Anyone into Sleep Token? (Check out if you like Deftones)

[Marv Attaxx]

 

[lattjeful]

Their drummer is so sick. One of the highlights of the band.

Side note but did anybody see that they sold out Red Rocks on their US tour? Had no idea they were big enough to headline it, let alone sell it out.

 

[owlexifry]

its just pretty boring pop music with the occasional thall bend and some breakdowns. Most of it sounds like someone strung together various Superior Drummer/NDSP/VSTi Synth "tone tests" that all happened to be in the same key into songs.

 

[gnoll]

I have so many questions.

Why is this band everywhere?

Why is the music so terrible?

Why do they look so dumb?

 

[Ralyks]

Their drummer is so sick. One of the highlights of the band.

Side note but did anybody see that they sold out Red Rocks on their US tour? Had no idea they were big enough to headline it, let alone sell it out.

They sold out both Red Rocks as well as Radio City Music Hall in minutes.

 

[jco5055]

I have so many questions.

Why is this band everywhere?

Why is the music so terrible?

Why do they look so dumb?

i don't HATE the music, but i do think it's not nearly good enough for the hype...I think people in general are very receptive to certain branding in terms of how "cool" it is with the lore, masks, atmosphere etc etc

 

[RoRo56]

I can absolutely see why people don't like them but respect where it's due. This band have exploded exponentially over the last year, they're drawing in fans of multiple genres and selling out huge venues in minutes. I saw so many people with Sleep Token songs in their Spotify wrapped who don't even listen to metal! (my girlfriend included). The choice of imagery and the whole back story thing is strange (I'd expect it from a much heavier band) but it's obviously working to their advantage.

 

[Dooky]

I'd not heard of Sleep Token until I saw it appearing on peoples Spotify annual tops 5 bands. So I checked them out. I've never really thought this about a metal band before, but it didn't take long for me to start getting these strong feelings that pretty much everything about them is manufactured to be as mainstream popular as possible.
It's like they sat down with a corporate team and said: "So, we wanna play metal, but how can we get as popular and as many listens as possible?"
Then they've decided they need:
- Clean melodious vocals, but with the occasional scream/growl vocals. But not too much! Don't wanna scare off the people that whinge about heavy vocals.
- Need a great drummer (which I will give them credit for. Drummer is sick), who can play interesting drum parts.
- Need chugs. Simple groove 0's and 1's, but also catchy enough riffs. But not too technical!
- The odd solo that's not intimidating. We don't wanna bore the kids that think solos are "cringe".
- Image. Gotta have some kinda gimmick, but still trendy and modern.
Etc etc. Once I realised that's what this band is, I stopped listening. They just sound so fake and soulless.
But, they're no doubt raking in the money and are clearly a success. More power to them I suppose.

 

[Big_taco]

This band is great just for getting to read the insulting critiques that often give away insecurities in the author.

It's alright big guy, you don't have to hit "post" on that breakdown of reasons why the hot new band sucks. Everyone in your life already knows you're a loser, why tell the internet too.

 

[Ben Pinkus]

Was anyone at the London show last weekend?

 

[Marv Attaxx]

I'd not heard of Sleep Token until I saw it appearing on peoples Spotify annual tops 5 bands. So I checked them out. I've never really thought this about a metal band before, but it didn't take long for me to start getting these strong feelings that pretty much everything about them is manufactured to be as mainstream popular as possible.
It's like they sat down with a corporate team and said: "So, we wanna play metal, but how can we get as popular and as many listens as possible?"
Then they've decided they need:
- Clean melodious vocals, but with the occasional scream/growl vocals. But not too much! Don't wanna scare off the people that whinge about heavy vocals.
- Need a great drummer (which I will give them credit for. Drummer is sick), who can play interesting drum parts.
- Need chugs. Simple groove 0's and 1's, but also catchy enough riffs. But not too technical!
- The odd solo that's not intimidating. We don't wanna bore the kids that think solos are "cringe".
- Image. Gotta have some kinda gimmick, but still trendy and modern.
Etc etc. Once I realised that's what this band is, I stopped listening. They just sound so fake and soulless.
But, they're no doubt raking in the money and are clearly a success. More power to them I suppose.

