Nik Nocturnal explains SLEEP TOKEN to Finn Mckenty (Punk Rock MBA)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 11 พ.ค. 2023
- Nik Nocturnal joins to explain Sleep Token to Finn Mckenty of The Punk Rock MBA
Full interview: • NIK NOCTURNAL: Reddit ...
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Full interview: th-cam.com/video/Hn5KXI-g8JM/w-d-xo.html
Some people want them to do the metal stuff more, some people want them to do the pop stuff more. I want them to do the both stuff more.
I just want more Sleep Token, that's it 😂
Yes
Agreed I don’t care what genre they hit I just need another album asap
I like the pop infusion, but I just don’t want them to completely shift or focus on it
I said this about Ghost and I'll say it about Sleep Token. They will both be a gateway band into heavier sounds.
People don't just start listening to harsh metal tracks. It's a slow process for people who didn't grow up with it.
Edit: If you are the people saying "they are just bad", at least be creative with your reasons on why you hate them. It's music, it's subjective, nothing is "bad" you just don't like it. I'm not a fan of Slipknot, but I'd be caught dead calling it "bad", because it isn't. Just not my thing.
Facts. Their like the modern day equivalent to bands like Linkin park and limp bizkit that got people into metal and were hated by older fans.
Imagine all the amazing metal to chose from and you choose to listen to Ghost.
NiK and Finn are both cool dudes but their metal taste both suck
@chuggachugga96 I completely agree. I am 21 so most of the older classic bands didn't really peek my interest, it took bands like sleep token and ghost to get me into heavier stuff
@@MoraMorbid they will …give it time.
@@Signal_in_the_noise dude ghost sucks so bad. I tried so hard to give them multiple tries, listened to mulitple songs, and its just so corney and goofy. Seriously. And yeah finns choice in music is either old school punk rock/hardcore to whatever is trending. Dude claimed to love lil Peep....
Sleep token is just a refreshing change of pace from the extreny heavy stuff i listen to a lot. I love the heavy shit but it can get monotonous at times. ST displays great musicality and elements of pop and jazz, which is very easy on the ears.
Exactly! Proggy, Jazzy, snazzy addition to the absolute facemelt that I listen to regularly (Erra, Silent Planet, Periphery). Reminds me of when Twelve Foot Ninja popped up on the scene.
@@Direwarlord213 yea so much of my music is like paleface, kublai Kahn, unearth, etc. ST is a wonderful way to diverge from that extreme sound, while still having the face melting breakdowns and riffs.
Yeah that shitty tasteless 2014 trap beat in Take me back to eden, with the rnb vocals is very revolutionary
The differentiator with Sleep Token is their song writing ability and intentionality with even the smallest details. I’ve listened to “heavy” music for 15+ years now and have been able to appreciate a lot of great bands with top-tier musicians, but not a single one of them has been able reach the level of song composition that Sleep Token consistently brings to the table. Like Nik mentioned in the video, they have been the first band to actually pull off pop-metal blend tastefully, some of which is attributed to Vessel’s vocal style and abilities but it really comes down to the song composition and the melodies that are extremely catchy and get stuck in your head.
The theatrics and even the song release schedule really has been a breathe of fresh air to a genre that struggles with “genericness.” A lot of the new listeners did not get to experience the Sundowning album release where the band released each song of the album in order every other Thursday at 6:00pm GMT or at Sundown UK time, completely unannounced. It gave the listener time to digest and appreciate each song, which all were different, rather than picking and choosing favorites from an entire EP.
Sleep Token might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but they deserve all of the success and notoriety they received as of late and more in my opinion.
Yeah i think you really understand it. Say what you wabt about whether or not you like the style, but they are extremely talented songwriters
I think Memphis May Fire attempted that cadence of song releases in their most recent album, but their music has become very mediocre so nobody really cares
hard hard disagree. just because it's intentional doesn't mean its good. they are mediocre at every genre they touch.
