“pulls you through intimacy, chaos, beauty, and catharsis” - Album Review - Sleep Token - Even In Arcadia

Album Review: Sleep Token – Even in Arcadia

Release Date: 9 May 2025

Words: Jenna Stoch

Sleep Token's Even in Arcadia is an emotional, genre-blending journey that pulls you through intimacy, chaos, beauty, and catharsis. It’s experimental, genre-mixing, and raw in the best way possible. Here's a breakdown of all the tracks:

1. Look To Windward

The album opens with a slow, subtle build, a whisper before the storm. It's theatrical and cinematic, dipping between silence and explosive energy. A melting pot of pop, rap, and electronic elements, it showcases the band’s range and bold experimentation. The piano is stunning, adding a soulful texture that’s almost John Legend-esque. When the lyric “You used to know me well” hits, it’s unexpectedly tender. Genre-blending at its absolute finest.

2. Emergence

A tender piano introduces what feels like a love song, soft and nostalgic. But then the synths creep in, bringing a festival-like energy, glowing sunglasses and all. The song shapeshifts from emotional ballad to electronic to metal, and just when you think it’s over, a saxophone outro sweeps in, unexpected but completely welcome.

3. Past Self

This one throws you back to 2016! Upbeat, bouncy, and unapologetically pop. It feels like a pre-party anthem, the kind of song you blast while getting ready with friends, full of optimism and “main character” energy.

4. Dangerous

There’s a long build-up that hints at something massive… but it holds back. When the drop finally lands, it’s not quite what you expect. Mmore subtle than explosive. Still, it plays with tension in an interesting way.

5. Caramel

Light, poppy, and catchy, with a groove that feels tailor-made for a holiday montage in a romantic comedy. Each chorus gets slightly heavier until finally, boom! A deliciously heavy metal breakdown three and a half minutes in. This one’s sticky sweet and unforgettable, just like its name. No surprise it became the band’s first UK Top 10 hit.

6. Even in Arcadia

Haunting and atmospheric, this track feels like the emotional core of the album. Picture a couple driving in silence through rain, moments before a breakup. It’s delicate but powerful, with a violin that feels like a final breath after a long fight. A beautiful, aching stillness.

7. Provider

Powerful vocals lead this one, layered over synths and emotion. The track swings between vulnerability and heaviness with a cinematic surround-sound feel. It’s intense and immersive, like being caught in a storm you don’t want to leave.

8. Domiciles

Piano-driven and honest, this feels like a whispered confession at first, almost like a musical theatre ballad. It builds into something bigger and more hopeful, the kind of song that makes you smile with a lump in your throat.

9. Gethsemane

This is the break-up track. It aches with confession and self-awareness. The breakdown hits out of nowhere, sudden, almost violent, like the break-up it reflects. Then it slips into a rap-influenced realisation, closing out on an emotionally complex note.

10. Infinite Baths

Closure. Uplifting, euphoric, and beautifully chaotic. The final metal breakdown is pure catharsis, headbanging, air-drumming bliss. As it fades out, there’s this overwhelming feeling of completion. A perfect send-off to a wildly experimental ride.

Final Thoughts:

Even in Arcadia isn't just a metal album, it's a genre-defying statement. Sleep Token blends sound and emotion in unexpected ways, creating something that feels deeply personal and undeniably fresh. It’s cinematic, bold, and emotionally charged. An album that will stick with you long after the final note fades.