10 Best Hard Rock & Heavy Metal EPs Of 2017
3. Sleep Token – Two
Best described as Bon Iver meets Meshuggah, Sleep Token are one of the most enigmatic and head-turning bands in the UK right now. This mysterious cavalcade of masked musicians come together under the leadership of the frontman known only as “Vessel” to worship the deity Sleep through soulful song, delivering three new hymns in 2017 as found on their masterful EP Two.
The second release from Sleep Token (duh!), Two is a tripartite collection of technical yet subtle lamentations, all of which balance out high-pitched vocals and calming piano with down-tuned guitars and visceral percussion. Opening track and lead single “Calcutta” is doubtlessly this EP’s far-and-away highlight, blowing the minds of the uninitiated as its tranquil opening morphs into full metal madness at the sudden sound of one impactful guitar chord. “You are more than warm belief / Melting skywards, / More than silence broken. / I’m whole again” Vessel states in his uniquely soothing voice, perpetuating the pseudo-religious undertones that continually permeate Sleep Token’s sound.
Two is catchy and it’s subtle, but it’s also abrasive and skull-rattling. Truly, it is one of the best metal releases of 2017, giving the genre an accessibility that few others have this year.