More than a decade since the proper release of the seminal, 63-minute doom metal masterpiece Dopesmoker, San Jose’s sultans of sludge, Sleep, have recorded a new song, “The Clarity,” releasing it as part of the Adult Swim singles series.
While members of Sleep have been making music in other projects—notably the doomy Om and stoner metal act High on Fire—and although they’ve been playing reunion shows for the past five years, this is the first new material the group has officially released since Dopesmoker.
Sleep formed in 1990, and in the eight years that followed proved highly influential—pioneering the then-nascent genre of stoner metal. Their pre-breakup career culminated in the creation of Dopesmoker, an hour-long track centered around one beefy, leviathan of a riff.
After finishing the recording of the album, however, their label at the time, London Records balked at its length and overall weirdness. After multiple attempts at paring the recording down, Dopesmoker remained unreleased at the time of the band’s 1998 breakup. The group started playing together again in 2009.
“The Clarity” can be streamed below and will be available for free download on July 21.
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Fans of Sleep and other lethargic stoner metal groups like Electric Wizard will welcome the hazy, heady riffs of the new track, which, according to a recent email exchange between the band and NPR’s All Songs Considered, was inspired by a “lifetime of marijuana enjoyment.”
Also according to the NPR article, the recording of “The Clarity” has inspired the band to make more music, and a full-length album may be in the works. The guys from Sleep aren’t saying much about that at the moment, though. So, for now, sit back, grab your favorite piece and get your mind right, man.
(Metro promotional intern Jonathan Davis contributed to this story)
.Sleep Release New Song Via Adult Swim