Not a SINGLE heavy band can compare to them when it comes to song composition? The quality of song composition isn’t objective, but what are some other heavy bands that you think are at least good composers?
@@mrnemoid lmao unreal. Sermon, IOTUNN, Ne Obliviscaris, Obsidious, Aeternam, an abstrac illusion, Disillusion, Wilderun, etc.
I was right there with Finn for a long time. Didn’t get it. Then I tried listening to them again in the car the other day and it just clicked. Been obsessed every since. Maybe it’ll happen to you too, Finn 😂🤷🏻♂️
Same here. I tried to like them a few months ago and didn’t. But then the other day it clicked
This is my exact experience lol. Struggled with them a while back, but listened to the new album in the car and it’s like a flip switched in my brain
Same. It took me until the last month and I’m not sure I’ve listened to anything else since.
Completely agree with preferring lighter sleep token over their heavier stuff as someone whos big in to metalcore and deathcore. I think Vore was my least favourite track from the new singles while Aqua Regia is incredible. That song instantly transported me to a classy jazz coffee bar in the best possible way lmao
i am hearing all jazzy stuff about them but that doesn't sound like pop to me at all
Nothing about Sleep Token is Jazz. What you're confusing for Jazz is actually R&B and Soul. I have a friend who's super into Jazz and R&B and they made the differences to me clear.
The Storytelling, the visuals, the emotion and lyrics. It's a fulll experience. That's what I love the most with ST.
A bunch of fucking super talented lads.
Maximum the Hormone, a Japanese metal band was one of my favorites in the early 2000s cause they would mix genres so well. In the same song you would have a just extremely fun pop verse then just go into a brutal chorus with rapping on top. They were definitely ahead of their time.
They were also in Death Notes 2nd opening
Holy hell that's a band I haven't thought of in a long time.
They were literally the only metal band that I listened to in my teen years precisely because of the genre mixing. I just loved how absurd they were with their music and how much they just didn't really take themselves too seriously or "sell out" as you can put it.
SOAD and kpop was the vibe I got back in the day
@@TheAluvisify they sold out?
Nik explained it well. I think ST is the most versatile band. They can go for anything and nail it. They make something for almost everyone.
@@fl3xxesino107 as much as I despise country I could see it working somehow haha
King Gizzard and Melvins?
@@fl3xxesino107 ascension already sounds like a country song for lots of it tho..
@@jeffreychandler8418 You've actually got something wrong with your brain if you think Ascensionism sounds anything like Country.
Loved Issues from day one.Still listen to them now.
I mean I like heavy music, but I also love soul, and funk, and jazz. Seeing a band blend these genres so well is awesome. The Concept theme is also pretty cool to me too.
Reminds me of a time I heard a metal track by Yami Obi that had Sax as the lead in the chorus and I was blown away, even had a jazz piano solo too.
do they? I feel the opposite. Like I feel their funk sounds straight out of an audacity preset, and their jazz and soul is mediocre. Why go to sleep token for metal jazz fusion when thank you scientist is right being excellent in both?
@@jeffreychandler8418 yeah they did, you have your opinion and people have their opinion so calm down and try not to downgrade ST on every comment you see
@@dalrend7413 nah they didn't. You have your opinion and I have mine, try not to support ST on every comment you see
Funny how yall only go "it's just an opinion" to those that disagree with yours...
@@jeffreychandler8418 I didn't, like this is the first time I commented on this channel and replied to one of your thousands comment about ST
@@jeffreychandler8418 looks like you're more obsessed to ST more than their fanbase lol
My girlfriend was never into metal and it took me a while to find things in the scene she’d be into. Opeth was my first win (especially with the damnation album) and now I’ve got her super into stuff like spiritbox, sleep token and loathe. The key factor with modern metal is that these bands have something for everyone. They take inspiration and influence from tons of different genres and aren’t afraid to incorporate all of them and make it work
Music is generally best when it has mountains and valleys. Metal has been stuck in the mountains for too long. Sleep token is a breathe of fresh air…also that voice 😍
I saw Issues and Sleep Token at a tiny ass bar 6 years ago. I was like WHY IS NOBODY FREAKING OUT ABOUT HOW GOOD THIS IS RIGHT NOW
Well, I never liked softer music but Sleep Token made me love it because they do it well, so I'm sure it can work the other way as well.
