即使在阿卡迪亞也是一個大膽的睡眠代幣新循環的開始

從英國Alt的陰影中努力。地下進入售罄的競技場

Rumour has it that Even In Arcadia is the beginning of a bold new cycle for Sleep Token. Working their way from the shadows of the UK alt. underground into sold out arenas – with a feverishly anticipated first Download Festival headline scheduled for next month – the anonymous collective have thus far captivated audiences with their sprawling blend of melody, menace and mystery. Metalheads gravitate to their crushing riffs. TikTok buzzes for their sexy R&B rhythms. Even seasoned industry insiders have debated whether mysterious, perpetually-masked frontman Vessel might really be the alter-ego of a known superstar like James Arthur or Bastille’s Dan Smith.

有傳言說，即使在阿卡迪亞也是一個大膽的睡眠代幣新循環的開始。從英國Alt的陰影中努力。地下進入了售罄的競技場 - 急劇預期的第一個下載節日標題定於下個月 - 匿名集體迄今為止吸引了觀眾，他們散發著旋律，威脅和神秘感。金屬頭會吸引他們的即興即興即興。 Tiktok的性感R＆B節奏嗡嗡作響。甚至經驗豐富的行業內部人士都在辯論神秘，永久掩蓋的主唱船隻可能真的是詹姆斯·亞瑟（James Arthur）或巴士底爾（Bastille）的丹·史密斯（Dan Smith）等著名超級巨星的反對。

Having completed a logical first-three-album arc with 2023’s mesmerising Take Me Back To Eden, however, they step into the sun here with more warmth and colour than anyone imagined.

在完成了2023年令人著迷的邏輯第一三和弧形弧線之後，我帶回了伊甸園，但是，他們以比任何人想像的更溫暖和顏色進入陽光。

A little context is key. Vessel and his bandmates don’t give interviews. There is no bio bulging with hyperbole to accompany this album launch. Even traditional music videos have been eschewed in favour of low-key, screensaver-like animations. Filling that void, an ever-growing legion of ‘worshippers’ have analysed every element of their output, from music and lyrics, to artwork and the members’ gradually-evolving masks. The mythos is already impenetrably dense. Vessel is the earthly mouthpiece for the ancient deity ‘Sleep’. Individual songs are ‘Tokens’ offered up in his name. Their imagery has incorporated Norse runes, undersea creatures and demonic sigils from the goetic grimoire Ars Goetia. Thematic threads can be unpicked – darkness and sensuality, trauma and the subconscious – but true fulfilment comes from fans building worlds of their own.

一個小上下文是關鍵。船隻和他的樂隊成員不接受采訪。這張專輯發行沒有誇張的生物隆起。甚至傳統的音樂視頻也被避開了低調，類似於屏幕保護程序的動畫。填補了不斷增長的“崇拜者”軍團的空白，分析了他們的輸出的每個元素，從音樂和歌詞到藝術品，以及成員逐漸發展的面具。神話已經很稠密。船隻是古老的神“睡眠”的塵土煙嘴。單個歌曲是以他的名義提供的“令牌”。他們的圖像結合了野人符文的北歐符文，海底生物和惡魔般的sigils。主題線程可能是未挑選的 - 黑暗和性感，創傷和潛意識 - 但真正的成就來自粉絲們建立自己的世界。

‘I wanna’ be a provider…’ Vessel sings on Even In Arcadia’s seventh song. ‘Your outer shell, your secret insider… Your guiding hand, your final decider…’ Is he expressing his devotion to some unknown dependent, or is he addressing the listener directly, acknowledging and accepting that his music has become the lens through which a generation have come to process their deepest melancholies and darkest desires? We’ll probably never get the answer. And that’s half the fun.

“我想成為一名提供者……”船隻在阿卡迪亞的第七首歌中唱歌。 “您的外殼，您的秘密內部人士……您的指導手，最後的決定者……”他是對某些未知依賴的奉獻精神，還是他直接向聽眾講話，承認並接受他的音樂已成為一代人已經通過這些鏡頭來處理他們最深的憂鬱症和最黑暗的慾望？我們可能永遠不會得到答案。那是一半的樂趣。

What we do know is that Even In Arcadia is an album unlike any they have delivered before. There are ten tracks here, for one thing, rather than the customary twelve. Album art is more intricate with a colour-reversed grey flamingo against pink vegetation. And they’ve ‘divided’ their faithful, after online treasure hunts, with the introduction of competing clans House Veridian and Feathered Host, each with a distinctive logo, colour scheme and, eh, Instagram account.

