So, after about 12 hours of this video being live, I've had some questions and want to answer a few things. 1] I HAVE listened to the album in full again. 2 more times, actually. It's grown on me a bit, and I've noticed some more production things that I enjoy, and even enjoyed parts that I didn't before. While I still wouldn't rank it up there with one of MY personal albums of the year, I still highly enjoy the album. 2] The reason that the full unedited version of this video from Twitch is only available on Patreon is for a couple reasons. Contrary to what some people are thinking, it has NOTHING to do with getting people to sign up for Patreon... I mean, it's $1 to join my Patreon so it's not like I'd be making a large amount of money even if a handful of people signed up. It's more to do with UA-cam. Even though Spinefarm let me do this, uploading the entire album to UA-cam could cause some copyright problems that I don't want to deal with. On top of that, it's a 1 hour and 43 minute video that is very niche content that only a handful of people have expressed that they want to watch. In fact, it's SO niche that the UA-cam algorithm would view it as "bad content" because of the low number of views it would get, and I'd suffer negative effects of that on my channel. Also, I just wanted to have something exclusive on Patreon because I don't do that that much. 3] Some people have asked if I will continue to do album reviews, and I honestly don't know at this current point in time. But I am humbled and do appreciate the people that have told me they enjoyed how I did this, so thank you for that!
@TankTheTech Oh, I see I have forgotten to unsubscribe to you.. To bad your become one of "them" .... those who contribute to all of the conspiracy theories in the world.. YUCK!!! It makes me sick.. Too bad, I kinda liked your reactions.. Oh well, there are many many more out there, that dont spread shit to he's viewers...!!! Goodbye!
I turned 67 a week ago and my first metal album was Black Sabbath's first album back in 69. Ive heard a lot of monumental albums in my lifetime like Dark Side of the Moon, Led Zeppelin IV. This is going to be one of those albums that people will remember 50 years from now. Awesome
I agree with you, i have been into metal for 30 years now, from classic to rock to black to Doom/Gothic to neo and metalcore... this is gonna be a classic, and some of the hate it is taking always happened to the classics: Black sabbath. Nirvana , Linkin park, Slipknot...
This 70s baby agrees. It is an epic mind-opener in the same vein as those you mentioned. Knowing it is the tail end of a trilogy makes me excited to start from the beginning.
Same here. Going in I did not expect to like this band. Upon hearing The Summoning I went from intrigued to fascinated to completely obsessed. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but the feelings they evoke is unlike anything I’ve ever heard.
That's awesome. While I like the album, I wasn't able to really have any huge connection to it. BUT, I know the feeling of connecting with albums well, and it makes me stoked that other people have an album that means so much to them.
Me too it was kind of weird to me how most of the songs made me very emotional? lol like usually a band has one or two but this album, the lyrics and I guess ambience just hit
Album of the decade for me, honestly. It scratches EVERY little itch my brain has. The vocals, lyrics, the melodies, the instrumental, I love it all! Can't wait to see your reaction, I came on the stream too late and you were finished already.
While I don’t share the same “album of the decade” sentiment, I’m honestly happy there are people out there like yourself that feel that way, because I know the feeling of absolutely loving an album and forming that connection with it. Again, good album, but I think I missed a litte bit of that personal connection with it.
@@TankTheTech that's absolutely fair. There is so much great music out there for everyone to connect on a deeper level. I'm just happy that I found my soul's jam lol. Hope everyone gets to find theirs!
I personally liked the heavier sides of this album the most along with the r&b, mysterious, and old school sleep token moments. The harsh transitions that might feel out of place are selling points for me, and over all, this is the best album I’ve heard in years.
The harsh transitions only work on this album bc they fit the narrative of each song. The way they lyrically build into the transition is really cool but I see how if you’re not hyper fixated on the story being told it could feel jarring.
I’m relatively new to Sleep Token, just got into them a few months ago once the TMBTE singles started dropping, but they’ve completely taken over my brain. They just hit everything I like in my music, and this one was just incredible start to finish.
Aye! I found them from TMBTE but i actually vibe with the other 2 albums as much, if more than the TMBTE album, i love their music so much! So glad to have found them!
I wasn’t crazy about “Vore” on first listen, but it’s one of my favorites now. Just that soaring chorus gives me tingles. Looking forward to your reaction to the title track as this video rolls on. Definitely my favorite song of the album, been stuck in my head for days.
That album is definitely an album you need to have context for. Being a huge fan of theirs since Sundowning, their first album, this one hit hard. It's not as easy to listen to as Sundowning or This Place Will Become Your Tomb were, it's a bit more akin to their EPs, which is why I loved it. But I definitely cannot recommend it over Sundowning for new listeners, as it is very contextual and vastly more complex than Sundowning was.
I don't think it's too "complex" lol. I think the issue most people have is that it sounds souless and bland. And the different genres don't really flow well, instead the songs are divided in very clear and unconnected sections like oh yeah here's the "pop part", then an abrupt cut into the "metal part" and then the "rnb part" or the "funky part". And none of those genres are pulled off in a particularly interesting way. But personally after all that rant and despite the obvious flaws I still enjoy some of the songs.😊
This album needs a few full listens, like the individual songs never clicked with me. It's a masterpiece but it took me a long time to appreciate songs, the grime/r&b didn't do it for me at first, and the heavy points were almost bland sounding. Now I've listened a lot more it's really cool, AOTY contender for me
I love this band! Vessel is telling a story of love through the trilogy of albums. He often uses chemistry as a metaphor to decribe that love and relationship. This is reflected in the music through the mixing of genre elements as well. All the lore and code they put in artwork for albums and singles adds another layer of depth too.
The whole album is a vibe, like you said. It's a unique sound and those of us that are attracted to that are all in. Not to say its never been done. There is a lot of generic stuff out there currently, but this aint it. Super happy to have discovered them recently.
I actually never really listened to these guys before, and really didn't listen to any of the singles before. Someone in a discord I was in mentioned them, and I was like "Oh, that's that band with the creepy bug video thumbnails," and decided to pull the album up on spotify. I immediately was hooked and bought the vinyl... I was just vibing the entire time and got into a zone I rarely get into. Definitely in my top ten for this year.
I do understand how you'd feel that way about the end of "Eden" however for me it was the ultimate culmination of the building tone and emotion of the song both in the lyrics and delivery and it reminds me that screams don't have to overtake a song and can be used to convey specific emotion in a song
Okay, it turns out I'm a Tank patreon now! I have been subscribed for a while(2021?) but your unbiased and honest opinion on this very special album (at least for me), made me want to contribute with what I can. Never change, Tank, you're great!
He didn’t put it on patreon because he thought people wouldn’t watch it. He put it on there to make money because he knew people would watch it. Doesn’t bother me other then lying about why he put it on patreon instead
I'm an EDM fan through and through. I've been listening to electronic music almost exclusively since 2010. I found Sleep Token by accident, watching a drumeo video. Hypnosis hooked me immediately. I LOVE this album. I think Sleep Token are the metal equivalent of my favorite EDM artist Illenium. Illenium does some hard dubstep stuff, but also does a lot of super vibey stuff. I think Sleep Token are a good metal equivalent. They have a lot of range. Illenium's first three albums were a trilogy that told a story too. Been loving their stuff as of late, even moreso than any electronic music. II did an interview with drumeo recently, was cool to hear him cite drum and bass music as an inspiration.
Everyone knows that once a band has a level of expectation on them people will start to say it doesn’t live up to the hype. I listened to this album with zero expectation going into it, and it is a brilliant album. His vocals can be overly dramatised, but I don’t hear genres of music, I hear a story, perhaps not through words but through how the music is played.
True, but it's not just expectation in this case. You have a person in this comment section talking about how this will be compared to The Dark Side of the Moon in 50 years, and I think the most grandiose take I've seen is how it "will create a new era of music". I'm all for people loving them and thinking it's a 10/10 album, but part of the fanbase really seems to think this is some kind of objectively groundbreaking, Mozart-level moment of musical history.
@@perlundgren7797 fair enough, if people are getting carried away with it then I understand why some people might want to say ‘hold on a sec’ to those sort of comments, that is totally understandable. The people I speak to who like Sleep Token are quite grounded, and don’t make outlandish comparisons thank God lol
That’s how you review an album that your Luke warm on. Incredible detail in your explanation or your opinion. You didn’t shit all over it because you didn’t like it eg Fantano, Thralls of Metal, guy who dresses like a metal scene kid and wears a skull mask and aviators and so on. Nicely done my man!