Sleep Token’s not “Chad” enough Finn 😂😂😂
Ironic seeing as he’s about as far from the chad meme as possible
Funny how he said he only likes the pop stuff they've done.
@@Vyngraven of course, he loves pop punk and hates prog
I’m also not a Sleep Token fan. Just not my thing.
Hey, really enjoying Sleep Token myself! Chad approved!
Yes ISSUES should come back with another vocalist if they can pull it off. Very cross genre band. So sick
TC was Issues imo
Sleep Token have brought me in from an alternative electronic background. Love their music so much! If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t know who Nik was, who I’m now subscribed to, I really like Will Ramos and appreciate his abilities, it’s drawn me in to the reaction videos, so yes, they are bringing people in!
You never know what Sleep Token is going to do and that is what makes it so magical and the depth of the lyrics with the mind twist to the music. Dark words with light sound and vice versa. Music in general is made for you to release things that are trapped in the depths of your soul. Sleep Token does just that. You will listen to some really dark words and then come out of it feeling so light and free.
I think with the access to all kinds of music that we have now, many of us listen to many different genres. Sleep Token takes a lot of those genres and blends them beautifully along with the emotionality. They have tapped into something we have been craving for years.
Sleep Token and Bad Omens (as of their newest album) have found what their pocket is, in the creation of music, and do what they do best.
More musicians in general need to find their little carve-out and lean into it more
More of this Duo!
Thanks for this ….looking deeper into them now
I think dayseeker is another band that combines pop and metal really well
But since they don’t have a gimmick they gotta come up the old fashioned way
All their songs sound the same, that's the difference
Agreed dude
it's more that regardless of gimmicks, they just don't stand out from the crowd in any way although they're really good.
Cope.
You ever been to a sleep token gig? Wearing the masks allows the members to fully let go on stage and keep their anonymity. Their shows are unlike anything I've ever seen.
It's not the gimmick that makes sleep token better than dayseeker, it's everything about sleep token that makes them better than dayseeker.
When you can sit through a song for 8 minutes and you don't get bored and it only feels like 3 minutes, yeah that's talent.
We are on the precipice of the next metal/metalcore golden age in the next 5 years. I am calling it now. Spiritbox, Jinjer, and Sleep Token are just the beginning.
Issues helped push it to this point though. Issues had to come out with banging music then to get to where the genre is now.
RIP
That was the beauty of Type O Negative. They were metal AF but when you saw them live there was easily more ladies there than any other metal show at the time, and it wasn't even close. Sleep Token figured out a different way to do the same thing today and it doesn't feel forced. Also who doesn't want more ladies at metal concerts? If they say otherwise they're lying 😂
The fact that we’re asking Nik Nocturnal to dictate stuff like this means we’re in a sad place.
And that’s coming from someone who mostly enjoys his reactions.
You nailed it with the “no contrast” thing….so many people don’t appreciate it. So many people want bands to stay the same and never change. 5 finger death punch is a band that never changes….but I couldn’t differentiate which song goes on which album because it ALL sounds the same. All the same recycled garbage…garbage that I used to like, but they have nothing to contrast any of their music.
I think big part of Sleep Token blowing up is people discovering Vessels voice. His voice is so unique, and accompanied with some insane instrumental, it definitely gets peoples attention
Talking about mixing the pop stuff with the metal stuff well. I feel like a lot of smaller bands throughout the late 00s and 10s did that incredibly well, but were too early to really have full mainstream success, like Nik suggested.
