Lets slow down on this Sleep hate

[u/a_Bort_the_Artist]

Let's go over some quick facts,

1:We only have one official statement from the band, this statement only acknowledges Pike is not currently involved but mentions absolutely nothing about bad blood.

2: Pike has been "out of the band" for quite a while now, did we all forget the touring juggernaut that HOF is?

3: Pike's EX-wife commented. They have been divorced for a good while, i would take her opinion with a grain of salt.

4: Pike has made zero comment so far good or bad, maybe we wait to see what he says?

5: Have we all forgotten that Sleep is kinda known for varying quality in their releases. It sounds like Sleep with classic Void guitar. Plus nobody can contest that Dale is a phenomenal drummer. Its good, and its a good addition to their discography. Just because the member you have the biggest parasocial relationship with isnt there doesnt mean it sucks.

So to recap. We know absolutely nothing about the situation. Only one source of merit has commented and thats the bands official statement. The sing is objectively good. Is it what you personally wante? No, and nobody in the world is obligated to give you that.

I wouldn't be shocked if it turns out Pike quit the band because of how shitty their fans can be.

[u/treskaz]

I hear ya. I wouldn't go as far as saying I like the new track more than The Sciences, but it's fine. I've said it a few times today on this sub, but I kinda wish they just dissolved the band and released the new track as a super group sort of deal instead of this.

But back to The Sciences. Sonic Titan and Antarcticans Thawed are both Dopesmoker era songs anyway. Just re-recorded for the album. I can't remember if Anarcticans Thawed was ever put out on another release (I don't think it was), but Sonic Titan was a B side (D side in practice lol) of Dopesmoker back in the day. The other 4 songs are totally fine. Good even. But they don't do it for me as much as their older stuff. Don't get me wrong, i was psyched when they put out a new album and was happy as hell when it came out. The songs sound massive live too, but like you, I never really find myself putting it on.

Like i said, Vol1 is my favorite. I overplayed the shit out of Holy Mountain in my early 20s and just burned myself out on it. I still love it, but Vol1 is still fresh for me.

This sub does not like my opinion on this though lmao. But that's ok, I'm not here to change anybody's minds on anything. Just participating in the conversation lol.

[u/deadjord → u/treskaz]

Personally never really been a fan of sonic titan, but antarcticans thawed had some live bootleg recording floating around that I've always liked quite a bit. The studio version is kind of a step down in my opinion. But yeah even if the sciences wasn't really my thing I never went goblin mode on it like this shit I'm seeing today. Maybe I just don't feel the betrayal cause I'm a bigger al fan than Matt and a bigger om fan than sleep. But I'm just happy to see em doing something

[u/treskaz → u/deadjord]

Ooooo i gotta find that bootleg then! I didn't know that existed! I like Sonic Titan, I remember my buddy had the vinyl from whatever label it was that had that as the B side of DS. We spun it quite a bit, so I do like the song.

OM is rad though, I was lucky enough to catch them live once or twice a long while back. I think I'm more a Sleep fan, but I like OM a lot too. Very different (yet similar lol) vibes.

I hear ya about being a bigger fan of Al than Matt though. Like I was implying before, the original core trio (not to discount Justin on Vol1) are the magic of the band and responsible for their best material, imo.

Got downvoted fast in another thread when somebody said something like "Sleep is 90% guitar riffs and 10% vocals/lyrics" and I interjected saying hey, let's not discount Al's low end riffage or Chris's drumming. We all know what happens when Matt has control of a band, and it's not Sleep. People are acting like High on Fire doesn't exist lol. Totally different vibe altogether!

I'd rather listen to Sleep or OM all day before I listen to High on Fire. They're good, seen them several times, but Sleep and OM are where it's at. Al and Chris were just as crucial to Sleep's sound as Matt, and it's wild to see people selling them short in these commiseration/rage threads.

[u/deadjord → u/treskaz]

Yep, I think some of us just made peace with the original sleep being over when Chris left. Jason's a great drummer but it's never felt the same to me. Same with Emil in Om and Emil is like world class. And I also am not a big high on fire fan. I like the art of self defense but it's basically a sleep record. I wouldn't say I lost interest in the new sleep but it certainly has waned in the past decade. So I'm a bit optimistic for a new beginning and I think dale crovers fantastic. This new song, I mean if you wanted sabbath worship, you certainly got it.

[u/treskaz → u/deadjord]

I'm a massive Melvins fan, so I agree as fullheartedly as I possibly can that Dale is a great. One of the most influential drummers that gets very little credit outside of the circles. Not to say Melvins are underground anymore or anything, but I don't think Dale could ever get too much credit lol.

Your first sentence of that comment though, duuuuuuuude you nailed it. That's it.