RCA Records/Sony Music Australia
May 9
Words by Greg Walker
You either get Sleep Token or you don’t; there is no middle ground. A polarising entity in today’s metal scene, running the gamut of passions, vibrant emotions, and poignant heaviness, a gorgeous, masterful blend of musical elements such as pop, electronica, R&B, hard rock, and yes, METAL.
You never know what you’re going to get with Sleep Token, but then again, somehow you do. It’s a warm blanket enveloping, soothing, haunting; it’s home. Upcoming album Even In Arcadia picks up where previous full-length Take Me Back To Eden left off, radiating a maturation, a fantastic musical sense and aptitude, and a more refined cohesiveness overall.
Opening the album in a bold statement, Look To Windward boasts a tense, forlorn buildup the likes of which Sleep Token have made their idiom, with an incredible payoff soaring as you transcend the atmosphere. Giving way to undulating vocal swirls, the icebreaker track includes just about any and every aspect Sleep Token has mastered. I want to encourage, not ruin the reward, so suffice to say there’s a couple of surprises, including an impossibly heavy ending. Frankly, an outstanding start.
The three pre-release singles are perfect examples of what to expect, but at the same time, they cannot prepare you for what you’re about to experience. Emergence seduces with Vessel’s breathy elocution giving way to a lyrical bounce that’s bordering on hip-hop delivery. The guitar tension in the bridge works to constrict the rib cage, when the song emerges, it’s an invigorating gasp. A sultry morning-after saxophone solo closes us out. Damocles is elegant, triumphant, empathetic, a pure essence, all wrapped up in the guise of a hard rock anthem.
The pick of the lead singles is clearly Caramel, what a wonderful example of everything that Sleep Token does brilliantly, another all-inclusive blend of styles, quite simply a work of art. Vessel‘s silky voice right in your ear gives way to expansive strokes of atmospheric ardour, cut off with wonderful dissonance, some rare growls, and the revelation that Vessel is dealing with the envied curse of pressures wrought as a result of the popularity his art and performances have garnered. Yet he persists. It’s a lesson: no matter the beautiful nightmare, keep dancing along to your rhythm. A genius choice to promote this album.
Title track Even In Arcadia is above all a standout. A stunning ethereal treat, driven by a sublime smoky tone, every note, every breath, is a calculated effort. Epic, majestic, in spite of unashamedly standing itself on a pedestal this piece is wonderfully restrained. Vessel’s performance here induces goosebumps, Even In Arcadia proving heaviness doesn’t always come from down tuned guitars, guttural barks, brutal blast beats. Piano soothes the intro, strings haunt the outro long after the forest sounds fade. The best song I’ve heard released this year, just phenomenal.
A reprieve from the multifaceted compositions, Past Self is straightforward by comparison, a laid-back pop moment. The pop/R&B infused Provider climbs to a triumphant pinnacle so smoothly you barely realise you’ve been carried there until you’re standing atop the summit drenched in sunlight. Elsewhere, Dangerous oozes mood, while closer Infinite Baths is a slow burn building over 5 minutes to erupt into one of the album’s most impossibly heavy moments, a climax leaving me satisfied yet craving more.
The concept of constructing songs from so many elements could very easily become too busy, complicated, and cluttered. But Even In Arcadia is organic and dextrous; there are zero boundaries, every aspect of popular music and beyond is on the table. The interlacing of electronics, djenty guitars, keyboards, delicate intricacies of strings and aural colours of brass renders each track a true experience, all combining to create a grand tour of the emotive spectrum.
You might accuse me of gushing, but this odyssey downright deserves it.