Bands like Fightstar, Marmozets, Don Broco, Press To MECO, etc. All of them combined the catchiness and clever song-writing of pop with the brutal heaviness of Metal in their own unique ways.
Man these 2 guys collaborating?! Gotta hear the whole thing!
It really bothers me that Nick is facing the wrong way.
Lmao same
So glad you mentioned Spiritbox Nik. They, to me, are the gold standard currently
Sleep Tolkien has a few good songs but I’m intrigued by their aesthetic more than anything
It's amazing that deathcore bands are putting out their albums as instrumentals. It's kind of genius. Most normies or even people like me, who have listened to metal since the age of like five, can't listen to just mad brutal deathcore vocals all day long. I love listening to something like Shadow of Intent's instrumental albums in the car. I absolutely love Chris' guitar work.
Goated band, seeing Currents this Tuesday and hopefully soi soon
Man Issues was so good! I wish they took off and kept that style from the self titled album
Plus the singer's voice is absolutely beautiful
luckily for Finn and many others, music is a subjective flavor! some people like some things and others don't. it's okay to not be fully on board with sleep token. you don't have to be! and it doesn't mean you know less about music or don't like "finer things", you just don't like their sound! that simple. I much prefer their heavier stuff. i got into them with Hypnosis and that's been the vibe i've always wanted from them, so their softer stuff (which it seems the majority of fans prefer) isn't what i prefer! i still love their softer stuff, but not like i do their heavy. i think their heavy stuff is very creative still- it brings a much different sound than modern metal bands in general nowadays BECAUSE of their other outside influences and vessels incredible vocals. hooray subjectivity!
2:30. I agree. Their heavy stuff is great yeah i love it, but their pop stuff is fucking incredible.
The heavy brought me in but I'm really enjoying their softer side now. They're just incredible.
Contrast is the word. I would also add its a Landscape of Genres blending together,......done perfectly
Mr. Token’s face paint is on point.
06:24 Went to see Lorna/Mastodon/Gojira in Asheville last weekend. The show was brutal (at least, as brutal as those bands can get) and there were MANY young women in the crowd, but also in the pit. I, on the other hand, was NOT in the pit because I'm 49 and if I went down on my left (bad) knee, I wouldn't be getting up any time soon lol.
I was there too and I can confirm that pit was absolutely insane, this 16 year old kid got punched in the face and bled all over me and my friend lol..
@@gutsdestructo Hope that kid was decked on accident cause it's a wild pit not because there is some asshole in there purposely fist punching people in the face, cause those kinda people need to be banned from all concerts.
@@gutsdestructo Lol! The toxic waltz.
I went to the Vegas show and was expecting mostly older guys but there were all these girls singing Gojira songs. It’s cool when humans don’t fit the cookie cutter
I think its a hard sound to pull off too, doing a lot of stuff together and blending it into one song or band. First you have to make the individual pieces good and then find ways to put them together. I definitely got on board with the summoning, and like everything thats comes out after. I tried going back to their stuff before that and most tracks miss for me personally. Theres maybe 3 or 4 songs that I can get into from that album. Im not saying theyre bad, this is just personal opinion. But my point is as a good band grows they will master their sound as time goes on and be able to bring more people in because their writing is more clear/interesting and the production usually gets better as well.
Theres a lot of bands that are the opposite for me too where I like everything and friends of mine can only hop after a certain album in. I loved Hellions ever since their EP came out, but my sister only could dig their sound after Rue came out. Ultimately its just different tastes, but theres also timing involved
Nothing more is a Hard rock band & they do it best
Like if they was more popular their song Best times would be hugely popular because its such a great feel good song
I wish Issues would come back even though he’s not the best person 😅
It's music man, don't like it? It's just not your thing.. Personally, I first heard it and fell in love! To me they're the Faith No More of the 2020's, they'll play any style!
Sleep Token is what Imagine elevator music in 2099 would sound like
Finn if you haven’t seen it you have to do a reaction to someone ripping ass super loud at a Sleep Token concert
RIP Issues🥲thank you for mentioning them.
