Latest news with #EvenInArcadia
Telegraph
15-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Sleep Token: So, there are no hard-rock headliners any more? Nobody told this lot
The rise of Sleep Token has been one of the biggest and most curious success stories of modern rock. The brainchild of masked, anonymous frontman Vessel, with a band of equally enigmatic, numbered musicians, the British collective have turned the art of tease and mystery into a genuine phenomenon that, apparently, has yet to find a roof. They don't give interviews, and what few vague insights they did offer the press in the earliest days comes to about 1,000 words in total. What they do communicate to fans is usually in symbols, or cryptic clues in artwork and lyrics. For 2021's This Place Will Become Your Tomb album, the numbers referenced turned out to be coordinates to places such as the Mariana Trench and Point Nemo, the most remote place on Earth. For all this apparent attempt to shun human contact, they've been greatly rewarded. Their fans are legion, poring endlessly over the band's lore and lyrics, selling out two nights – 'rituals', in Sleep Token parlance – at the O2 in December almost instantly. Last month's fourth album, Even in Arcadia, a genre-crossing mix of heavy, downtuned metal, R'n'B, dreamy pop and vibey electronic washes – went straight to number one in the UK and America, setting records for most vinyl sales for hard rock in the modern era, as well as netting the highest weekly streams. Drummer II will even perform at Black Sabbath's final show in July. On Saturday night, they hit yet another high water mark, headlining the iconic Download Festival at Britain's spiritual home of rock, Donington Park. Where Friday's headliners Green Day gave a masterclass in gigantic stadium rock, Sleep Token deal in something to rival the theatrical bombast and enormous production values of Beyoncé or Lady Gaga. If rock doesn't produce headliners any more, nobody told this lot. Their staging – revealed by a curtain drop that looked perilously close to going wrong – took the form of a massive, multi-level, structure tying in with Even in Arcadia's gardeny artwork, featuring cliffs, ornate archways, a massive doorway, and the band's logo sigil in a dazzling array of lights. Petals rained down non-stop from the roof during the heavy opener Look to Windward, while during Emergence, an actual waterfall began to cascade down the craggy backdrop, fuelled by apparently 60 tonnes of liquid contained in the stage roof. Then there's Vessel himself, cutting a sort of kabuki figure, pacing slowly across the stage in an ornate, armoured robe, with his shredded chest and arms blacked out. He's a curious fellow, leaving most of the grandstanding to his more extrovert bandmates. But this just makes him all the more compelling, even if the recent Top 10 single Caramel finds him declaring, 'This stage is a prison, a beautiful nightmare'. As with the music, his vocals aren't always standard rock fare. Often, he sounds like an otherworldly version of Sam Smith, laced with emotion and frailty when he isn't screaming to the heaviest bits. That they can pull of a show of such magnitude is impressive enough. That they can manage it with their mystique only growing in allure speaks to a band completely assured in what they do. As statements go, it's about the only thing Sleep Token have ever not been coy or ambiguous about. No further dates
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sleep Token are "the least metal thing I've ever heard" says TV host Richard Osman
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Scoring a number one album on both the UK and US charts, as Sleep Token did earlier this month with Even In Arcadia, will naturally boost an artist's profile, and bring it to the attention of 'normies', people who previously would have had zero knowledge of the act's existence. Even so, we doubt that Sleep Token frontman Vessel was expecting to find his band discussed this week by TV presenter and author Richard Osman (Pointless, Richard Osman's House of Games) and Guardian newspaper columnist Marina Hyde on their popular podcast The Rest Is Entertainment. He might have been even more bemused to find his band described by Richard Osman, the brother of Suede bassist Matt Osman, "as the least metal thing I've ever heard". The subject arose following a discussion about the rescheduling of daytime television shows on British TV