Hey Tank, I can agree with a lot of what you said. Particularly with the sudden heavy parts I can see how it can feel quite out of place. I just happen to be a guy who absolutely eats that stuff up, which is how I got hooked on Sleep Token to begin with. The way they blend genres together not only do i find really fun to listen to, I think they execute it very well. And yes. Having context from Sundowning and This Place Will Become Your Tomb is important for understanding a lot of what is going on in this album. Sidenote: Mad respect for the fact that you arent afraid to give your honest opinion about music you hear, and your personality is a huge bonus. Coming from a Sleep Token fan who says Worship :)
I think a very small subset of "Worshippers" can't handle someone like Fantano disliking their favorite album. But I believe most of us who love music--who feel music deeply--I think most of us understand that not everyone likes the same things. Take Me Back to Eden is, for me, the most important album I've listening to in years. I haven't felt an album (not single, album) this deeply since...well, probably Sundowning. Before that, maybe all the way back to Wintersun's "Time" (don't get me started on that though). But as important as this album is to me, for other people their special album(s) are other ones. That's the beauty of music.
100%. And for those people who love this album, that makes me super happy because I know that feeling of having such an emotional connection with a record you love.
A lot of people dislike Fantano for legitimate reasons. His reviews are set up like he’s trying to be as objective as possible, but everyone knows he has a strange music taste and obvious biases. There’s nothing wrong with that, music is very subjective, but the problem comes when his fanbase takes his word as gospel and starts going around the internet shitting on things just because he dislikes them. Add on to that the fact that he clearly dislikes certain musicians/bands because it’s the popular thing to do and tends to bring his personal biases against them as people into his reviews and you can see how it rubs people the wrong way
First time checking your channel out, you've got a new fan! I fully admit I'm a diehard ST fan, but I appreciated the reasoning you had for not being super duper into the album. I'm probably just looking in the wrong places, but a lot of reviews I've seen of this album have been either "GOAT AOTY WORSHIP", or "lol imagine dragons lol" and I liked that this wasn't that. Looking forward to more stuff from you!
I really liked this album when it came out but now I absolutely love it. There were a handful of songs that I was kind of meh on but after time really grew on me. I think because the album is so long and there is so much going on you really need to give it a handful of listens to form a good option of it. That being said this was a great video, I enjoyed the different perspective.
I agree, when I first listened to it I thought it was solid but that was about it, then I went back and listened to their 3 albums back to back and it just clicked.
The more I've listened to it, the more it's grown on me and I've really stared appreciating what they're doing. As someone who listens to a lot of genres of music, this is so refreshing in the metal scene. Great thoughts and opinions my man! Keep up the good work
For sure. As I said, “people like to shit on things just to shit on things”. Life is so much better when you just try and enjoy stuff. I will also admit that even though I enjoyed the overall album on first listen, I liked it even more on the second and third.
@TankTheTech That's why I appreciate your way of thinking. Life can be [beep] but you always find something to enjoy. I'm happy that you are always you Sir ❤️
I’m going to be the “to be fair” person. I’d never heard of Sleep Token before the hype. I’m not going to shit on people who have liked their music from the beginning. But my exposure to them has been “best thing to ever exist, best album ever, you have to listen to them they are geniuses and therefore your new favorite band” and so I check them out and it’s…….meh. So the hype is super annoying. And it makes me think the fans are annoying and that I need to explain why they aren’t good. Of course that’s just my opinion but hyping something up that much makes people think it’s OBJECTIVELY good vs SUBJECTIVELY. And I don’t think it is.
@Anders Sven Too big hype or die-hard fanbase can kill enjoy from music. That same is for Tool, Nightwish and few others. I think this album isn't good for start. I respect your opinion Sir.
Thank you, Tank! I’ve never even made it all the way through Vore, but gawd, I love this band. Saw them open last year and am absolutely ecstatic about the growth they’ve achieved this year!
God Bless you Bro!!! I am a very avid fan but I appreciated your honesty and critical view of it. I like hearing thoughts contrary to mine from time to time. While I adore this album, I can understand your perspective on it. This band isn't for everyone...which mainly has to do with the lore and the history. It's "homework" and takes some commitment. Hat's off on a solid and honest review. Enjoyed it...
As far as Are You Really Okay being their least listened song on the album, it might have something to do with "hitting too close to home". I've seen several people stating they can't listen to it because of the lyrics, and honestly, I'm one of them. Otherwise, I love this album. But I've loved the band ever since I heard Blood Sport (From Room Below), two years ago. The next two years ended up being the worst of my lifetime, but I had the music of Sleep Token to be a holding hand and cry against to. So there's a sense of being heard and consolidated. Vessel sings about things we struggle with and it makes us feel heard. Us fans love the lore but we also love the way this music makes us feel. And that's the reason I love them. 🖤
@@AttilatheThrilla You mean, someone who's struggling or loves Sleep Token? 😄 I've met several likeminded female fans online who are one of the most empathic and incredible people there are. Hope you'll end up finding yours! 🖤
I certainly one that adores this album, released at a vulnerable time for me so hence the attraction. Can also respect the hell out this reaction from Tank, as always, keeping your mind open and showing real professionalism towards the industry, keep up the great work mate!
This album is amazing. So diverse. I LOVE the shifts in tone. Going from Ascensionism to Are You Really OK? Is jarring - and I think it SHOULD be and is meant to be. No one should ever be comfortable with any form of self harm. It ought to slap us in the face and slam us into reality. I think that shift is perfect. It’s breathtaking - just like it would be if you came upon a loved one who had hurt themself. It would take your breath away.
they have a lot of interludes that are beautiful if you listen to them straight through. for most its too much, but if u wait and listen straight through its absolutely gorgeous! Its one of those albums you listen to alone and really feel the vibe. its not really a big concert vibe but seeing it live is just as beautiful
Appreciate you taking the time to give such a fair and balanced review of this album. It’s a really weird experience seeing people shit over a band you’ve loved for years and whose music means the world to you just because they’ve become popular. I won’t dive deep into the Lore but re: the fade outs, it could be interpreted as the subject of those songs not having come to a conclusion. Kudos for not giving the album a score / rating. As you said, music is subjective and the best music is felt in your soul.
Yeah, I personally don’t want people to just come here and shit on music in the comments, but I’m not gonna stop anyone as long as it’s nothing hateful and ridiculous. But you’re gonna get that with any band that has hype around them. Some people will not get it and dislike it. And then others will dislike it because they don’t want to get it.
@@TankTheTech I’m new to your channel and I like it but man how are you allowing this to be called metal when more than half could be played on Ryan Seacrest Rockin Eve on New Years. I’m not hating but the people loving this must love melodic rock and that’s ok!!! But this ain’t metal and I’m mad at Apple putting it on my metal new arrivals. Ah ha - I posted before your conclusion. Ok you get it. 👍🏾
I am really glad to hear high praise on The Apparition; I've seen a lot of dislike for that song and so it's really cool to hear good things about it! I can also understand a lot of your criticisms; I found for me the album goes hard and I have been listening to it nonstop. I love how broad their music is and how they don't really fit into one single genre, and I think their songwriting is very creative, especially in the last two songs of the album. I find all the songs in it engaging in their own way and I love their sound
I've given this a couple of listens now. Once on my own and once track by track with this review before you gave your thoughts on each track. This is really my first sleep token album but I've listened to other "genre blending"/fusion bands before, one of my favourites being Twelve Foot Ninja. For me, this album mostly doesn't do it for me. Some tracks are nice, but others (as you pointed out) feel out of place. DYTYLM for example, although being simple and contrasting the rest of the album, just felt boring and repetitive to me, and Take Me Back to Eden long overstayed it's welcome (but had some nice elements). I'm quite used to and regularly listen to prog stuff, but there wasn't enough in there to warrant the length IMO. I'm not really a lyrics person, I'd rather get lost in the melodies, bass lines, rhythms and the like. This album felt like it had a large focus on lyrics and the "shock value" of the genre switching and variety, but I wouldn't even call it a jack of all trades. Maybe it'll grow on me, but it doesn't feel like it's up my alley. Even with the context of it being part of a series of albums, it doesn't make much of a difference to me. In my view, an album should be able to stand on its own, but this one feels too wishy washy and fragmented.
I like your reviews Tank. But I take issue with your comparisons to Deftones. I’m a huge deftones fan, but the riffs of ST are not what people are referring to when they say “no one’s done anything like this before”. Also, as much as I love Chino, his vocal chops overall are dwarfed by Vessel’s versatility. There is no comparison really.
