During a recent interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Sleep axe man Matt Pike discussed how the band came up with their iconic name and why they decided to play slower than the majority of most metal bands. During the early years, the guys were devoted to one band and one band only. Who is that band you ask? Pike said, “… the soundtrack to all our fucking lives at the time was essentially Black Sabbath... our entire universe was Black Sabbath. We couldn't understand why the bands we didn't like were playing so fast.” Matt Pike (guitar), Al Cisneros (bass/vocals), and Chris Hakius (drums) would go on to form the band Sleep in 1990 and would release their first LP, Volume One, in 1991.

Sleep would gain a loyal following off the release of their seminal classic LP, Sleep’s Holy Mountain, in 1992. After releasing a few more singles and one more LP, Dopesmoker, Sleep would take a hiatus of sorts. Pike would form sludge metal juggernauts High on Fire (1998) while Cisneros and Hakius would form the drone/doom metal band Om (2003). Now fast forward to 2009, Sleep would reunite to play a few shows but later Hakius would decide to retire from playing drums for personal reasons. As a replacement, Jason Roeder of the legendary experimental/doom band Neurosis would replace him behind the drum kit. This would be a valuable piece to add as the band would mesh very well playing more and more shows/festivals in the coming years. On a side note, all praise to this year’s Muddy Roots Music Festival for scoring not only Sleep and High on Fire to headline… but also Om and Neurosis as well!

Now let’s get this ship back on course, I was first able to see Sleep when they played two nights in Atlanta back in 2015 (May 3rd- The Masquerade & May 4th - Center Stage) and they blew me away with every riff from Lord Pike and thundering bass lines from Al. It was all I expected and much more… I knew that they were back in it for the long run. You could see the excitement and joy on their faces after each night was over as they said good night to the loyal fans that came each night. Move forward to present day, Sleep surprised their fans and released their most recent LP (since 1999), The Sciences, on Jack White’s label Third Man Records on April 20th, 2018. Sleep would do various tour dates throughout 2018 including a two night stand at Atlanta’s Variety Playhouse on December 5th & 6th. I am going to be honest with you all… doing photo during Sleep’s two nights at Variety Playhouse basically made my year end on a high note.

For years, Sleep has been one of the bands I have followed since the early years (insert old joke here). I’ve got to do many amazing artists over the years and will cherish all the memories. However, these two nights will forever go down as the night I got to do photo for Sleep in my town. From beginning to end Sleep came out and just gave everyone in the crowd an auditory onslaught of tracks from their discography. Getting to hear some of the newer songs off The Sciences to classic tracks like “Holy Mountain” and an excerpt from “Dopesmoker” was amazing and truly something I will never forget. Many thanks to Damon for allowing me access to photograph Sleep! Check out each night’s set list below:

Set list December 5th, 2018

1. Leagues Beneath

2. Dopesmoker (partial)

3. Holy Mountain

4. The Clarity

5. Marijuanaut’s Theme

6. Giza Butler

7. The Botanist

8. Dragonaut

Set list December 6th, 2018

1. Leagues Beneath

2. Dopesmoker (partial)

3. Holy Mountain

4. The Clarity

5. Marijuanaut’s Theme

6. The Botanist

7. Dragonaut

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Remember don’t think about it, just buy the damn ticket! As always, hope to see you at a show or festival soon!

The Return of the Sonic Titans: Sleep w/ Weather Warlock (2 Night Stand)