Sleep Token’s rise from cult metal oddities to Download headliners has generated plenty of buzz, but in a creative sense the band reaches fresh heights with ‘Even In Arcadia’, a record that shatters genre boundaries with breathtaking confidence.
The masked collective's fourth album finds the enigmatic Vessel at his most vulnerable, breaking the fourth wall and forgoing their career-long concept in favour of wrestling with fame’s double-edged sword. Musically, too, there is a sense of freedom and they craft their most sonically adventurous offering yet.
Opener Look To Windward establishes the album’s chameleonic nature, morphing from hypnotic 8-bit nostalgia into apocalyptic breakdowns as Vessel whispers, “Will you halt this eclipse in me?”
It’s a masterclass in atmospheric control that feels like watching tectonic plates shift beneath your feet — the sort of praise you save for revolutionary bands like Radiohead. But on ‘Even In Arcadia’, Sleep Token earn it.
Where previous releases built their foundations on post-metal and prog, here their sound explodes outwards in every direction. Past Self seamlessly blends R&B sensuality with garage-inflected beats, Gethsemane crosses discordant piano patterns with math-rock noodling, while Provider somehow marries Ed Sheeran-worthy pop hooks with skull-crushing djent riffs. The band’s new crown jewel, though, might be Damocles, its radiant keys and explosive chorus capturing the vertigo of success with haunting precision.
Lyrically, Vessel peels back the mask, confronting his relationship with Sleep Token’s cult-like mythology. “Nobody told me I’d get tired of myself, when it all looks like heaven, but it feels like hell,” he admits on Damocles, while Past Self directly challenges fans’ obsession with the band’s concept. The eight-minute closer Infinite Baths brings this duel of the fates to its cathartic conclusion, building from whispered confessions to a towering, Deafheaven-esque blackgaze crescendo.
What makes ‘Even In Arcadia’ truly remarkable is how it transmutes these personal demons into music that feels universally transcendent. Sleep Token have created that rarest of beasts: an album that can simultaneously dominate arenas and soundtrack solitary 3am crises of faith. As they prepare to conquer Download’s hallowed main stage one thing is certain: we are witnessing the coronation of metal’s most vital voice.
Sleep Token Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Tue September 16 2025 - DULUTH Georgia - Gas South Arena (USA)
Wed September 17 2025 - ORLANDO Florida - Kia Center (USA)
Sat September 20 2025 - GREENSBORO North Carolina - First Horizon Coliseum (USA)
Mon September 22 2025 - BROOKLYN New York - Barclays Center (USA)
Tue September 23 2025 - WORCESTER Massachusetts - DCU Center (USA)
Wed September 24 2025 - PHILADELPHIA Pennsylvania - Wells Fargo Center (USA)
Fri September 26 2025 - DETROIT Michigan - Little Caesars Arena (USA)
Sat September 27 2025 - CLEVELAND Ohio - Rocket Arena (formerly Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse) (USA)
Sun September 28 2025 - ROSEMONT Illinois - Allstate Arena (USA)
Tue September 30 2025 - LINCOLN Nebraska - Pinnacle Bank Arena (USA)
Wed October 01 2025 - MINNEAPOLIS Minnesota - Target Center (USA)
Fri October 03 2025 - DENVER Colorado - Ball Arena (USA)
Sun October 05 2025 - SALT LAKE CITY Utah - Maverik Center (USA)
Tue October 07 2025 - TACOMA Washington - Tacoma Dome (USA)
Wed October 08 2025 - PORTLAND Oregon - Moda Center (USA)
Fri October 10 2025 - OAKLAND California - Oakland Arena (USA)
Sat October 11 2025 - LOS ANGELES California - Crypto.com Arena (USA)
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