibly one of the least accessible bands with their gimmick and experimental sound, they have managed to catapult themselves into mainstream success. They've gained millions of monthly listeners practically overnight and have gotten shoutouts from major celebrities such as Demi Lovato. They even sold out their first ever US headline tour in minutes! But what makes them so extraordinary?

Sleep Token are a "band", if you will, hailing from ye olde London, England. Having many influences and sounds in their arsenal they combine genres anywhere from progressive metal to arena rock to pop, even to the newly coined “baby making music”, which itself creates a unique blend of sounds. If you asked Sleep Token what kind of music they make, they'd just blankly stare at you through the mask and nod.

On top of having such a unique sound the band also showcases a deep lore and rich story about them and the project's formation. Headed by Vessel, the vocalist and creator of the project, each member follows in their footsteps of full anonymity, donning a mask for any social gatherings like music videos or live performances. The music created and performed live is all in service to their ancient deity, known as Sleep. In the only interview ever done by Sleep Token, Vessel simply says: "We are here to serve Sleep and project His message". Vessel is best known for his deep, angelic voice as the only singer but is also the mastermind behind the visuals, sound, and lore of the band. Being asked further about Sleep, Vessel simply states: "He is everywhere, at all times. Vessel encountered him in a dream, with promise of glory and magnificence if Vessel followed". He's not the only one that followed in worship of Sleep, throughout the years other members have been added to the group, simply known as Vessel II, III, and IV. Since their introductions they have slowly taken up more prominent roles within the band.

With all of this hype regarding an anonymous band you'd think they'd get lost amongst other prominent anonymous groups like Ghost, who rose to fame in the mid-late 2010s. But rather than following the traditional route like their elders, Vessel and crew threw all genre standards out the window with the release of their first two EPs, titled One and Two and released in 2016 and 2017 respectively. Experimenting with genres such as ambient post rock, progressive metal and pop, they've garnered influences anywhere from Leprous, Agent Fresco, Bon Iver and even Meshuggah. These releases had minor buzz but for the most part went unnoticed outside of the UK. However, it wasn't till the release of Jaws where they had their first breakthrough song. The track featured a stronger hook and pop styled melody with heavy anthemic guitars in certain places. This song was the one that put the band on the map for me. However, their follow up debut album Sundowning from 2019 blew me away, with The Night Does Not Belong To God becoming my favorite Sleep Token song. This astonishing record also includes many amazing genre bending songs like Sugar, Dark Signs and Gods, with a healthy serving of beautifully vulnerable stripped ballads like Blood Sport and Levitate. This album has had praises from both fans and critics on its unique versatility, making many excited for what’s next in the band's portfolio.

Say hello, and thank you, to This Place Will Become Your Tomb, their sophomore album released in 2021. With this bombshell comes thunderous singles such as Alkaline and the stunningly beautiful The Love You Want. Personally, this album doesn't hold up to their debut for me, but that doesn't mean it wasn't a huge success. Peaked at number 39 on the UK albums chart the band became a strong force in the UK, but were still yet to reach mainstream success in the US, with just a small dedicated following. That is, until 2023. January of last year marked the beginning of Sleep Token's third album cycle with the release of the single Chokehold on Jan. 5th, which showed a more polished rock sound with a strong, infectious groove. The very next day we got The Summoning, quickly rising to their biggest song ever thanks to it going viral on TikTok and getting airtime on Siriusxm Octane. Finally their American dream began, quickly jumping from 200k monthly listeners to 2 million in just the span of a week! The Summoning gained even more attention with reaction videos for the few closing minutes of the song where a seductive jazz inspired section kicks in. Since the first two singles the band has been on a roll, with singles like Granite, Aqua Regia and my personal favorite, Vore, which takes inspiration from bands such as Deftones and former tour mates Loathe, setting up the band for their third studio release.

Take Me Back To Eden, released on May 19, 2023 through Spinefarm records, disrespects genre rules even more, with elements of djent, progressive metal, pop, trap and jazz all in the mix. With this bombshell newest release Sleep Token is a force to be reckoned with and one many hope will stay, instead of being another trend to fade into obscurity. Only time will tell if their worship to Sleep will bring them a lasting legacy full of recognition and success, but one thing is for certain, their "religion" is just starting to grip the masses and won't let go anytime soon. 

Thanks for tuning in, and happy listening!