The psychology of how Sleep Token became the masked mammoths of metal
They successfully headlined Download, scored a Number One album and have over six million monthly listeners. So, how did the English rock band cultivate its rabidly dedicated fanbase?
We all have snapshot memories of KISS slathering on theatrical black and white makeup for the stage, and glam metal’s Mötley Crüe showing up with powdered faces and pink cheeks. Alternative bands have never shied away from the circus of costume and aesthetic, but Sleep Token take it a step further. In their case, the masks and cloaks they wear are crucial for maintaining anonymity. The band, with their lead vocalist known only as Vessel, and drummer going by ‘II’, plus two touring musicians, have reached an unprecedented level of commercial fame and success, akin to the likes of fellow masked metal acts GHOST and Slipknot.
Their fourth album, Even in Arcadia, released in May this year, topped the charts in the UK, US and Australia. Now, after their KoRn-approved headliner set at Download in mid-June, Sleep Token are being positioned as a once-in-a-generation metal band.
If you’re not familiar with Sleep Token, there’s a chance you’ve missed their guitar-guzzling, black metal-inspired tunes. At times, their mega-mashup of styles feels like Twenty One Pilots slammed against Imagine Dragons’ chart-patented pop-rock and tender, Coldplay-esque lyrics. After forming in 2016, their ascent as one of rock music’s newest highlights has pulled them into the mainstream spotlight.
Aside from their sweep of the charts, what stands out about Sleep Token is the passion of their fanbase. Rolling Stone UK reached out to some of their fans to find out what it is about the band’s image and music that lures them in.
Becky Remmer, 42, from Ottawa, Canada, first saw Sleep Token with her husband in Montreal in May last year. Such is her devotion to the band that she has travelled across the world to see them perform. “The first concert I saw them at was in Quebec, and I immediately bought tickets to see them in Toronto a few days later, and then flew over to see them in Glasgow and Manchester as well. There is something magical about the live shows which captivates you so much,” she says.
Moni Serneabat, 26, lead singer of the band Charm Offensive, admits she bought a ticket for Download simply to see Sleep Token live. Her reasoning for the band’s popularity is that their music “offers an escape” to their listeners.
It was hearing Sleep Token’s third studio album, Take Me Back to Eden, that converted Marie Killen, 33, from Florida. She connects deeply to Sleep Token’s discography, describing their work as filled with “yearning and passion”. Confessing that she feels seen by their music and writing, she believes Sleep Token is changing the game in the metal world. “The powerful lyrics combined with the rhythm and tempo of songs like ‘Alkaline’ and ‘Descending’ make me feel otherworldly. ‘High Water’ is deeply personal to me and reflects my mental health struggles and conflicts with faith and belonging,” says Killen.
“Sleep Token aren’t just performers, they’re artists,” she continues. “It’s poetry and stories that invoke something deep within you. I think their fans are looking for this connection to their music. Their musical style is so different from most big bands out there right now and melds so many genres together.”
Dedicated fan Keiran Heaffey, 34, from Milton Keynes, first discovered Sleep Token in 2020, while tuning into a Twitch stream during the Covid-19 pandemic. The band’s 2019 song ‘The Offering’ and the band personas were his gateway into the fandom. “I love the detail of Vessel. It shows that, in real life, humans can push themselves so far into something they want that they do not see the damage they are doing to themselves as a result,” he explains.
Heaffey reflects on Sleep Token’s rapid climb of the charts as a signifier of their “fervent” fan community, saying: “Avenged Sevenfold took 12 years [from their debut album] and six albums to get their first number one [album], Architects took 15 years and nine albums to get their first number one [album]. Sleep Token took only six years and four albums to do this. It is so rare for this to happen, especially in the world of streaming where we lose focus on a piece of music so quickly these days.”
This is an extract from a larger feature to be published in the September/August issue of Rolling Stone UK, published July 24. Pre-order the Sleep Token special fan edition cover here.