我們所知道的是，即使在Arcadia，也是一張與他們以前交付的任何專輯。一件事，這裡有十個曲目，而不是習慣十二。專輯粉藝術更為複雜，顏色為粉紅色的植被，顏色為灰色的火烈鳥。在在線尋寶之後，他們在引入了競爭氏族的Veridian和羽毛主持人之後，“分裂”了他們的忠實忠實，每個人都有一個獨特的徽標，配色方案以及EH，Instagram帳戶。

Musically, they’ve split their fanbase, too. Lead single Emergence teased a shift away from the more contemplative, atmospheric, post-rock foundation of previous releases to a bigger, poppier production, full of hip hop grooves and stray saxophones, with heavier metallic elements used sparingly for relief. Caramel went further, deploying their trademark xylophone-style synths in service of an R&B anthem boasting their biggest chorus yet – and even fewer crunching six-strings. Damocles tripled-down with a gorgeously soulful, piano-led ballad that was barely ‘rock’ at all.

從音樂上講，他們也分開了粉絲群。鉛單一出現嘲笑了從以前的發行版的更沉思，大氣，後搖滾後的基礎轉變為更大，彈出的生產，充滿了嘻哈凹槽和流浪薩克斯管，其金屬元素較重，以備浮雕。 Caramel走得更遠，部署了他們的商標木琴風格的合成器，為R＆B Anthem提供了他們迄今為止最大的合唱，甚至更少的六弦。達馬克爾斯（Damocles）以一首美麗的，鋼琴領導的民謠幾乎沒有“搖滾”的曲折兩倍。

Hitting ‘play’ on the full album, it’s clear that although Sleep Token aren’t trying to alienate anyone, neither will their progress be stalled for fear of leaving some OG fans behind.

在完整專輯中打了“ Play”，很明顯，儘管Sleep sopken並沒有試圖疏遠任何人，但由於擔心會留下一些OG粉絲，他們的進步也不會停滯不前。

Near eight-minute opener ‘Look To The Windward’ serves as a bridge connecting their more wounded earlier sounds with the swaggering new direction. It’s probably also the strongest track on offer: a compelling sonic journey from internalised soul-searching via painful metamorphosis to glowing rebirth. ‘Past Self’ shrugs off old skin with a jaunty, loose-limbed beat and optimistic lyrics about ‘walking an inch above the pavement’. ‘Dangerous’ builds the tension through high-strung synthwork and shapeshifting vocals before reaching a smashing crescendo. The gorgeous title-track  feels pivotal, with soft-pressed keys completely overwhelmed by Vessel’s awesome vocal before opening into a sharply defined soundscape (featuring no traditional rock instruments) that’s arguably the most subtle and heartbreakingly effective this version of the band have ever been.

接近八分鐘的揭幕戰“向風向看”，是一座橋，將他們受傷更早的聲音與搖搖欲墜的新方向聯繫起來。這可能也是提供的最強軌道：從內在的靈魂搜索通過痛苦的變形到發光的重生的引人注目的旅程。 “過去的自我”聳了聳肩，聳了聳肩，以簡潔的，寬鬆的節拍和樂觀的歌詞“在人行道上方走一英寸”。 “危險”在達到粉碎的漸進式板條之前，通過高壓力的合成作品和變形的人聲建立了緊張。華麗的標題軌道感覺很重要，柔軟的鑰匙完全被船隻的令人敬畏的聲樂所淹沒，然後打開了鮮明定義的音景（沒有傳統的搖滾樂器），這可以說是該樂隊有史以來最微妙且令人心碎的有效性。

Indeed, what’s holding Even In Arcadia back, is the sense on so many other songs that they need to find space for traditional heaviness. Understandable, perhaps, from a band about to confirm themselves as Monsters Of Rock on Donington’s hallowed turf, and you could argue it fits with a theme of discovering the dark side of paradise. But, at best, the pattern of only layering in guitars halfway through songs seems unimaginatively formulaic. At worst, it feels downright disjointed. 

的確，即使在阿卡迪亞後衛，也是如此，這是他們在許多其他歌曲中的感覺，他們需要找到傳統沉重的空間。也許可以從即將確認自己的樂隊確認自己的洛克（Rock）上的洛克（Rock）上的洛克（Rock）上，可以理解，您可以說它符合發現天堂的黑暗面的主題。但是，充其量只有在歌曲中途僅在吉他中進行分層的模式似乎沒有想像力的公式化。最糟糕的是，感覺完全不連貫。

Whether the hardcore Sleep Token audience see that as a valid criticism, or whether they are willing to

頑固的睡眠象徵觀眾是否將其視為有效的批評，還是願意