channel ITV, with Osman and Hyde then turning their attention to an analysis of Sleep Token, throwing in a mention of Ghost along the way."To be number one in America, number one album in America is huge," Osman stated by way of an introduction to the band. "It's a huge deal. And that's exactly what Sleep Token have just done with their fourth album, which is called - and this will give you an idea of the type of band Sleep Token are - Even in Arcadia." "Now, Sleep Token are one of those bands, nobody knows who they are, because they are always masked, at all times," he continued. "The lead singer is called Vessel - probably not his real name - and the other members of the band are called, in Roman numerals II, III, and IV."The idea of a public figure using a pseudonym to mask their true identity shouldn't have come as a huge surprise to Marina Hyde, to be fair, given that she too uses a pseudonym. Born Marina Elizabeth Catherine Dudley-Williams, the daughter of Sir Alistair Edgcumbe James Dudley-Williams, 2nd Baronet, the journalist adopted the surname 'Hyde' while working for The Sun newspaper. But we digress... "It's hard rock," Hyde tells the podcast's viewers/listeners, to which Osman replies, "It's not hard rock, this is what shocked me.""It's the least metal thing I've ever heard," he continues. "Basically, you could put this in your hand luggage and it would go through the scanners." "Genuinely, if you've not listened to them, go on to Spotify or, you know, buy an album and have a listen, because it's sort of everything all at once. There's some nu metal there, there's EDM in there, here's alt. pop, there's pop-rap, there's a bit of shoegaze... it's a very, very peculiar sound."For the benefit of the podcast subscribers, Hyde adds, "Their live shows are called 'Rituals', the singles are 'Offerings'. For older listeners there's a very, very strong sense of Spinal Tap Stonehenge to this." If you want to hear more of the discussion, the tone of which should be familiar to any professional musicians who've had to endure family members asking annually if they're "still doing your little band thing", the full conversation is below, with the Sleep Token chat beginning around the 22 minute mark. In the 400th issue of Metal Hammer, we uncovered Sleep Token's secret origin story, via those who were there. From their first producer, to publicists and promoters, we revealed what Vessel was really like, and how his vision developed.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sleep Token Earns Debut U.K. No. 1 Album With ‘Even in Arcadia'
Sleep Token has secured its first U.K. No. 1 Album on the Official Albums Chart with Even in Arcadia (May 16). The masked metal band previously hit the No. 3 spot with their 2023 LP Take Me To Eden, and have three songs in this week's U.K. top 40 singles. In June, the band are poised to headline Download Festival in England for the first time, alongside Green Day and Korn. More from Billboard Sleep Token 'Even in Arcadia': All 10 Songs Ranked Morgan Wallen's 'I'm the Problem' Breaks Streaming Records on Spotify & Amazon Music in First Day Alex Warren Achieves Rare Chart Feat as 'Ordinary' Hits 9th Week as U.K. No. 1 Even in Arcadia has already made noise on a number of Billboard charts in the U.S., with two songs debuting at No. 1 on the Hot Hard Rock Songs ('Caramel' and 'Damocles'). The album hit No. 1 on Australia's ARIA Charts on Friday also. PinkPantheress achieves a career high with her new mixtape Fancy That, which ends the week at No. 3. The Bath-born songwriter and producer previously enjoyed success with 2021's to hell with it (No. 20) and 2023 release Heaven knows (No. 28). Speaking to Billboard, she discussed the creative process behind Fancy That. 'I wanted to create a project that reflected my progress as a producer. I made something that kind of incorporated my two projects into one super project. I produced a lot of it in London in my house. I listened to a lot of U.K. music. A specific era, a lot of Basement Jaxx, a lot of Calvin Harris.' Sabrina Carpenter's Short n' Sweet holds steady at No. 2, while Ed Sheeran's +–=÷× (Tour Collection) slips one place to No. 4. Indie heroes The Kooks have achieved their highest spot on the Official Albums Chart in 17 years with their seventh LP Never/Know which ends the week at No. 5. It joins their 2006 debut Inside In / Inside Out (No. 2) and 2008's Konk (No. 2) as top five finishers. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Four Decades of 'Madonna': A Look Back at the Queen of Pop's Debut Album on the Charts Chart Rewind: In 1990, Madonna Was in 'Vogue' Atop the Hot 100