I think I agree with you. I had hoped for more/something else and I don't really get the hype but I must say some of the tracks has definitely grew on me after a couple of listens more.
Great video, Tank! As a Sleep Token fan, I appreciated your measured take on your review and felt like you broke your opinions down very clearly and professionally.
Before I watch... I was waiting so hard for this. I just cant wait to know what you think after seeing them first here on the channel when you reacted to Jaws.
Yo Tank! I’m glad someone else has liked The Apparition, one my personal favorites, but the total album is A1 on point for me. The last track Euclid, however, I feel is for the die hard fans like myself. I started to listen to Sleep Token back in 2019 when shit was going weird in my life, Euclid is a callback to the first track “The Night Does Not Belong To God” from the first full album release Sundowning. It’s cyclical…ending the Sundowning Trilogy with a callback to the first track of the first album.
I feel that a lot of people don't really get the "heavy" that sleep token does. It only makes sense if you follow the story, it's often coming from a place of frustration, desperation, or depression. It is supposed to be jarring, to be out of place, and is NOT supposed to be seen as a perfect flow for the song. DYWTYLM's autotuned voice and upbeat has also a reason - Vessel is really vulnerable in that song, talking with his past self or a love interest and he is not yet comfortable going all out, so he masked it with the "unnatural voice" and upbeat melody. Thanks for checking it out, Tank! You are right, we love what we love and we shouldn't be influenced by others' opinions.
It’s great to see that your interpretation is the same as mine. The more I listen to the songs the more I really feel the anger in those heavy moments, High Water being perhaps the best example.
@@dalerjh Agreed! The ending breakdown from Take me back to Eden is also a great example, he is literally screaming "I have traveled far beyond the path of reason/Take me back to Eden". Man is desperate, he sacrificed a lot, and he needs to get to his "destination" whatever that might symbolize.
@@NahIamgood If my interpretation is right, the narrator knows he can’t reach his destination regardless of his desperation. No wonder it’s so crushingly heavy.
Hey tank! I hightly recommend you listen to their albums, sundowning and this place will become your tomb, there flow alot more and imo i recon set you up better context wise for TMBTE. Always love your reviews tank! I would love to see what you think of the previous 2 albums!
They’re not a unicorn band, people that just discovered them need to get that. They’re a good band. But others have done this vibe-like things before. Twelve Foot Ninja for one. Any project by Mike Patton. Deftones. Periphery (Mike Zero, Luck as a Constant, Wildfire). TesseracT. It’s a good album, I dig it. But people need to chill on there has never been a band this unique before. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Even though I don't entirely agree with your opinion about TMBTE, You should definitely keep doing album reviews! Like you said - music is very subjective, but it's always great to listen to someone who has a lot more experience on the both sides of the fence.
I totally get your opinion. For me, I didn't give a crap about Sleep Token (after hearing some of their older songs) before this album but decided to check it out after hearing the singles on reaction channels and loved it. There's a good chance it will be on my top 50 favorites list by the end of the year. That being said is it the cream of the crop? Not for me. There are plenty of albums I have heard this year that I like more than Take Me Back To Eden but it's still really good.
This is interesting to hear someone actually not liking the overall album. But the thing that strikes me the most is that you consider this album too long? Like, I used to listen to albums that are at least 1h long, with music that are sometimes over 15min long, and "short albums" (45min albums) 10 years back were considered unfinished. And now I hear a LOT of artists (not even fans...) say that a song that's over 3min is way too long for anyone to like it, so they try to cut short everything they produce. Lorna Shore were even a bit scared to release Pain Remains (the 3 part song) because it was long. They even CUT this song that, 10 years ago, would have been released as a 20min song instead. Same thing, if a band doesn't release at least 4 singles a year they become irrelevant and people move on, hence why bands like Sleep Token release half of their album as singles and ruin the surprise for all of us. Honestly, WHEN did we lose so much attention? Why? This is the same with shows. 10 years ago a headliner played for 1h30 to 2h, sometimes going as far as 3h when they didn't have any opener. But now, when you go to a show, the headliner will play for 1h and call it a day, and people will still find it too long smh. What the hell happened in this world? Don't tell me it's just Tiktok and Covid, it can't be responsible for everything that's happening everywhere!
Absolutely love this album! Ascensionism, The Appartition & Take Me Back To Eden were my favorite's! Why does everyone hate fade outs? I hear this over and over.
I think for me it’s that I like conclusions and hard finishes. With a fade out I feel like I’m left hanging. But truthfully it’s more of a joke at this point than my actual hatred of it.
I personally dont have anything against longs records and long songs. I mean one of my favorite records is 'Måsstaden under vatten' by Vildhjarta and this thing is 80 minutes long. And I absolutely love TMBTE, but just one thing, I honestly don't fully like Granite and Aqua Regia. Like those songs are amazing, but for me I'd love the record more if it had just 10 songs, without those two. And for me the title track is the PERFECT way to make a title track, besides the breakdown. I honestly like that one because of the many switches, the lyrics and because of the ambience, on which i have to say, they nailed it. But that's all I have to say, for now. Could probably talk about this record for the same time this video runs. So, if you read this have a wonderful day and be safe. (In Japan)
I wonder if Tank’s take on this album has changed over time. I’m still obsessed with this album and have only gotten more obsessed with the bands entire discography especially after having seen the band live.
Sleep Token is one of the best rock bands out right now, they are changing the game, I don’t think they are over hyped, it’s just their time to shine right now!
I couldn’t get into anything they released only heard parts and sometime the slower parts drug on and I would lose interest. Never paid attention last couple months. Gave it another chance today it’s really good. I mean it’s a change to the typical song structure and sometimes the slower parts drag but the payoffs are worth it. The change in genres mid song take some getting used to. Paid more attention to the lyrics. Pretty good. Starting to like what I’m hearing. The end of take me back to Eden is epic.
Definitely understand the contrast in opinion between first half and second half opinions. I feel like the second half of the album is full of the songs that take either more lore knowledge or more listens to understand the intention in the tone changes (lyrically and in the story) to truly appreciate and love. Otherwise they probably feel very forced on a first listen which is what I imagine you were experiencing. From what I can tell, and lore wise, and musicality, the tone changes, call backs, and incorporation of metal are very intentional and add an incredible element to the storytelling aspect of the albums. This album is especially difficult I think, for a first time listen review for someone who’s not deep in lore. I hope you get some time to relisten and discover some of that fun. But there’s something for everyone either way. Glad you found some songs you enjoyed even on the first listen and appreciate the video and time you took on it.
I just watched this video for your review, and I must admit, a LOT of what you said, I felt the same way about when I first listened through.........but now the album is in my constant rotation list. The more you listen, the more you notice, not just lyrically, but on the production side of it as well. There's so many layers to each song (for example, in Take Me Back To Eden, near the end of the song, there are lyrics from Chokehold kind of hidden in the background), and the variety of each individual song keeps me from getting bored. Gotta say, i'm really impressed by this one!
I think Sleep Token has some pretty good songs. I'm not obsessed, espeically like Will Ramos lol, and I don't listen to them very much though. I don't quite understand all the crazy hype about them either. Glad it is getting some heavy stuff out to new people though. I also definitely agree some heavy parts are added, just to add heavy parts.
Tank, that was great stream. In my opinion, this album is "splited" to me on two part. As Tank said, first half was really interesting and variety, second one got "more slow down vibe" (I don't want to say boring). In this case I like first half of album and previous album more. Still I listen to it whole without skiped any track.
Fair assessment, I like your approach, Tank. While I am personally on board, and really enjoy them, I freely admit, it’s simply not for everyone, and that is OK
I can't hate on a band's success. Good for them for selling out their tour or whatever. I tried giving it a chance and thought it was boring. Some fans ive met are even going as far as calling them prog. Im not an elitist, but you can't put synth on for 8 minutes and put for riffs if that throughout the song and call it prog.
@@TankTheTech I think everything you said was totally fair as usual but I know a big part of the album for me was all the lore and callbacks and whatnot.
One thing I wish you'd touched on is that, no matter how you feel about the album, the drummer is absolutely incredible. For me, II's drumming is very close with Vessel's voice for being the best part about Sleep Token
my favorite metal is brutal slam the heavier the better, I'm not really one for the light stuff but something with this album just grabbed me and i listened to it on repeat for an entire weekend
TBH I didnt give Sleep Token much of a chance. I heard some of there stuff from reaction vids and may have listened to a couple songs from the album but not sure I even finished a song. As of a week or so ago I cant stop listening to the album. I dont really know why I decided to send a full listen but I did. Holy shit, man. Album of the year for sure. My fav track is Ascensionism. I open every spotify sesh with it.
