August 2024 – Alain Dupuis
This Album Influenced That Album – Deftones Influenced Sleep Token
We are on our third episode of our four-part series exploring albums that sound like they were influenced by other albums. Or perhaps, more broadly, bands that sound like they were influenced by other bands, where we choose an album from each band that demonstrates the similarities.
If you didn’t already see the title to this episode, I’ve suggested the Deftones as being influential on the band Sleep Token, and chosen their respective albums White Pony and Sundowning as the music to listen to this month to make my case. As usual, we’ll reconvene at the end of the month and discuss our thoughts on the albums, and make our arguments for whether or not we could detect the influences.
Onto my selections.
The Deftones are an American rock band formed in 1988, renowned for their experimental sound that blends elements of alternative metal, shoegaze, and post-hardcore. Their critically acclaimed album, White Pony, released in 2000, marked a pivotal shift in their music, showcasing a more atmospheric and introspective approach compared to their earlier work. This album features a unique mix of heavy riffs, ethereal melodies, and haunting lyrics. It’s a very resonant album. Notable tracks include Change (In the House of Flies) and Digital Bath, both of which highlight the band’s ability to balance aggression with vulnerability, solidifying White Pony as a seminal release in the heavy music scene, and one that I had on heavy rotation when I was in high school.
Sleep Token is a genre-defying band that has captivated people with their unique blend of metal, R&B, and atmospheric soundscapes ever since they burst on the music scene in 2016. Their debut album, Sundowning, released in November 2019, showcases the band’s mysterious persona and thematic exploration of love and loss, framed within the context of worship to a deity known as “Sleep.” Yeah… They’re kinda weird. Similar to bands like Slipknot, Sleep Token really leans into their schtick, donning masks on stage and keeping their anonymity a high priority. By design, knowledge of band members names and faces is a closely guarded secret. But don’t let their weird visual appearance cloud your judgement before you hear them. This album features haunting melodies, powerful lyrics, and dynamic instrumentation including god-tier drumming, all of which make for an interesting and immersive listening experience full of emotional depth and sonic versatility.
Listen along with us this month and tune back in at the end of August to see what Darren, Scott, Scott and I thought of these albums, and whether anyone else agrees with me that the influence of the Deftones could be heard on Sleep Token. And as always, be sure to share your thoughts with us about your own listen-through. Until then, this is Alain signing off for The Sonic Collective. You can find us on all the usual social media channels like Facebook and X (still gonna always be Twitter to me), and of course you can always leave a comment on TheSonicCollective.com
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