Sleep Token 創辦人解釋樂團 2025 年「下載節」的頭條新聞

Sleep Token 持續登上現代英國金屬音樂界的王座，這在近幾個月中仍然是一個有趣的發展。

Sleep Token have continued their rapid ascent through the ranks of British metal in recent months, notably being announced as one of the three headliners for this year’s edition of Download Festival.

近幾個月來，Sleep Token 在英國金屬音樂的排名中繼續快速上升，特別是被宣佈為今年下載節的三大頭條新聞之一。

The masked alternative metal collective first formed back in 2016, but it was the initial run of singles launched ahead of their third studio album, 2023’s Take Me Back To Eden, that brought them mainstream attention. Those tracks went viral on social media, quickly elevating the group to headliner status.

這個蒙面另類金屬樂團首次成立於2016 年，但在他們的第三張錄音室專輯《2023 年的《帶我回到伊甸園》》之前推出的第一批單曲才為他們帶來了主流關注。這些曲目在社群媒體上瘋傳，迅速將樂團提升為頭條新聞。

Since then, they’ve managed to sell out sizable venues in both their homeland and abroad, and more recently landed their first gold record in the United States.

從那時起，他們成功地在國內外銷售了相當大的場地，最近還在美國創下了他們的第一張金唱片。

Still, the revelation that the group would be serving as one of the three headliners booked for Download 2024 alongside Green Day and Korn ruffled a few feathers.

儘管如此，樂團將與 Green Day 和 Korn 一起成為 2024 年 Download 2024 的三位頭條新聞之一的消息還是引起了一些人的不滿。

While some argued that the headlining spot should go to a more tenured and proven artist, others claimed that Sleep Token are merely a flash in the pan. The conversation surrounding that booking led Download founder Andy Copping to publicly jump to the group’s defense.

雖然有些人認為頭條新聞應該頒給一位更資深、更成熟的藝術家，但有些人則聲稱《睡眠權杖》只是曇花一現。圍繞該預訂的談話導致 Download 創始人 Andy Copping 公開站出來為該組織辯護。

In a new op-ed shared by Copping via Kerrang!, the festival boss has now further explained his faith in Sleep Token and how the festival came about the decision to give them such a coveted spot. An excerpt of what he had to say can be read below:

在 Copping 透過 Kerrang! 分享的一篇新專欄中，音樂節老闆進一步解釋了他對 Sleep Token 的信心，以及音樂節如何決定給予他們如此令人垂涎的席位。他所說的話摘錄如下：

“When Wembley went on sale and sold out in 10 minutes I was like, ‘This is beyond anything that anyone could have thought in terms of their popularity explosion.’ And not just in the UK – I’m seeing it in America, Australia and Europe as well. Suddenly, something is happening. I saw the Wembley show, it was amazing, and obviously Vessel had that wobble, but I thought it was great that he was still onstage while the crowd were singing the songs.

「當溫布利球場開始打折並在 10 分鐘內售完時，我就想，’這超出了任何人所能想像的人氣爆炸式增長。’不只在英國，我在美國、澳洲和歐洲也看到了這種情況。突然，有事情發生了。我看了溫布利的演出，太棒了，顯然維塞爾有那種搖擺不定的感覺，但我認為當人群唱歌時他仍然在舞台上，這真是太棒了。

We then started talking to them about Download 2025. The arena tour had gone on sale and blown out two O2s, and it sold out everywhere. This is their moment, this is their time. We, as a festival, have to be bringing bands through and believe in what we’re doing, but we don’t do it in a haphazard way.

然後我們開始和他們談論《Download 2025》。這是他們的時刻，這是他們的時代。作為一個音樂節，我們必須讓樂團通過並相信我們正在做的事情，但我們不會以隨意的方式做到這一點。

It’s very measured, it’s calculated, and I think it’s Sleep Token’s time. We spoke with them and they agreed to do it. It’ll be massive for them and for the festival, and I think that any detractors, when they see it, will get it. They’ll understand what it’s all about. It’s a lightning-in-a-bottle moment for our scene where a band has come in and done that.

這是非常謹慎、經過計算的，我認為現在是睡眠令牌的時候了。我們與他們交談，他們同意這樣做。這對他們和節日來說都是巨大的，我認為任何批評者看到它時都會明白。他們會明白這一切是怎麼回事。對於我們的場景來說，這是一個閃電般的時刻，一支樂團介入並做到了這一點。

I think they’ll win over non-fans at Download with how dynamic the show is. Out of curiosity people will watch, and mark my words, they’ll say after they play, ‘I was not familiar, but they’re now my new favourite band.’ They have something about them that’s going to win people over. People will become part of the gathering, part of the Worship.

我認為他們會憑藉節目的活力贏得《下載》節目中非粉絲的青睞。出於好奇，人們會觀看並記下我的話，他們在演奏後會說，“我不熟悉，但他們現在是我最喜歡的新樂隊。”他們身上有一些能夠贏得人們支持的東西。人們將成為聚會的一部分，崇拜的一部分。

A lot of people go, ‘It’s a new band,’ but they’ve had three albums. If you want to take it back, Guns N’ Roses exploded on album number one, Nirvana exploded on album number two, and here we are with a band on album three. I think that our scene is really lucky to have a band like Sleep Token come through and rise to the top.

很多人會說，“這是一支新樂團”，但他們已經出了三張專輯。如果你想收回的話，Guns N' Roses 在第一張專輯中大放異彩，Nirvana 在第二張專輯中大放異彩，而我們在第三張專輯中則有一支樂隊。我認為我們的場景真的很幸運有像 Sleep Token 這樣的樂團脫穎而出並登上頂峰。

We’re going to see a lot of festivals across the world making them a headline act. We were first and we love being the innovators. What we did with Slipknot, what we did with Avenged Sevenfold, and most recently with Bring Me The Horizon, all those bands deserved to headline Download and we were the first to give them that opportunity.

我們將看到世界各地的許多節日使其成為頭條新聞。我們是第一，我們喜歡成為創新者。我們對Slipknot 所做的事情，我們對Avenged Sevenfold 所做的事情，以及最近的Bring Me The Horizo​​n 所做的事情，所有這些樂隊都應該成為下載的頭條新聞，而我們是第一個給他們這個機會的人。

And we’ve been absolutely proved right. Sleep Token are going to be the next great festival headliner across the world, and how great it is that they’re British, too. It’s part of the new British Invasion. That’s how we came to the decision.”

事實證明我們絕對是對的。 Sleep Token 將成為世界各地下一個偉大的音樂節頭條新聞，他們也是英國人，這真是太棒了。這是新的英國入侵的一部分。這就是我們所做的決定。

You can find more from Copping over at Kerrang!. Should Sleep Token manage to fully cement themselves as a bankable headliner going forward, it will certainly be a welcome development, as there has been much discussion regarding the lack of apparent metal and hard rock headliners positioned to keep the scene financially viable in the coming decades.

您可以在 Kerrang! 的 Copping 中找到更多資訊。如果Sleep Token 能夠成功地完全鞏固自己作為未來可盈利的頭條新聞的地位，這肯定會是一個值得歡迎的發展，因為人們已經對缺乏明顯的金屬和硬搖滾頭條新聞進行了很多討論，以保持該場景在未來幾十年的財務可行性。