As someone who doesn't use spotify for a long time, the listens on spotify mean so little to me. Apple and tidal pay out 100% and spotify doesn't, I know more people that don't use spotify than do. The Apparition is my favorite track off the album personally. Edit: Also just want to say that I appreciate you for voicing healthy mindsets in regards to musical interest. This album may not be everyone's favorite, it may be someone else's favorite or AOTY status. I love Vessel's creative avenue's down to the lore or their own alphabet they made with this album and the hidden message in some of the merch/vinyl book sleeve. It's mind boggling that he comes up with so much and wraps it up in a neat little package. The average person who goes to open up this box of chocolates may not realize there is more underneath the tray or even like the flavor of all the chocolates. Important to always remember, someone out there is enjoying every bite these delicate little morsels provide.
Well, as a metalhead with 20 years experience, vocals in 3 bands and like 5 different web projects, mostly all goregrind/grind/brutal death metal and even cybergrind i can say this band is phenomenal. Vocals and lyrics thats what makes it for me. New album on first note was boring for me and forgettable especially because of that 1-2 very strange pop songs but after i listened to it 2 times more i can say that first half and ending of album is astounding. They know what they are doing, guys, this is very huge for "metal" scene. And as a russian im super pissed i ll probably will never see them LIVE cause thats what i desire. Sorry for my language and have a good day. Fuck WAR!
I respect anyone who loved the entire album first listen! I thought it was pretty mid, I thought the Summoning was ok but a little cookie cutter of a radio hit. Heard Take Me Back to Eden and my curiosity was peaked. Pretty much just listened to those two songs for months until deciding to listen to the whole thing front to back again and I had my Danny Devito "I get it" moment. LOVED all but maybe one or two songs on the record and even then wouldn't skip a single one.
Not sure who put the genre labels on this band, but it feels like they were pigeon holed due to their Masks and cloaks...without listening to them first. Even their older material never seemed " metal ".. I personally will cherish this collective of musicians....btw...I concur Jaws is one of their best pieces as far as I'm concerned.
Albumrelease on the date my mother died 17 years ago. I'm going to see them the 13th this month. I love this album, and their other work. What I had to get used to was the use of the modern R&B rythems, but it fits the songs/moments in the songs. I love the dark, deep parts.
The lore behind all of sleep token makes all of the music makes sense. There is so much backstory to it. And each time I learn something new it makes me love it so much more.
@@Junis_ facts how insensitive of me lmaooooo I love that tank has fans all over the world it’s amazing that music can bring people from all over together!
I'm a metalhead first and foremost but Twenty One Pilots is one of my top 5 favorite music artists cuz they are geniuses that created their own style of music, so I thought that comparison was more of a compliment
Thanks for reacting to the entire album! I did have a hard time getting into their earlier albums as their sound felt too soft for me. The heavier songs/parts on this record made me appreciate nearly all their sounds and I'm now completely sold on them. I personally find the heavy ending of TMBTE to be a(nother) stroke of genius when coupled with the lyrics. First a warning of biting back in anger - then - having gone above and beyond, agressively demanding to be taken back. A clear album favourite of the year for me as well!!
After hearing this album many times, it does get a bit boring, but not so much, that later you can listen song here and there. I give 7/10 to album, but some songs 8/10 or 9/10.
People really call you crazy for comparing them to Deftones?? I've been loving Sleep Token lately, and very often when I listen to "Take Me Back to Eden" (the album), I get to the start of "Vore" and my insides jump in a "wtf is this, I didn't queue Deftones?!" 😂😂😂 Regarding context and "lore": I really think an album should be able to stand on its own and still be great. We should not have to "be into the lore" in order to feel like we understand an album, or like we can't fully enjoy it because we're "missing something". Thankfully, I don't get that feeling from Sleep Token at all. The fans who insist that we *have* to look into the rest of ST discography... it feels like a desperate attempt to get you onboard, to love the music. I don't know, can't we just accept that this isn't 100% your thing and that that's okay? We can love something without having to "convert" other people into loving it as well. I feel like this big focus on "lore" is something that's become more prevalent in recent years, with The Weeknd, Taylor Swift, etc. and I just don't... It's not for me. Turning an artist or a band into fictional characters that are part of some larger story that they've constructed and are communicating through their music over several album releases, like a book series where you have to have read the previous one to know what's going on, and preferably also know something about the artist's personal life, like which one of their exes they're singing about in this or that breakup song... Meh. Not my thing 😊 I *instantly* clicked with Sleep Token when I heard "Chokehold", "The Summoning" and "Take Me Back to Eden". Discovering their earlier releases have been wonderful. At the same time, I don't feel like I "understand more" because I'm now "caught up on the lore". If anything, I feel like learning about "the lore" is distracting me from pure enjoyment of the music. That's just me and my preferences. So I personally think that you "not getting it" isn't a case of you "not knowing the lore", I think it's more that this just isn't your kind of music 😊And that's okay. I actually think it's wonderful and amazing how diverse humans are, and how the same piece of music can cause very different reactions in different people. I really appreciate your little speech at the end about just liking what we like. When I was in high school (a decade ago), there was a metalhead who was really nasty to me because I was super into Enter Shikari at the time. He made me feel shitty about myself, about him, and about metal as a music genre. I don't identify as a metalhead because, well, the kind of "metal" that I like isn't considered "real metal" by the metalheads I've met. Whatever. Who cares. It's kind of weird *to me* to base one's entire identity around only liking a very limited sliver of the grand scheme of music that's been created throughout history 😂
It’s probably going to be in the top 5 albums for me. I enjoyed this album, and if anything, TMBTE makes me want to listen to the previous albums in full.
Music is one part subjective in that everyone has their unique takes on what a good song sounds like; it is also one part objective in that cultural context will determine what songs are amenable to listen too. If music was totally subjective then there would be a few lunatics listening to albums where the only noise is lawnmowers going off.
So, after about 12 hours of this video being live, I've had some questions and want to answer a few things.
1] I HAVE listened to the album in full again. 2 more times, actually. It's grown on me a bit, and I've noticed some more production things that I enjoy, and even enjoyed parts that I didn't before. While I still wouldn't rank it up there with one of MY personal albums of the year, I still highly enjoy the album.
2] The reason that the full unedited version of this video from Twitch is only available on Patreon is for a couple reasons. Contrary to what some people are thinking, it has NOTHING to do with getting people to sign up for Patreon... I mean, it's $1 to join my Patreon so it's not like I'd be making a large amount of money even if a handful of people signed up. It's more to do with UA-cam. Even though Spinefarm let me do this, uploading the entire album to UA-cam could cause some copyright problems that I don't want to deal with. On top of that, it's a 1 hour and 43 minute video that is very niche content that only a handful of people have expressed that they want to watch. In fact, it's SO niche that the UA-cam algorithm would view it as "bad content" because of the low number of views it would get, and I'd suffer negative effects of that on my channel. Also, I just wanted to have something exclusive on Patreon because I don't do that that much.
3] Some people have asked if I will continue to do album reviews, and I honestly don't know at this current point in time. But I am humbled and do appreciate the people that have told me they enjoyed how I did this, so thank you for that!
I'd love for a LIBAD review if A7X's label was cool with it :D
@@dawsonsorby4192 That will be highly doubtful, but we'll see. Haha
Would love to see more for album reviews, for what its worth.
@TankTheTech Oh, I see I have forgotten to unsubscribe to you.. To bad your become one of "them" .... those who contribute to all of the conspiracy theories in the world.. YUCK!!! It makes me sick.. Too bad, I kinda liked your reactions.. Oh well, there are many many more out there, that dont spread shit to he's viewers...!!! Goodbye!
Would love to see you react to will ramos cover of chockhold. Do you think that you will ever do it? Have a great day
I turned 67 a week ago and my first metal album was Black Sabbath's first album back in 69. Ive heard a lot of monumental albums in my lifetime like Dark Side of the Moon, Led Zeppelin IV. This is going to be one of those albums that people will remember 50 years from now. Awesome
Man, that's a powerful statement! Super cool to read that!
😂
I agree with you, i have been into metal for 30 years now, from classic to rock to black to Doom/Gothic to neo and metalcore... this is gonna be a classic, and some of the hate it is taking always happened to the classics: Black sabbath. Nirvana , Linkin park, Slipknot...
Thank you 🥹
This 70s baby agrees. It is an epic mind-opener in the same vein as those you mentioned. Knowing it is the tail end of a trilogy makes me excited to start from the beginning.