BBC News
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Sleep Token: Even in Arcadia is band's first UK number one album
Rock band Sleep Token have scored their first ever UK number one British group's fourth full-length release, Even In Arcadia, shot to the top of the chart after three top 40 singles in as many in 2016, the group have never revealed their identities, wearing masks at all times and rarely speaking in public, with posts speculating about who they are regularly going have accused the band of using gimmicks to boost their popularity, while fans say Sleep Token's distinctive sound, which blends heavy metal with poppy, R&B elements, sets them apart. Building off their 2023 release, Take Me to Eden, which reached number three, the band now has 9.4 million monthly listeners on streamer said earlier this week that Even in Arcadia was its top new album, outranking releases from Kali Uchis and Pink the UK chart on BBC Radio 1's Official Chart Show, host Jack Saunders said it was a "a groundbreaking rock record"."It's accessible enough but also loveable enough for those who do really love the genre to really keep it close," he said. "I think it's brilliant."But not everyone is website Pitchfork - known for its sometimes-scathing takes - described the band as "schmaltzy and dull".Reviewer Eli Enis said Even in Arcadia "feels means-tested to maximize cross-market potential".Music critic Anthony Fantano, of The Needle Drop YouTube channel, describing it as "boring, uninspired, and uninteresting" and "metal for Disney adults". Sleep Token's previous record also had a lukewarm response from professional critics, but that didn't prevent it from being a group are due to headline Download Festival in Leicestershire next month, along with Green Day and the first time any of the bands have topped the bill at the rock acts due to perform include McFly, Bullet For My Valentine, Don Broco, Alien Ant Farm, Spiritbox, Poppy and CKY. Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sleep Token Score First ARIA No. 1 Album with ‘Even In Arcadia'
Sleep Token have claimed their first-ever No. 1 album in Australia, as Even In Arcadia debuts at the summit of the ARIA Albums Chart. The masked U.K. rock act previously peaked at No. 3 in 2023 with Take Me Back to Eden. Coming in just behind them is local indie-rock royalty Spacey Jane, who debut at No. 2 with If That Makes Sense. The Perth band continues their hot streak, following a No. 2 placement for Sunlight in 2020 and a No. 1 for Here Comes Everybody in 2022. Spacey Jane also took home Song of the Year at the 2021 ARIA Awards for their breakout hit 'Booster Seat.' More from Billboard The Weeknd Says Tom Cruise 'Lip Sync Battle' Helped Him Score First Hot 100 No. 1 in 'Tonight Show' Preview Bad Bunny Reveals His Big Summer Plans in 'SNL' Promos: 'Doing Awesome Stuff' Nick Jonas Thinks His Broadway Role Could Be Helping the Knicks' NBA Playoff Run: 'Coincidence? I Think Not' Elsewhere in the top 10, The Weeknd's Hurry Up Tomorrow rockets back into the top tier, surging from No. 78 to No. 10 following the release of its Complete Edition. The album previously topped the ARIA chart in February, marking his fifth No. 1 in Australia. Aussie legends INXS also return to the chart with the 40th anniversary reissue of Listen Like Thieves, landing at No. 17. The 1985 classic spent two weeks at No. 1 during its original run and remains one of five chart-toppers for the band. On the ARIA Singles Chart, Alex Warren holds strong at No. 1 for an eighth consecutive week with 'Ordinary,' now officially the longest-running chart-topper of 2025. It overtakes the seven-week reign of 'APT.' by Rosé and Bruno Mars, which also dominated the chart across late 2024. Meanwhile, Jessie Murph enters the top 20 for the first time in Australia with 'Blue Strips,' which climbs from No. 31 to No. 17. It follows her 2023 chart debut with 'High Road,' a collaboration with Koe Wetzel. ARIA's Vinyl Albums Chart sees Sleep Token, Spacey Jane, and INXS all appear again, reflecting strong physical sales across the board. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Four Decades of 'Madonna': A Look Back at the Queen of Pop's Debut Album on the Charts Chart Rewind: In 1990, Madonna Was in 'Vogue' Atop the Hot 100