I never wanted take me back to eden to end that album was such a journey
Couldn't have put it better, they're universally loved but hated at the same time, like the people who love just *monkey brain* chug chugs and sometimes I like the chug chugs but most of the time Sleep Token offers relatability, feels and chonk which is a very unique balance you don't find in the majority of the metal genre/sub genres, they have the capability to be HUGE
Best description ive heard is "RnB for metal heads"
finn what do you think about between the buried and me? i always liked them because they were able to pull off quieter melodic parts mixed in with heavier faster parts. the juxtaposition between the two reminds me of what you're talking about here with nik re: sleep token. i also can't seem to get into sleep token, just not my speed but i've tried!
Love Tommy! Great guy
I think Sleep Token is making music for the sake of music. Doesn’t matter what it is as long as it’s music that has something to it but not constricted to one way of writing
It reminds me of Asking Alexandria when they first came out with stand up and scream and everyone’s hated it cause it was so new and left field from what everyone was used to
Sleep token is my favorite pop artist through and through
The sleep token hype reminds me of when everyone started wearing supreme
someone said "sleep token are an elitists worst nightmare" and that's exactly the reason I believe they are popular
Omg where’s the full episode
What I love about sleep token is the way they progress and bridge the gap between pop and heavy metal/Djent smoothly transitioning so well from simply keys to 8 string breakdowns and make it work and fit well within one song Everytime.
Got to see Issues in 2017 when they were touring the Headspace album, I've liked them a lot since they debuted. Their stuff after Michael Bohn left hasnt been as good though
I remember this tour. I missed the show in Atlanta so all my friends piled in my car and we made the trip up to Memphis for the last show of the tour. We didn't know it then, but we technically saw MIchael's last show with Issues. It was a hell of a show. Sylar and Volumes were tight, and Too Close to Touch was a little pitchy but they were good live as well. Pretty great tour lineup overall.
realistically, i doubt they're going to get much bigger than they are right now. i feel like everyone who's going to hear about them has already heard about them and already has an opinion. they're going to remain a gem in the contemporary prog community and that's about it.
here's the thing about genres: they're marketing tools. that's literally all we use them for - so listeners can identify what sounds they like _and find more similar music._ when you shirk genres, your music gets harder for the average person to find, especially when that person is looking for a specific sound. if you like Sleep Token's heavier music, for example, you might actually have a hard time finding the right Sleep Token songs - and you might just sleep on the band entirely because you heard one or two of their melancholy tracks and just assumed that this is what all of their music sounds like. i feel like there's a ceiling to how big a band can get when they're all over the place.
I was so confused with them saying “Issues”… like are they talking about Korn?
I like the idea of no definitive sound. The art of of it the emotion of it is more impotent in my option.
Not really into this band too, but i'm not taking it for granted, since i wasn't a fan of many many bands that i enjoy listening now like AA, BVB, Ghost, Greta V.Fleet and Deftones.
Easiest way I could describe it, is if Deftones did prog
I find it weird that Finn isn't into Sleep Token. He always talks about liking pop music and Sleep Token brings so many pop elements into their music. I think he'll change his mind. Sleep Token, Deftones, Loathe, bringing back that Sex Metal
My main issue is that their songs are so long and unfocused. Which I get is the whole point of the band but it’s a bit much for me.
@@prmbapodcast totally get it. I think you've previously said you weren't big into Tool either and some of Sleep Tokens songs can be similar in their excess. Did you feel the same way about Granite and DYWTYLM?
@Punk Rock MBA Podcast clips i never listened to them but that's gotta be like jazz influences or like fusion or something right
A huge thing that sets ST apart is no doubt the vocals. If you listen to Octane it sounds like the same high pitched not quite screaming I’m angry at my dad guy sings for 36 different bands.
