Summer 2012. Guitarist Sam Waters (Omotai, Defending The Kingdom) collaborates with bassist Evan Jones (former “enfant terrible” behind The Ronin King) on a series of songs which emphasize space, simplicity, and melody yet retain the distinctive heaviness and rhythmic thrust of their other projects. They proceed to send each other recordings and ideas while traveling and working in different geographical locales, rehearsing whenever Jones would return to the Houston area. Influenced by a friend's tussle with insomnia, they call the project Sleep Envy.
(Insert various life, work, and other taxing historical time-sucks HERE. And then...)
November 2014. After a long period of refinement and re-writing Sleep Envy releases a recording entitled The Mt. Aso Demo. The three song recording demonstrates the group's interests in driving, apocalyptic noise rock as well as melodic ambient soundscapes. It was named after the Mt. Aso volcano in Kumamoto, Japan, which Jones had lived next to while studying Japanese in the mid-2000s. The volcano had erupted immediately prior to the recording's release.
Now. While completing Omotai's forthcoming third LP, Waters finds the time to rehearse with Jones and Houston drummer Steven Smith (Motion Turns It On, Defending The Kingdom) for a series of shows and recordings slated for the tail end of 2014. Smith's superb rhythmic drive, excellent sense of humor, and general willingness to beat his drums like they owe him a significant amount of money bring an extra dimension and depth to the sound of Sleep Envy. The band does not fail to note the irony – yes, the “irony” – of having a great time while playing music that is often as sad and mournful as it is noisy and dynamic.
Sleep Envy's influences are varied and numerous, but they are undoubtedly a post-punk band. Waters' molten guitar work creates a warm, open space that is complemented by the heavily distorted punch of Jones' bass and the fluid, powerful drumming of Mr. Smith. Sleep Envy also utilizes a lot more vocal melody than many would expect from a band whose members worship groups like The Jesus Lizard and My Disco, as Jones has augmented his desperate drill sergeant bark with a soothing tenor that is somewhat reminiscent of The Psychedelic Furs' Richard Butler. Other sonic touchstones include Jesu, My Bloody Valentine, These Arms Are Snakes, and the robotic stomp of Rhode Island's Six Finger Satellite. The group aims to play simple, aggressive music that does not rely on cliché or emotionally hollow gestures while remembering, in the words of the great Austrian poet Rilke, to “bring it.”
The band is currently focused on completing an EP in time for their upcoming Texas shows. Press and booking inquiries may be forwarded to sleepenvytx at gmail.com. Their first demo is currently available online at sleepenvy.bandcamp.com at no charge. Your support is both valued and appreciated.
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