I'm going to be very honest, i love this band and i love this album even more. Idk why but it hits some very emotional strings for me
Same, I'm not one to get on any band wagon or hype train at all.. I just genuinely love the album for what it is for me.
Same here. Going in I did not expect to like this band. Upon hearing The Summoning I went from intrigued to fascinated to completely obsessed. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but the feelings they evoke is unlike anything I’ve ever heard.
very true, those songs got stuck in my head after several more listens
That's awesome. While I like the album, I wasn't able to really have any huge connection to it. BUT, I know the feeling of connecting with albums well, and it makes me stoked that other people have an album that means so much to them.
Me too it was kind of weird to me how most of the songs made me very emotional? lol like usually a band has one or two but this album, the lyrics and I guess ambience just hit
Album of the decade for me, honestly. It scratches EVERY little itch my brain has. The vocals, lyrics, the melodies, the instrumental, I love it all! Can't wait to see your reaction, I came on the stream too late and you were finished already.
While I don’t share the same “album of the decade” sentiment, I’m honestly happy there are people out there like yourself that feel that way, because I know the feeling of absolutely loving an album and forming that connection with it. Again, good album, but I think I missed a litte bit of that personal connection with it.
@@TankTheTech that's absolutely fair. There is so much great music out there for everyone to connect on a deeper level. I'm just happy that I found my soul's jam lol. Hope everyone gets to find theirs!
you should listen to more music
is this the only album you've listened to an entire decade? ☠️😭
I personally liked the heavier sides of this album the most along with the r&b, mysterious, and old school sleep token moments. The harsh transitions that might feel out of place are selling points for me, and over all, this is the best album I’ve heard in years.
Currents put out a masterpiece of an album, also Born Of Osiris- Angle or Alien last year was incredible
The harsh transitions only work on this album bc they fit the narrative of each song. The way they lyrically build into the transition is really cool but I see how if you’re not hyper fixated on the story being told it could feel jarring.
wait whats different about old school ST?
The lack of love for Vore hurts me. It’s such a banger.
It’s my favourite on the album. So underrated
i don’t understand why ppl don’t like it. it’s soooo good
It’s my favourite song off the album. How can people not like it? It’s blackgaze in the best way possible!
One of my most listened yo ST songs. 🔥🔥🔥
I think its a song that grows on you the more you listen to it.
I’m relatively new to Sleep Token, just got into them a few months ago once the TMBTE singles started dropping, but they’ve completely taken over my brain. They just hit everything I like in my music, and this one was just incredible start to finish.
Aye! I found them from TMBTE but i actually vibe with the other 2 albums as much, if more than the TMBTE album, i love their music so much! So glad to have found them!
I wasn’t crazy about “Vore” on first listen, but it’s one of my favorites now. Just that soaring chorus gives me tingles. Looking forward to your reaction to the title track as this video rolls on. Definitely my favorite song of the album, been stuck in my head for days.
That album is definitely an album you need to have context for. Being a huge fan of theirs since Sundowning, their first album, this one hit hard. It's not as easy to listen to as Sundowning or This Place Will Become Your Tomb were, it's a bit more akin to their EPs, which is why I loved it. But I definitely cannot recommend it over Sundowning for new listeners, as it is very contextual and vastly more complex than Sundowning was.
I don't think it's too "complex" lol. I think the issue most people have is that it sounds souless and bland. And the different genres don't really flow well, instead the songs are divided in very clear and unconnected sections like oh yeah here's the "pop part", then an abrupt cut into the "metal part" and then the "rnb part" or the "funky part". And none of those genres are pulled off in a particularly interesting way. But personally after all that rant and despite the obvious flaws I still enjoy some of the songs.😊
This album needs a few full listens, like the individual songs never clicked with me. It's a masterpiece but it took me a long time to appreciate songs, the grime/r&b didn't do it for me at first, and the heavy points were almost bland sounding. Now I've listened a lot more it's really cool, AOTY contender for me
I didnt enjoy Vore, but after multiple listens it grew on me. Top 3 for sure, the chorus carrys it
I love this band! Vessel is telling a story of love through the trilogy of albums. He often uses chemistry as a metaphor to decribe that love and relationship. This is reflected in the music through the mixing of genre elements as well. All the lore and code they put in artwork for albums and singles adds another layer of depth too.
The whole album is a vibe, like you said. It's a unique sound and those of us that are attracted to that are all in.
Not to say its never been done. There is a lot of generic stuff out there currently, but this aint it. Super happy to have discovered them recently.
I actually never really listened to these guys before, and really didn't listen to any of the singles before. Someone in a discord I was in mentioned them, and I was like "Oh, that's that band with the creepy bug video thumbnails," and decided to pull the album up on spotify. I immediately was hooked and bought the vinyl... I was just vibing the entire time and got into a zone I rarely get into. Definitely in my top ten for this year.
I do understand how you'd feel that way about the end of "Eden" however for me it was the ultimate culmination of the building tone and emotion of the song both in the lyrics and delivery and it reminds me that screams don't have to overtake a song and can be used to convey specific emotion in a song
Okay, it turns out I'm a Tank patreon now! I have been subscribed for a while(2021?) but your unbiased and honest opinion on this very special album (at least for me), made me want to contribute with what I can. Never change, Tank, you're great!
I would absolutely sit through a full 90 minute album reaction/review of take me back to Eden! Give it to us tank !!
He didn’t put it on patreon because he thought people wouldn’t watch it. He put it on there to make money because he knew people would watch it. Doesn’t bother me other then lying about why he put it on patreon instead
I'm an EDM fan through and through. I've been listening to electronic music almost exclusively since 2010. I found Sleep Token by accident, watching a drumeo video. Hypnosis hooked me immediately.
I LOVE this album. I think Sleep Token are the metal equivalent of my favorite EDM artist Illenium. Illenium does some hard dubstep stuff, but also does a lot of super vibey stuff. I think Sleep Token are a good metal equivalent. They have a lot of range. Illenium's first three albums were a trilogy that told a story too.
Been loving their stuff as of late, even moreso than any electronic music. II did an interview with drumeo recently, was cool to hear him cite drum and bass music as an inspiration.
Everyone knows that once a band has a level of expectation on them people will start to say it doesn’t live up to the hype. I listened to this album with zero expectation going into it, and it is a brilliant album. His vocals can be overly dramatised, but I don’t hear genres of music, I hear a story, perhaps not through words but through how the music is played.
True, but it's not just expectation in this case. You have a person in this comment section talking about how this will be compared to The Dark Side of the Moon in 50 years, and I think the most grandiose take I've seen is how it "will create a new era of music".
I'm all for people loving them and thinking it's a 10/10 album, but part of the fanbase really seems to think this is some kind of objectively groundbreaking, Mozart-level moment of musical history.
@@perlundgren7797 fair enough, if people are getting carried away with it then I understand why some people might want to say ‘hold on a sec’ to those sort of comments, that is totally understandable. The people I speak to who like Sleep Token are quite grounded, and don’t make outlandish comparisons thank God lol
That’s how you review an album that your Luke warm on. Incredible detail in your explanation or your opinion. You didn’t shit all over it because you didn’t like it eg Fantano, Thralls of Metal, guy who dresses like a metal scene kid and wears a skull mask and aviators and so on. Nicely done my man!
I've been listening to it nearly everyday and I haven't gotten bored yet. I'm loving it. I even got my husband into Sleep Token.
I’ll call ya crazy, love the heavy outros and fade outs !! They make it work so well !!
Hey Tank, I can agree with a lot of what you said. Particularly with the sudden heavy parts I can see how it can feel quite out of place. I just happen to be a guy who absolutely eats that stuff up, which is how I got hooked on Sleep Token to begin with. The way they blend genres together not only do i find really fun to listen to, I think they execute it very well. And yes. Having context from Sundowning and This Place Will Become Your Tomb is important for understanding a lot of what is going on in this album. Sidenote: Mad respect for the fact that you arent afraid to give your honest opinion about music you hear, and your personality is a huge bonus. Coming from a Sleep Token fan who says Worship :)
I think a very small subset of "Worshippers" can't handle someone like Fantano disliking their favorite album. But I believe most of us who love music--who feel music deeply--I think most of us understand that not everyone likes the same things. Take Me Back to Eden is, for me, the most important album I've listening to in years. I haven't felt an album (not single, album) this deeply since...well, probably Sundowning. Before that, maybe all the way back to Wintersun's "Time" (don't get me started on that though). But as important as this album is to me, for other people their special album(s) are other ones. That's the beauty of music.
