I can’t believe I haven’t reviewed this album yet. It is definitely a top 10 album for me in 2023.

I don’t know how to describe it.

At a high level, it is progressive. But it’s not progressive with complex time changes and intricate passages. Its progressive via the songwriting. Each song is varied with different styles and genres thrown in. Verse riffs are different, and the melodies are different between verses on some songs. Some songs don’t even have a Chorus. Just verse after verse. Some songs have a repeating hook that moves between syncopated progressions.

Chokehold

This is the song that grabbed me by the throat and strangled me. It’s that vocal line and that voice, which reminds me of “Take Me To Church” from Hozier.

The Chorus riff crashes in afterwards, but you don’t hear the Chorus words of “you got me in a chokehold” until the next time.

Then the 2nd verse comes in, with arpeggiated lines and another vocal line, different to what came before.

Then the Chorus crashes in and I am hooked. Mesmerized. At 71.2 plus million streams and counting so are a lot of other people.

Even Daughtry covered it for a live performance, just himself and an acoustic guitar. By doing this, Daughtry demonstrated how pop like the melodies are in the song.

The Summoning

This one is almost at 150 plus million streams.

If you jumped into the band because of “Chokehold” this song might change your mind because its got screaming vocals, intricate atmospheric guitar playing which reminds me of “Between The Buried And Me” and other vocal lines that wouldn’t be lost on the “White Pony” Deftones album.

If anything, it follows the vibe of what people recognize as “Djent”.

The section from the minute mark is essential listening because it comes out of nowhere. Its almost soul like, more Imagine Dragons and One Republic than metal or djent.

Brilliant stuff and I like the variation.

Granite

A synth line kicks off the song, which sounds like it was written on the TonePad iPhone app.

And the song lives in this environment, very pop like and I like it. Then a jarring, math like riff kicks in at 2.40 mark. It could get boring, but then the infectious vocal melody from earlier is sung over it and its worth your attention.

Aqua Regia

The synth/keyboards is a very dominant instrument in Sleep Token. It lives in its atmospheric synth world and doesn’t jar me, but that doesn’t mean it’s a crap song. On the contrary.

Vore

It spends the first minutes with ghoul like vocals, almost black metal guttural before it moves into clean tone vocals which makes me feel I am on top of Mt Everest and I am screaming my lungs out.

That section from 3.50. Listen to it.

Ascensionism

The piano line is hypnotic, and it grabs my attention straight away.

Then at 1.50 it’s a hip hop like song, with autotune and all the bells and whistles which comes with that genre.

Then at 3.44 its back to that haunting piano line and then the distortion guitars kick in and I am sick from all the movements within the song.

Progressive it is, purely from blending their influences expertly.

And that riff from 4.44, is doom metal, with a screaming ghostly scream. Then its back to the hypnotic piano line at the 5.25 mark. But there is still 2 minutes to go.

Make sure you stick around for the last 45 seconds. It’s worth it.

Are You Really, Okay?

A clean tone guitar riff and I feel like I am at a campfire. Its heartland like stuff.

The vocals are all clean tone, enhancing the emotion. When the drums come in, it feels like a Neil Young album, but I cant shake the feeling of “Albatross” from Fleetwood Mac that the song gives me.

The Apparition

“Why are you never real whenever you appear?”

It’s the opening line, over a clean tone fingerpicked guitar riff. It’s almost Spanish like in its feel.

Then a synth line kicks in, demanding attention. Hip hop like drums come in and I am paying attention to see what kind of journey this song would take me on. But it percolates in this vibe.

Then at 2.24 it takes off, with soaring vocals over a math like guitar riff. Its catchy and I am on the magic carpet ride the song offers, soaring between galaxies and the afterlife.

DYWTYLM

It stands for “Do You Wish That You Loved Me”.

The main keyboard riff has sonics that remind me of the TonePad app. It wouldn’t be out of place on an Imagine Dragons album or on one of Daughtry’s albums between 2013 and 2017. Its memorable
and dance like and it lives in this vibe for the whole song.

Rain

It’s at 16 million streams on Spotify. Another piano riff and a catchy vocal melody. And the song just builds.

Take Me Back To Eden

The title track is almost at 67.5 million streams on Spotify. You feel like you are at a nature retreat and the start of the song has that vibe, soothing and relaxing. Even the words like crystal waters, dream in phosphorus and perfect ocases

At 2.30 the distortion kicks in and those soaring vocals are back. Its been a theme of the album, to have these kind of soaring vocals. But at 3.23, it goes to hip-hop and you could think that you are ears deep into an Enimen album.

At 4.44 another hanting section comes in with piano and then when the distortion kicks in, its hopeful, iuts sad but still hopeful. And it lives in this vibe until the end. With the last 50 seconds jarring me out of my nature retreat with screaming vocals which came out from nowhere. And I suppoise this is Sleep Token with so many variables and movements in their songs.

Euclid

My favorite track on the album. As soon as the first notes of the piano riff started I was hooked. The vocal line is hypnotic and it’s a cross between Daughtry and Hozier.

And the way the song builds is perfection.

Press play and allow your ears to take you on a journey.