I can totally see how it could appear to be like this. On the other hand the band existed for 7 years before blowing up and by band I mean it was basically a bedroom project by one guy and his drummer friend
In a way it still is like that but with added live musicians and filling arenas instead of smaller venues.
Before they started supporting bigger bands like Architects I haven't seen anything about Sleep Token anywhere.
About the imagery: showed them to my gf with zero connection to metal and it creeped her out
Shifting between Pop, RnB and Thall while looking like a black metal band, if anything I am surprised that this also works on a larger scale than it probably should.
I get that this doesn't work for everyone and that's cool as well, of course

Coming back to the music: I knew from their old engineer/producer George Lever that Vessel writes and records instruments and vocals before II comes in to play over it but I thought the approach he described in the video very interesting, that he mostly works based of the vocal lines and fills in the gaps whenever he can while supporting guitar/bass when needed. Also not surprised that one of his main inspirations is Abe Cunningham, as I even put Deftones in the title when starting this thread a few years ago

 

[Marv Attaxx]

I can totally see how it could appear to be like this. On the other hand the band existed for 7 years before blowing up and by band I mean it was basically a bedroom project by one guy and his drummer friend
In a way it still is like that but with added live musicians and filling arenas instead of smaller venues.
Before they started supporting bigger bands like Architects I haven't seen anything about Sleep Token anywhere.
About the imagery: showed them to my gf with zero connection to metal and it creeped her out
Shifting between Pop, RnB and Thall while looking like a black metal band, if anything I am surprised that this also works on a larger scale than it probably should.
I also understand that this doesn't work for everyone and that's cool as well, of course

Coming back to the music: I knew from their old engineer/producer George Lever that Vessel writes and records instruments and vocals before II comes in to play over it but I thought the approach he described in the video very interesting, that he mostly works based of the vocal lines and fills in the gaps whenever he can while supporting guitar/bass when needed. Also not surprised that one of his main inspirations is Abe Cunningham, as I even put Deftones in the title when starting this thread a few years ago

Accidently quoted myself, ss.org on the phone can be quite the challenge sometimes
Mods: please delete if someone sees this

 

[MaxOfMetal]

I don't know, they had me until I saw the bassist playing that white bass. Totally took me out of the moment.

 

[ikarus]

I have so many questions.

Why is this band everywhere?

Why is the music so terrible?

Why do they look so dumb?

One could ask the same questions about slipknot.

 

[gnoll]

This band is great just for getting to read the insulting critiques that often give away insecurities in the author.

It's alright big guy, you don't have to hit "post" on that breakdown of reasons why the hot new band sucks. Everyone in your life already knows you're a loser, why tell the internet too.

It's always hard to know who's insecure. It could be that people who don't like Sleep Token are insecure. It could of course also be that some people who do like Sleep Token are insecure. What if this band I like isn't actually good? What if I have bad taste and I'm being duped by hype and commersialism? In that case it might be comforting to assert that people who critique the band are insecure losers.

before II comes in to play over it

What in the world is a "II"? They're playing with the Stranger Things girl?

 

[Apex1rg7x]

This was a great watch. That snare tone though, my god that is crisp!

 

[BlackMastodon]

 

[Chanson]

I haven't listened to their music enough to feel one way or the other, but I hate their whole gimmick. But it's not that big of a deal because you don't have to listen with your eyes. If they continue to bring more people, young or old, to guitar oriented music I'm for it.

 

[PuckishGuitar]

My wife says it sounds like an angry, metal version of Hosier.

Listened to the albums on headphones a few times, a few songs are good but otherwise little stood out to me. I think it’s that I don’t like how they transition through the songs, they threw genres in a pop music salad bowl. I listen to a lot of ambient/postmetal/*gaze, a big part of my enjoyment is how songs often swell and retreat slowly, adding and removing layers throughout. Sleep Token seems more abrupt usually, going straight to the big low string “bawowow” and back to an alto voice with piano, but that jumping around seems to be the theme in recent years in pop/electronic music. So maybe I’m just not hip to it anymore!

 

[TheInvisibleHand]

Its good to know that the sentries at the gates of heavy music (or heavy adjacent) are always at their posts.