Is the future of pop...heavy metal?!

Switched on Pop

Vox Media Podcast Network

Music Interviews, Music History, Music, Music Commentary

4.6 • 2.7K Ratings

🗓️ 3 June 2025

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The UK outfit Sleep Token has done what we once thought impossible: Found commercial success playing heavy metal music in 2025 AD. Their fourth studio album, Even in Arcadia, went to number one on the Billboard 200 upon its release, with all ten of its tracks charting on the Hot 100—this despite the fact that the band has been entirely masked and anonymous through their nine year existence. Sleep Token's willingness to inject their brand of heavy metal with autotuned pop vocals, reggaeton beats, and hop hop inflected rhythms has widened their audience, but in the process had galvanized scathing criticism. Pitchfork gave the album a withering review calling Even in Arcadia "schmaltzy and dull," while Anthony Fantano dubbed the band "metal music for Disney adults." We get to know Sleep Token—the music and the controversy—by listening deeply to the ways they toy with the genre conventions of metal, and ask whether they are changing the sound of pop in the process. AUDIENCE SURVEY 2025: https://switchedonpop.typeform.com/survey2025 Songs Discussed Sleep Token - Thread the Needle, Emergence, Caramel, Damocles Ghost - Satanized Metallica - Hero of the Day Nickelback - How You Remind Me Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	The Tribeca Festival is back June 4th through 15th, and it's packed with can't miss experiences.
0:07.7	Catch Sandra O on a live podcast recording of The Interview from the New York Times.
0:12.5	Cheer on Track and Field superstar Alison Felix in the documentary She Runs the World.
0:17.9	Or catch my mom, Jane, Mariska Hargate's moving documentary feature directorial debut about her mother, Hollywood icon Jane Mansfield.
0:26.5	There's something for everyone.
0:28.0	Get your tickets now at Tribecafilm.com.
0:32.0	Hello, poppers, poppettes, popovers, pop eyes.
0:36.0	Okay, I don't know what to call listeners of this podcast,
0:39.0	but I do know that we have a survey for you to fill out.
0:41.8	It's super short and will be incredibly helpful for us
0:44.5	if you head over to our show notes and click on the link
0:47.0	or go to switchedonpop.com slash survey.
0:50.9	Okay, on with the show.
0:56.2	Stage on Pop. I'm musicologist Nate Sloan.
1:04.1	And I'm songwriter Charlie Harding.
1:05.9	Charlie, right now, a band is doing something that I once thought impossible, finding commercial
1:12.7	success playing heavy metal music in the year of our Lord 2025.
1:19.1	Love metal.
1:20.1	I'm talking about Sleep Token, whose latest album, even in Arcadia, just went to number
1:27.2	one on the Billboard 200, and all 10 tracks
1:30.9	charted on the Hot 100 the week of its release. I remember seeing that. I was like, who is this
1:36.9	band? I've never heard of them. They're wearing masks. What on earth is going on. Charlie, today I will reveal all.
	...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in 16 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Vox Media Podcast Network, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Vox Media Podcast Network and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.