100%. And for those people who love this album, that makes me super happy because I know that feeling of having such an emotional connection with a record you love.
A lot of people dislike Fantano for legitimate reasons. His reviews are set up like he’s trying to be as objective as possible, but everyone knows he has a strange music taste and obvious biases. There’s nothing wrong with that, music is very subjective, but the problem comes when his fanbase takes his word as gospel and starts going around the internet shitting on things just because he dislikes them. Add on to that the fact that he clearly dislikes certain musicians/bands because it’s the popular thing to do and tends to bring his personal biases against them as people into his reviews and you can see how it rubs people the wrong way
First time checking your channel out, you've got a new fan! I fully admit I'm a diehard ST fan, but I appreciated the reasoning you had for not being super duper into the album. I'm probably just looking in the wrong places, but a lot of reviews I've seen of this album have been either "GOAT AOTY WORSHIP", or "lol imagine dragons lol" and I liked that this wasn't that. Looking forward to more stuff from you!
I really liked this album when it came out but now I absolutely love it. There were a handful of songs that I was kind of meh on but after time really grew on me. I think because the album is so long and there is so much going on you really need to give it a handful of listens to form a good option of it. That being said this was a great video, I enjoyed the different perspective.
I agree, when I first listened to it I thought it was solid but that was about it, then I went back and listened to their 3 albums back to back and it just clicked.
Yeah, I've listened to it 3 times in full now and I have to admit, I enjoy it now more than on this initial listen.
The more I've listened to it, the more it's grown on me and I've really stared appreciating what they're doing. As someone who listens to a lot of genres of music, this is so refreshing in the metal scene. Great thoughts and opinions my man! Keep up the good work
Yeah, it's for sure grown on me after a couple more listens for sure.
Given this wasn’t your favorite album, really sensible and respectable review. Enjoyed your thoughts bro!
I love the album from start to finish . People love to shit on popular things but I really enjoy this.
For sure. As I said, “people like to shit on things just to shit on things”. Life is so much better when you just try and enjoy stuff. I will also admit that even though I enjoyed the overall album on first listen, I liked it even more on the second and third.
@TankTheTech That's why I appreciate your way of thinking. Life can be [beep] but you always find something to enjoy. I'm happy that you are always you Sir ❤️
I’m going to be the “to be fair” person. I’d never heard of Sleep Token before the hype. I’m not going to shit on people who have liked their music from the beginning. But my exposure to them has been “best thing to ever exist, best album ever, you have to listen to them they are geniuses and therefore your new favorite band” and so I check them out and it’s…….meh. So the hype is super annoying. And it makes me think the fans are annoying and that I need to explain why they aren’t good. Of course that’s just my opinion but hyping something up that much makes people think it’s OBJECTIVELY good vs SUBJECTIVELY. And I don’t think it is.
@Anders Sven Too big hype or die-hard fanbase can kill enjoy from music. That same is for Tool, Nightwish and few others. I think this album isn't good for start. I respect your opinion Sir.
I've never been able to get into Sleep Token until this album. Been listening to it in my car since it dropped and cant stop singing along.
Thank you, Tank! I’ve never even made it all the way through Vore, but gawd, I love this band. Saw them open last year and am absolutely ecstatic about the growth they’ve achieved this year!
God Bless you Bro!!! I am a very avid fan but I appreciated your honesty and critical view of it. I like hearing thoughts contrary to mine from time to time. While I adore this album, I can understand your perspective on it. This band isn't for everyone...which mainly has to do with the lore and the history. It's "homework" and takes some commitment. Hat's off on a solid and honest review. Enjoyed it...
As far as Are You Really Okay being their least listened song on the album, it might have something to do with "hitting too close to home". I've seen several people stating they can't listen to it because of the lyrics, and honestly, I'm one of them.
Otherwise, I love this album. But I've loved the band ever since I heard Blood Sport (From Room Below), two years ago. The next two years ended up being the worst of my lifetime, but I had the music of Sleep Token to be a holding hand and cry against to. So there's a sense of being heard and consolidated. Vessel sings about things we struggle with and it makes us feel heard.
Us fans love the lore but we also love the way this music makes us feel. And that's the reason I love them. 🖤
Why can’t I find a girl like you with exactly the same thoughts??
@@AttilatheThrilla You mean, someone who's struggling or loves Sleep Token? 😄 I've met several likeminded female fans online who are one of the most empathic and incredible people there are. Hope you'll end up finding yours! 🖤
@@tiialahti I meant both
The Apparition is my ear worm. Stuck in my head a lot
I certainly one that adores this album, released at a vulnerable time for me so hence the attraction. Can also respect the hell out this reaction from Tank, as always, keeping your mind open and showing real professionalism towards the industry, keep up the great work mate!
This album is amazing. So diverse. I LOVE the shifts in tone. Going from Ascensionism to Are You Really OK? Is jarring - and I think it SHOULD be and is meant to be.
No one should ever be comfortable with any form of self harm. It ought to slap us in the face and slam us into reality. I think that shift is perfect. It’s breathtaking - just like it would be if you came upon a loved one who had hurt themself. It would take your breath away.
Maybe the lack of emotion in DYWTYLM was sort of intentional, “Maybe not that you conceal your feelings, they just don't exist”.
Great review!
Very good chance. Great point!
they have a lot of interludes that are beautiful if you listen to them straight through. for most its too much, but if u wait and listen straight through its absolutely gorgeous! Its one of those albums you listen to alone and really feel the vibe. its not really a big concert vibe but seeing it live is just as beautiful
Appreciate you taking the time to give such a fair and balanced review of this album.
It’s a really weird experience seeing people shit over a band you’ve loved for years and whose music means the world to you just because they’ve become popular.
I won’t dive deep into the Lore but re: the fade outs, it could be interpreted as the subject of those songs not having come to a conclusion.
Kudos for not giving the album a score / rating. As you said, music is subjective and the best music is felt in your soul.
Yeah, I personally don’t want people to just come here and shit on music in the comments, but I’m not gonna stop anyone as long as it’s nothing hateful and ridiculous. But you’re gonna get that with any band that has hype around them. Some people will not get it and dislike it. And then others will dislike it because they don’t want to get it.
@@TankTheTech Couldn’t have put it better myself. Cheers.
@@TankTheTech I’m new to your channel and I like it but man how are you allowing this to be called metal when more than half could be played on Ryan Seacrest Rockin Eve on New Years. I’m not hating but the people loving this must love melodic rock and that’s ok!!! But this ain’t metal and I’m mad at Apple putting it on my metal new arrivals.
Ah ha - I posted before your conclusion. Ok you get it. 👍🏾
I am really glad to hear high praise on The Apparition; I've seen a lot of dislike for that song and so it's really cool to hear good things about it!
I can also understand a lot of your criticisms; I found for me the album goes hard and I have been listening to it nonstop. I love how broad their music is and how they don't really fit into one single genre, and I think their songwriting is very creative, especially in the last two songs of the album. I find all the songs in it engaging in their own way and I love their sound
I've given this a couple of listens now. Once on my own and once track by track with this review before you gave your thoughts on each track. This is really my first sleep token album but I've listened to other "genre blending"/fusion bands before, one of my favourites being Twelve Foot Ninja. For me, this album mostly doesn't do it for me. Some tracks are nice, but others (as you pointed out) feel out of place. DYTYLM for example, although being simple and contrasting the rest of the album, just felt boring and repetitive to me, and Take Me Back to Eden long overstayed it's welcome (but had some nice elements). I'm quite used to and regularly listen to prog stuff, but there wasn't enough in there to warrant the length IMO.
I'm not really a lyrics person, I'd rather get lost in the melodies, bass lines, rhythms and the like. This album felt like it had a large focus on lyrics and the "shock value" of the genre switching and variety, but I wouldn't even call it a jack of all trades. Maybe it'll grow on me, but it doesn't feel like it's up my alley. Even with the context of it being part of a series of albums, it doesn't make much of a difference to me. In my view, an album should be able to stand on its own, but this one feels too wishy washy and fragmented.
I like your reviews Tank. But I take issue with your comparisons to Deftones. I’m a huge deftones fan, but the riffs of ST are not what people are referring to when they say “no one’s done anything like this before”. Also, as much as I love Chino, his vocal chops overall are dwarfed by Vessel’s versatility. There is no comparison really.
I love both this hand and this chanel, and I so very much appreciate an unbiased opinion. Keep it up brother!
