Last October, Sleep announced a brief, weeklong 2022 tour for April, totaling three shows in Denver, Colorado Springs, and Albuquerque, culminating on 4/20. This evolved into five total shows, with an extra matinee show added in Colorado Springs and a quickly announced appearance at Meow Wolf’s House of Eternal Return in Santa Fe. Along with the tour, Sleep released a live recording from their concert in New York in 2018, as well as a remastered reissue of Dopesmoker on Third Man Records.

I made it to their show at the Mission Ballroom in Denver. After openers Superwolves, Sleep took the stage and gave the tightest, most studio-quality performance that I’ve witnessed them perform. There were noticeably less amps on stage than previous shows, which, paired with the robust in-house system, seemed to result in a cleaner mix and more focused sound. The vocals especially were clearer and more distinct; less overshadowed in the mix than previous shows. The mini tour also featured the debut of Al’s 4420 custom double-neck Rickenbacker. The setlist included two classic tracks from their album, Holy Mountain (Holy Mountain, Dragonaut), both Adult Swim Singles (Leagues Beneath, The Clarity), and three tracks from The Sciences (Marijuanaut’s Theme, Sonic Titan, The Botanist).

Among the tables of merch was the limited release of 420 hand etched records from their concert in New York, 2018. It features some sick Escape From New York cover art complete with their signature Sabbath worship. The two green and white discs have a great live concert sound, as well as an amazing mix that really captures the full dynamic range of the band. The low end is especially bright and pronounced.

In other news, Sleep recently announced a reissue of their legendary Dopesmoker LP with Nashville’s Third Man Records. The album is remastered from the source tapes and features a rare studio recording of the previously unreleased track, Hot Lava Man, as well as studio notes and vintage photo prints of the band members. The album retains original artwork by longtime collaborator and album cover artist, Arik Roper. The album is available through Third Man’s Vault Subscription. The sign up deadline to receive the album is April 30th at midnight.

Tour Dates

Aug 27 This Ain’t No Picnic Festival – Pasadena, CA, US