2023 has been a massive year for Sleep Token and it shows no signs of slowing. Earlier this week the band announced a massive Wembley Arena show for Saturday December 16.
Now they can add another major achievement to their ever-growing list of accomplishments, as tickets for that Wembley show had completely sold out within ten minutes of going on-sale, despite being the first time the band have headlined any arena-sized venues in the UK.
All ten thousand tickets for the Wembley Ritual have been swiftly and feverishly depleted, within ten minutes of general release today.Your dedication is noted, and appreciated. Come December, we shall gather. Worship. pic.twitter.com/GTlaptUIjbJune 2, 2023
But then, since January, Sleep Token have been rapidly staking their claim as the hottest band in metal right now. At the start of the year, their streaming statistics on Spotify suggested around 280,000 monthly listeners - that number now stands at over 2.5 million.
Along the way, they've been dubbed metal's sexiest band on TikTok, reached number 3 on the UK albums charts with Take Me Back To Eden and sold out almost every date of their upcoming US tour, whilst also earning praise from bands including Lorna Shore and Slipknot, who have drafted the band in as supports for their German arena shows on June 20 and 21.
Speaking about the band on the Allison Hagendorf show, Slipknot singer Corey Taylor drew comparisons between Sleep Token and 'knot's early anonymous days.
“When I first heard Sleep Token I was like, ‘What the hell is this, man?’” said Corey. “They, to me are one of the few new… I’ll call them metal, but there’re so many different levels and layers. There’s pop elements, there’s jazz elements… I love the fact that nobody really knows who they are. I love the fact that they don’t want to be known."
To date, Sleep Token have only ever given one interview - to Hammer back in 2017 - which has only helped fuel the sense of mystery around the band.
For more Sleep Token, read the Metal Hammer cover feature from 2021. For the full list of tour dates, visit the band's official website.
