Sleep Token’s latest album Even In Arcadia has been certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), meaning it’s shipped 100,000 units (or amassed equivalent streaming numbers) in the UK.
The British masked metal band released the record, their fourth overall, via RCA Records in May, making their major-label debut in the process.
The Gold certification adds to an impressive list of achievements that the band have racked up since the album came out. The week after release, it reached number one on the US Billboard 200 charts, making Sleep Token the first heavy metal band to do so since Def Leppard in 1992.
The following month, frontman Vessel and his anonymous cult headlined Download festival for the first time; they then embarked on a totally sold-out North American headline run in the autumn. Fans unable to catch these or future performances may find a worthwhile alternative in Sleep Broken, the first Sleep Token tribute band, who went viral this year.
That momentum continued even as the band started to enjoy some downtime towards the end of the year. Last month, it was announced that they’d been nominated for three awards at the 68th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony, which is set to take place at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles (the same venue where the band wrapped up their latest tour) on February 1.
Even In Arcadia’s lead single Emergence is up for Best Metal Performance, while second single Caramel has been put forward for Best Rock Song. Also, a cover of Black Sabbath’s Changes – which was recorded at the metal pioneers’ retirement gig Back To The Beginning in July and featured Sleep Token drummer II, and famously had Yungblud on vocals – is up for Best Rock Performance.
All this success has come despite Sleep Token being, arguably, the most controversial band of the year. Even In Arcadia came out to mixed reviews from both the metal press and mainstream publications, with observers either being wowed or confused by its fusion of metal, pop, rap, R&B and other genres.
British TV presenter Richard Osman revealed himself to be among the band’s detractors, whereas country megastar Hardy became an unlikely champion for the four-piece. Caramel was named the best song of 2025 by The New York Times, around the same time that famed YouTube critic Anthony Fantano listed Even In Arcadia as one of his worst albums of the year.
The band have also been on the receiving end of two copyright complaints this year. In October, a tattoo designer claimed that Sleep Token’s management shut down her Instagram account due to alleged copyright infringement. The copyright claim was retracted but, as of December 2025, her original account is yet to be restored.
Then, last week, a photographer alleged that the band were using one of her images on merchandise without her consent. She later claimed that management contacted her about the issue and that they are working on a resolution.
Sleep Token’s plans for 2026 are currently unclear, as they have no tour dates announced at time of publication and are famously elusive, to the point that they don’t even grant interviews. However, fans waiting for news may be tided over by the recent official colouring book that the band put out.