Anyone else hoping dubcore makes a big comeback? The browning, beyond all recognition, attack attack, early I see stars was always so good imo. I used to love blowing people's minds when they would hear it for the first time
The first Exotype ep was peak electronicore
The scene gods unite!
I would argue that Twelve Foot Ninja accomplishes the genre bending well also, but just in a Mr. Bungle type of way.
This guy looks like sunny from the best ever food review show...
New album is a lot better than the last one. The last one was trying way too hard to be some sort of showcase for his vocals while being the Imagine Dragons of Metal. I feel that this one found a better balance between their two sides
I'm not the biggest sleep token fan, I think their second album lacked and was way too poppy for my taste BUT Take Me Back To Eden tied everything together really nice and brought it home with the last two tracks
I also dont like sleep token alot. Some parts of songs I like. But I have watched a couple live versions of their songs and I do like the live sound better, so Im thinking it might be something in the production of the studio album that Im just not vibing with.
I can agree that ST live is so much better than the studio stuff. The new person who is mixing their album just isn’t doing it for me and I much more prefer George Lever’s Production on the first two albums. The new production on the pop parts seem great however when the heavier moments come in it seems over mixed and not impactful. It could just be me but that’s my view on it
@@ILV_Coasters oh thats good to know. Im not sure if Ive ever listened to any of the earlier stuff so I should check it out and see if its different for me as well :)
Sleep Token are the Imagine Dragons for metalheads
someone came from fantano.
I feel like I SHOULD like them but I just can't get into them, at least not yet. Like you, I WANT to like them but I'm just not feeling it. I definitely agree with Nik about the contrast that makes bands interesting.
personally as a enormous metalcore fan I havent heard anything by Sleep Token I really like no matter what I do
I tried to listen to them but I'm just not feeling it
I was the same. What changed my mind was laying down one night with great headphones and just listening to the Sundowning album start to finish on full blast. It’s a masterpiece. Once I was 5 songs or so in i was like ok I get it
It's funny that Finn never mentions The Weeknd when talking about Sleep Token.
Agreed. Bands like Wage War, Memphis May Fire, etc all have that one “octane” album and it’s so bad not because it’s soft, but it’s clear as day that that was their mindset in the studio. And with deathcore so many bands are doing the symphonic blackened stuff that it’s making me not listen to Lorna😂 we just like genuine music that’s not forced out!!
I do appreciate Dickie as a vocalist but it makes me sad that Travis Ryan doesnt get the credit that he deserves. He was doing these sort of "vocal gymnastics" years before what its beckme today, longe before Dickie.
I hate to be that guy, but Loathe man. Fuckin Loathe. They do that balance of shoe-gaze, pop, metal, deathcore blend so so well. I let it in was such a good album. But damn Sleep token grows on me more with every album.
Where u can hear Nik swearing without any censorship
Sleep Token kind of reminds me of early Kayo Dot
I’m with you about Sleep Token..honestly I just don’t know how I feel about the dudes voice . Don’t get me wrong he’s a good singer but idk how to explain it haha .
Strapping young lad - Alien Album
"Metal just wants good emotional music." Ahem, Opeth - Ghost Reveries, hello? Opeth - Blackwater Park? Maybe Nik meant "modern"? Idk.
Did enybody notice that Nik sounds like James Hetfield? Not the voice, but the way he speeks.
For me, metal kinda went meh when chester bennington passed away. But i feel like it's making a comeback. That being said, sleep token for me feels like ghost if ghost had screaming.
I got my Lorna Shore and then when i want a lil more melodic metal ill reach for Currents and or Orbit Culture these days! Still cant get on board with ST!
Chicks really dig the Token
im surprised they never mentioned bilmuri as far as poppy metal type.... bilmuri should be way bigger than what they are
Noone remembers the band Sugar Ray huh?
Refused were ahead of their time too.
Finn doesn't understand anything without a ringy piccolo snare...and neither do I.
Sleep token is nihilistic pop music with elements of r'n'b and metal
I used to dislike them too, but I learned to appreciate them over time.