I think I agree with you. I had hoped for more/something else and I don't really get the hype but I must say some of the tracks has definitely grew on me after a couple of listens more.
Great video, Tank! As a Sleep Token fan, I appreciated your measured take on your review and felt like you broke your opinions down very clearly and professionally.
Before I watch... I was waiting so hard for this. I just cant wait to know what you think after seeing them first here on the channel when you reacted to Jaws.
Yo Tank! I’m glad someone else has liked The Apparition, one my personal favorites, but the total album is A1 on point for me. The last track Euclid, however, I feel is for the die hard fans like myself. I started to listen to Sleep Token back in 2019 when shit was going weird in my life, Euclid is a callback to the first track “The Night Does Not Belong To God” from the first full album release Sundowning. It’s cyclical…ending the Sundowning Trilogy with a callback to the first track of the first album.
I feel that a lot of people don't really get the "heavy" that sleep token does. It only makes sense if you follow the story, it's often coming from a place of frustration, desperation, or depression. It is supposed to be jarring, to be out of place, and is NOT supposed to be seen as a perfect flow for the song.
DYWTYLM's autotuned voice and upbeat has also a reason - Vessel is really vulnerable in that song, talking with his past self or a love interest and he is not yet comfortable going all out, so he masked it with the "unnatural voice" and upbeat melody.
Thanks for checking it out, Tank! You are right, we love what we love and we shouldn't be influenced by others' opinions.
It’s great to see that your interpretation is the same as mine.
The more I listen to the songs the more I really feel the anger in those heavy moments, High Water being perhaps the best example.
@@dalerjh Agreed! The ending breakdown from Take me back to Eden is also a great example, he is literally screaming "I have traveled far beyond the path of reason/Take me back to Eden". Man is desperate, he sacrificed a lot, and he needs to get to his "destination" whatever that might symbolize.
@@NahIamgood If my interpretation is right, the narrator knows he can’t reach his destination regardless of his desperation. No wonder it’s so crushingly heavy.
@@dalerjh great point I would totally see that
Can we just give a shoutout to your Assemble the Chariots sweatshirt? Awesome.
Hey tank! I hightly recommend you listen to their albums, sundowning and this place will become your tomb, there flow alot more and imo i recon set you up better context wise for TMBTE. Always love your reviews tank! I would love to see what you think of the previous 2 albums!
They’re not a unicorn band, people that just discovered them need to get that. They’re a good band. But others have done this vibe-like things before. Twelve Foot Ninja for one. Any project by Mike Patton. Deftones. Periphery (Mike Zero, Luck as a Constant, Wildfire). TesseracT. It’s a good album, I dig it. But people need to chill on there has never been a band this unique before. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Even though I don't entirely agree with your opinion about TMBTE, You should definitely keep doing album reviews!
Like you said - music is very subjective, but it's always great to listen to someone who has a lot more experience on the both sides of the fence.
I totally get your opinion. For me, I didn't give a crap about Sleep Token (after hearing some of their older songs) before this album but decided to check it out after hearing the singles on reaction channels and loved it. There's a good chance it will be on my top 50 favorites list by the end of the year. That being said is it the cream of the crop? Not for me. There are plenty of albums I have heard this year that I like more than Take Me Back To Eden but it's still really good.
That's what I love about this band, they bring out different emotions in people with their production. As per usual, your reaction was great!
I'm so happy you mentioned Elite from White Pony, it's my favorite track off the album. Anyway, Take Me Back To Eden fucks.
I love them. I also think you're very kind and articulate. Just saying :)
This is interesting to hear someone actually not liking the overall album. But the thing that strikes me the most is that you consider this album too long? Like, I used to listen to albums that are at least 1h long, with music that are sometimes over 15min long, and "short albums" (45min albums) 10 years back were considered unfinished. And now I hear a LOT of artists (not even fans...) say that a song that's over 3min is way too long for anyone to like it, so they try to cut short everything they produce. Lorna Shore were even a bit scared to release Pain Remains (the 3 part song) because it was long. They even CUT this song that, 10 years ago, would have been released as a 20min song instead.
Same thing, if a band doesn't release at least 4 singles a year they become irrelevant and people move on, hence why bands like Sleep Token release half of their album as singles and ruin the surprise for all of us. Honestly, WHEN did we lose so much attention? Why?
This is the same with shows. 10 years ago a headliner played for 1h30 to 2h, sometimes going as far as 3h when they didn't have any opener. But now, when you go to a show, the headliner will play for 1h and call it a day, and people will still find it too long smh.
What the hell happened in this world? Don't tell me it's just Tiktok and Covid, it can't be responsible for everything that's happening everywhere!
I never once said I didn't like this album.
Absolutely love this album! Ascensionism, The Appartition & Take Me Back To Eden were my favorite's! Why does everyone hate fade outs? I hear this over and over.
I think for me it’s that I like conclusions and hard finishes. With a fade out I feel like I’m left hanging. But truthfully it’s more of a joke at this point than my actual hatred of it.
@@TankTheTech Thank you for responding. So you like the finalization to a song, I can understand that completely.
I love fadeouts, but to each his/her/their own. 😄
Long songs and albums? Count me in!
My fav album at this time of the year is the new Bury Tomorrow.
I personally dont have anything against longs records and long songs. I mean one of my favorite records is 'Måsstaden under vatten' by Vildhjarta and this thing is 80 minutes long.
And I absolutely love TMBTE, but just one thing, I honestly don't fully like Granite and Aqua Regia. Like those songs are amazing, but for me I'd love the record more if it had just 10 songs, without those two.
And for me the title track is the PERFECT way to make a title track, besides the breakdown. I honestly like that one because of the many switches, the lyrics and because of the ambience, on which i have to say, they nailed it.
But that's all I have to say, for now. Could probably talk about this record for the same time this video runs.
So, if you read this have a wonderful day and be safe.
(In Japan)
I wonder if Tank’s take on this album has changed over time. I’m still obsessed with this album and have only gotten more obsessed with the bands entire discography especially after having seen the band live.
Sleep Token is one of the best rock bands out right now, they are changing the game, I don’t think they are over hyped, it’s just their time to shine right now!
I couldn’t get into anything they released only heard parts and sometime the slower parts drug on and I would lose interest. Never paid attention last couple months. Gave it another chance today it’s really good. I mean it’s a change to the typical song structure and sometimes the slower parts drag but the payoffs are worth it. The change in genres mid song take some getting used to. Paid more attention to the lyrics. Pretty good. Starting to like what I’m hearing. The end of take me back to Eden is epic.
Definitely understand the contrast in opinion between first half and second half opinions.
I feel like the second half of the album is full of the songs that take either more lore knowledge or more listens to understand the intention in the tone changes (lyrically and in the story) to truly appreciate and love. Otherwise they probably feel very forced on a first listen which is what I imagine you were experiencing. From what I can tell, and lore wise, and musicality, the tone changes, call backs, and incorporation of metal are very intentional and add an incredible element to the storytelling aspect of the albums. This album is especially difficult I think, for a first time listen review for someone who’s not deep in lore.
I hope you get some time to relisten and discover some of that fun. But there’s something for everyone either way. Glad you found some songs you enjoyed even on the first listen and appreciate the video and time you took on it.
I just watched this video for your review, and I must admit, a LOT of what you said, I felt the same way about when I first listened through.........but now the album is in my constant rotation list. The more you listen, the more you notice, not just lyrically, but on the production side of it as well. There's so many layers to each song (for example, in Take Me Back To Eden, near the end of the song, there are lyrics from Chokehold kind of hidden in the background), and the variety of each individual song keeps me from getting bored. Gotta say, i'm really impressed by this one!
The fourth album title leaked:
Imagine 21 deftone dragon pilots #WORSHIP
I think Sleep Token has some pretty good songs. I'm not obsessed, espeically like Will Ramos lol, and I don't listen to them very much though. I don't quite understand all the crazy hype about them either. Glad it is getting some heavy stuff out to new people though. I also definitely agree some heavy parts are added, just to add heavy parts.
Tank, that was great stream.
In my opinion, this album is "splited" to me on two part. As Tank said, first half was really interesting and variety, second one got "more slow down vibe" (I don't want to say boring). In this case I like first half of album and previous album more. Still I listen to it whole without skiped any track.
Fair assessment, I like your approach, Tank.
While I am personally on board, and really enjoy them, I freely admit, it’s simply not for everyone, and that is OK
You may like This place will be your tomb. It’s a beautiful mellow album.
