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SLEEPLESS “Through Endless Black”
SLEEPLESS “Through Endless Black”
By Dr. Abner Mality
SLEEPLESS from Portland, OR are emerging as a band to really watch. Their debut album “Host Desecration” was a surprise attack of Gothic, quirky metal in the traditional sense. “Through Endless Black” sees the band becoming even more gloomy and quirky...it’s those strange twists that give them a unique flavor. Instead of just being another band to mimic PRIEST, MAIDEN or QUEENSRYCHE, SLEEPLESS actually sounds like a lost band from the Golden Age with a style all their own.
There’s definitely a bit more of a doom feel than on “Host Desecration” and the production is even more murky and analog than the debut. But I would hesitate to call SLEEPLESS a pure doom metal band. When they hit the gas after a slower break, they are at their most effective. Odd touches of timing, best heard on the title track and “Lessons In Tongues”, keep you a bit off balance and wondering what might be next. “Lost Star” has a downbeat, balladic beginning but morphs into quite the aggressive jam. “Consumed By Vengeance” has one of the best riffs I’ve heard this year...a monstrous doomy stomp that hooks you hard. While “Exist Another Day” starts off almost like BLUE OYSTER CULT before going darker and harder. The song features some guest vocals from Jerry A of POISON IDEA...not a name I was expecting.
As for main vocalist Kevin Hahn, he doesn’t have what you would call a remarkable voice, yet he fits the baroque weirdness of SLEEPLESS like a glove. The band has become an amalgamation of parts that don’t necessarily seem like they’d fit together...yet they do. This is a band and a record that should be supported by labels and listeners alike!
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