While She Sleeps + Malevolence + Thrown + Resolve
How do you become an era-defining metal band?
Is it through peerless levels of intensity?
Hooks strong enough to get everyone in earshot singing?
Or is it something as simple as the self-confidence to pursue your dreams despite all obstacles?
Whatever the hidden ingredient is, While She Sleeps have it.
The world first heard vocalist Loz Taylor, guitarists Sean Long and Mat Welsh, bassist Aaran Mckenzie and drummer Adam Savage together on 2010 EP The North Stands for Nothing. Ears instantly pricked upon hearing their energy and ambition. Sleeps’ bombardment of punk attitude and seething metal shattered expectations, as has their every subsequent album. Their integration of pop, electronics and conscious lyrics, which tackle depression and anxiety head-on, has continually kept the band two steps ahead of their peers. Metal Hammer deemed 2021’s Sleep Society “an album very much for these troubled times, from a band we can continue to believe in”; its impact was followed by a weekend-stealing set at the Download Pilot and, in 2023, a sellout show to 10,000 at London’s Alexandra Palace.
All the while, Sleeps have stayed proudly, defiantly DIY. They’ve eschewed the trappings of the conventional music industry by building their own base in their hometown of Sheffield. They release everything through their hand-made label, Sleeps Brothers, while writing, self-managing, demoing, producing and making music videos exclusively from their HQ. These tireless creatives go so far as to build their own stage props, which have joined them on blockbuster tours through five continents, visiting nations from Canada to Colombia, Thailand to Taiwan.
Even in a career of bold, empowering moves, though, Self Hell is truly special. Sleeps’ sixth album (produced by Long and long-time collaborator Carl Bown) casts their net even wider, considering symphonic music, hardcore, synth-rock and metal alike. Yet, through all those styles, it never loses sight of the band’s ability to make confident, stadium-prepared anthems – nor their focus on advocating for everybody’s mental health.
Doors open: 18:00
Resolve 18:30 – 19:05
Thrown 19:20 – 19:55
Malevolence 20:15 – 20:55
While She Sleeps 21:20 – 22:30
Estimated end: 22:30
The world first heard vocalist Loz Taylor, guitarists Sean Long and Mat Welsh, bassist Aaran Mckenzie and drummer Adam Savage together on 2010 EP The North Stands for Nothing. Ears instantly pricked upon hearing their energy and ambition. Sleeps’ bombardment of punk attitude and seething metal shattered expectations, as has their every subsequent album. Their integration of pop, electronics and conscious lyrics, which tackle depression and anxiety head-on, has continually kept the band two steps ahead of their peers. Metal Hammer deemed 2021’s Sleep Society “an album very much for these troubled times, from a band we can continue to believe in”; its impact was followed by a weekend-stealing set at the Download Pilot and, in 2023, a sellout show to 10,000 at London’s Alexandra Palace.
All the while, Sleeps have stayed proudly, defiantly DIY. They’ve eschewed the trappings of the conventional music industry by building their own base in their hometown of Sheffield. They release everything through their hand-made label, Sleeps Brothers, while writing, self-managing, demoing, producing and making music videos exclusively from their HQ. These tireless creatives go so far as to build their own stage props, which have joined them on blockbuster tours through five continents, visiting nations from Canada to Colombia, Thailand to Taiwan.
Even in a career of bold, empowering moves, though, Self Hell is truly special. Sleeps’ sixth album (produced by Long and long-time collaborator Carl Bown) casts their net even wider, considering symphonic music, hardcore, synth-rock and metal alike. Yet, through all those styles, it never loses sight of the band’s ability to make confident, stadium-prepared anthems – nor their focus on advocating for everybody’s mental health.