Doc Coyle Calls Out ‘Pretentious Gatekeeping’ of Sleep Token

Doc Coyle has called out the “pretentious gatekeeping” that is currently surrounding Sleep Token, likening it to a script that he’s seen played out too often with popular rock and metal bands through the years.

The former Bad Wolves and current Snot guitarist penned an op-ed piece for Metal Hammer in which he came to the masked band’s defense after seeing the growing backlash against the group as their Even In Arcadia album delivered one of the biggest sales weeks for a rock or metal act in quite some time.

What Doc Coyle Said About the Backlash on Sleep Token

First laying out the positives of the band’s recent accomplishments, Coyle notes, “In spite of, or maybe due to, this commercial triumph, the backlash has been harsh and swift. The metalcore online discourse, as I said, is a nightmare. My Twitter feed reads like a revolt against Sleep Token. The most common refrain is some version of, ‘This band should not be allowed to be called metal anymore!’ Many find the cult-like devotion of their fans to be repulsive.”

He even noted several harsh critiques from Pitchfork and YouTube’s Anthony Fantano before adding, “This isn’t critique – it’s antipathy, revulsion, wholesale rejection. But the subtext gives away the game. Sleep Token’s crime is not their artistic choices; it’s the audacity to become the most popular rock act on earth with those choices.”

Coyle leans into discussion of the band’s embracing of pop influences and how that is used to discredit them with metal fans. But as he notes, acts ranging from Bring Me the Horizon to Bad Omens to Spiritbox have been doing this for quite some time now and other acts such as Opeth, Myrkur or Devin Townsend seemingly get a pass for coloring outside the lines because “they dare not speak to the normies.”

He adds, “I fear that we’ve become a society incentivized not to enjoy blatantly enjoyable things.” He shouts out “Caramel” as “a disturbingly excellent pop song,” and adds, “I very much enjoy Even in Arcadia. It’s best songs don’t hit the peaks of ‘The Summoning’ and ‘Chokehold’ from Take Me Back to Eden, but I find it a more satisfying listen top-to-bottom.”

Doc Coyle Calls Out the Gatekeeping

Coyle continued in his discussion, “I don’t begrudge anyone who dislikes the album or the band. What bothers me is the coalitions of lynch mobs against popular heavy bands as a trend. It’s knee-jerk contrarianism to dislike what the masses like. I don’t think that’s cool.”

“But we’ve seen this movie before. Limp Bizkit went from the biggest band in the world in 2002 to persona non grata in a couple of years. I saw them get booed opening for Metallica in 2003. Rage Against The Machine bassist, Tim Commerford, even apologized for Limp Bizkit’s existence. Now, they are getting their flowers for being cool, innovative, and fun. Many old fans remembered how great they were, and a whole new generation appreciate them without the baggage. It was also trendy to hate Metallica for 10 years. Now, people love them again.”

READ MORE: Does Sleep Token’s ‘Even in Arcadia’ Match the Hype? Fans Weigh In

Coyle adds, “I just don’t know why we have to keep repeating the same patterns of tearing down our successful acts. This is ‘why we can’t have nice things’ in practice. Hating bands as trends is not cool because trying to be cool isn’t cool. It is another form of conformity, elitism. I believe truly being a fan is being a nerd. It’s passionate, obsessive and unabashedly earnest. Unfortunately, we live in a time where earnestness is viewed as cringe.”

The guitarist concludes that he doesn’t want to be viewed as “the hall monitor scolding the kids,” but feels that it would be healthier if we weren’t so defined by outspoken contempt.

“It’s just music. Just because you have a right to be an asshole about this stuff, doesn’t mean you have to be,” says Coyle. “Be an outsider. Be a nerd. And it’s okay to sometimes be a basic bitch that likes things that make you feel good.”