I can't hate on a band's success. Good for them for selling out their tour or whatever. I tried giving it a chance and thought it was boring. Some fans ive met are even going as far as calling them prog. Im not an elitist, but you can't put synth on for 8 minutes and put for riffs if that throughout the song and call it prog.
Appreciate the love for Nickelback!
🙌🙌🙌
If there's one thing I've learned from this album its that you kinda need to have heard the other 2 to fully appreciate it
Looks like I've got some homework to do.
@@TankTheTech I think everything you said was totally fair as usual but I know a big part of the album for me was all the lore and callbacks and whatnot.
One thing I wish you'd touched on is that, no matter how you feel about the album, the drummer is absolutely incredible. For me, II's drumming is very close with Vessel's voice for being the best part about Sleep Token
My favorites are Ascensionism, and the Apparition but I love the whole album, and I’m a metal head that mostly goes more heavy !!
my favorite metal is brutal slam the heavier the better, I'm not really one for the light stuff but something with this album just grabbed me and i listened to it on repeat for an entire weekend
With Sleep Token, the bar SHOULD be set high. They are modern performance art. Worship!
TBH I didnt give Sleep Token much of a chance. I heard some of there stuff from reaction vids and may have listened to a couple songs from the album but not sure I even finished a song. As of a week or so ago I cant stop listening to the album. I dont really know why I decided to send a full listen but I did. Holy shit, man. Album of the year for sure. My fav track is Ascensionism. I open every spotify sesh with it.
As someone who doesn't use spotify for a long time, the listens on spotify mean so little to me. Apple and tidal pay out 100% and spotify doesn't, I know more people that don't use spotify than do. The Apparition is my favorite track off the album personally.
Edit: Also just want to say that I appreciate you for voicing healthy mindsets in regards to musical interest. This album may not be everyone's favorite, it may be someone else's favorite or AOTY status. I love Vessel's creative avenue's down to the lore or their own alphabet they made with this album and the hidden message in some of the merch/vinyl book sleeve. It's mind boggling that he comes up with so much and wraps it up in a neat little package. The average person who goes to open up this box of chocolates may not realize there is more underneath the tray or even like the flavor of all the chocolates. Important to always remember, someone out there is enjoying every bite these delicate little morsels provide.
Just to correct you, Tidal and Apple absolutely do not pay out 100% to artists.
I am loving Aqua Regia too along with Summoning and Ascensionism.
DYWTYLM should be a pop song and pushed as such on the radio and I honestly think it would work and be listened to by a completely different crowd.
Thanks!
Wow, thank YOU!
Well, as a metalhead with 20 years experience, vocals in 3 bands and like 5 different web projects, mostly all goregrind/grind/brutal death metal and even cybergrind i can say this band is phenomenal. Vocals and lyrics thats what makes it for me. New album on first note was boring for me and forgettable especially because of that 1-2 very strange pop songs but after i listened to it 2 times more i can say that first half and ending of album is astounding. They know what they are doing, guys, this is very huge for "metal" scene. And as a russian im super pissed i ll probably will never see them LIVE cause thats what i desire. Sorry for my language and have a good day. Fuck WAR!
I respect anyone who loved the entire album first listen! I thought it was pretty mid, I thought the Summoning was ok but a little cookie cutter of a radio hit. Heard Take Me Back to Eden and my curiosity was peaked. Pretty much just listened to those two songs for months until deciding to listen to the whole thing front to back again and I had my Danny Devito "I get it" moment. LOVED all but maybe one or two songs on the record and even then wouldn't skip a single one.
Deftones yes 20 years ago but this is the best vibe I’ve heard since I was a teen from a band really digging it personally
Not sure who put the genre labels on this band, but it feels like they were pigeon holed due to their Masks and cloaks...without listening to them first. Even their older material never seemed " metal ".. I personally will cherish this collective of musicians....btw...I concur Jaws is one of their best pieces as far as I'm concerned.
Albumrelease on the date my mother died 17 years ago. I'm going to see them the 13th this month. I love this album, and their other work. What I had to get used to was the use of the modern R&B rythems, but it fits the songs/moments in the songs. I love the dark, deep parts.
The lore behind all of sleep token makes all of the music makes sense. There is so much backstory to it. And each time I learn something new it makes me love it so much more.
It’s a good morning when tank posts
Let’s gooooooooooo
U mean 7pm XD
@@Junis_ not all of Tanks viewers are German. 😁
@@MetalRock92 then u r?
@@Junis_ facts how insensitive of me lmaooooo I love that tank has fans all over the world it’s amazing that music can bring people from all over together!
@@ClownzATK Yap, but how do U know I'm from Germany
I'm a metalhead first and foremost but Twenty One Pilots is one of my top 5 favorite music artists cuz they are geniuses that created their own style of music, so I thought that comparison was more of a compliment
Listening to this album without diving into their previous work is like jumping straight into Endgame without watching the rest of the mcu.
I fucking loce this entire album but i can see where your coming from with most of your points overall good analysis
Thanks for reacting to the entire album!
I did have a hard time getting into their earlier albums as their sound felt too soft for me. The heavier songs/parts on this record made me appreciate nearly all their sounds and I'm now completely sold on them.
I personally find the heavy ending of TMBTE to be a(nother) stroke of genius when coupled with the lyrics. First a warning of biting back in anger - then - having gone above and beyond, agressively demanding to be taken back.
A clear album favourite of the year for me as well!!
After hearing this album many times, it does get a bit boring, but not so much, that later you can listen song here and there. I give 7/10 to album, but some songs 8/10 or 9/10.
🎶 take me back to Eden take me baaack to edeeeeeeeen! 🎶 worship 🙏
People really call you crazy for comparing them to Deftones?? I've been loving Sleep Token lately, and very often when I listen to "Take Me Back to Eden" (the album), I get to the start of "Vore" and my insides jump in a "wtf is this, I didn't queue Deftones?!" 😂😂😂
Regarding context and "lore": I really think an album should be able to stand on its own and still be great. We should not have to "be into the lore" in order to feel like we understand an album, or like we can't fully enjoy it because we're "missing something". Thankfully, I don't get that feeling from Sleep Token at all. The fans who insist that we *have* to look into the rest of ST discography... it feels like a desperate attempt to get you onboard, to love the music. I don't know, can't we just accept that this isn't 100% your thing and that that's okay? We can love something without having to "convert" other people into loving it as well.
I feel like this big focus on "lore" is something that's become more prevalent in recent years, with The Weeknd, Taylor Swift, etc. and I just don't... It's not for me. Turning an artist or a band into fictional characters that are part of some larger story that they've constructed and are communicating through their music over several album releases, like a book series where you have to have read the previous one to know what's going on, and preferably also know something about the artist's personal life, like which one of their exes they're singing about in this or that breakup song... Meh. Not my thing 😊
I *instantly* clicked with Sleep Token when I heard "Chokehold", "The Summoning" and "Take Me Back to Eden". Discovering their earlier releases have been wonderful. At the same time, I don't feel like I "understand more" because I'm now "caught up on the lore". If anything, I feel like learning about "the lore" is distracting me from pure enjoyment of the music. That's just me and my preferences. So I personally think that you "not getting it" isn't a case of you "not knowing the lore", I think it's more that this just isn't your kind of music 😊And that's okay. I actually think it's wonderful and amazing how diverse humans are, and how the same piece of music can cause very different reactions in different people.
I really appreciate your little speech at the end about just liking what we like. When I was in high school (a decade ago), there was a metalhead who was really nasty to me because I was super into Enter Shikari at the time. He made me feel shitty about myself, about him, and about metal as a music genre. I don't identify as a metalhead because, well, the kind of "metal" that I like isn't considered "real metal" by the metalheads I've met. Whatever. Who cares. It's kind of weird *to me* to base one's entire identity around only liking a very limited sliver of the grand scheme of music that's been created throughout history 😂
Any plans to react A7X We Love You or some other song?
It’s probably going to be in the top 5 albums for me. I enjoyed this album, and if anything, TMBTE makes me want to listen to the previous albums in full.
Listen to the albums in order. Vessel is telling a story throughout that people other than fans miss.
@@Hobofish11 that’s my plan exactly. I’ve listened to the previous albums in bits and pieces, but not in order.
Music is one part subjective in that everyone has their unique takes on what a good song sounds like; it is also one part objective in that cultural context will determine what songs are amenable to listen too. If music was totally subjective then there would be a few lunatics listening to albums where the only noise is lawnmowers going off.
I've listened to this album once, just doesn't grab me. The Sleep Token hype isn't gelling with me.
Could you go over the new ax7 album? It's been pretty polarizing so I'm curious on your thoughts but I love it