Delta Sleep

The story

Delta Sleep is an English math rock band. I’m not sure how I got into this genre, but it’s not far off from jazz, conceptually - the complex rhythms and melodies capture my attention, with the added benefit of being loud and fast-paced. The technical skills of the players are impressive. They manage to blast through compound, sometimes shifting time signatures, pinch harmonics, and syncopated drum beats, without losing sight of melody and song structure. That is, it’s not just a bunch of music theory nerds intellectually self-pleasing. On top of all of that, Delta Sleep’s guitarist also sings.

I really enjoyed their 2018 album, Ghost City, which is a concept album about escaping an urban landscape which feels oppressive and dehumanising, and the pull we all (still) instinctually feel towards nature.

My journey to see this band play was a bit fraught. I had planned to see them at some point in the distant past, but the concert got cancelled and/or delayed several times, until I decided to take a gamble in March 2021 and buy tickets for their show in September that year, which did end up happening.

This was my first (and I imagine many people’s) show after You-Know-What, and the idea of being in such an enclosed space with so many people did give me a dose of heebie-jeebies. However, by the end of it, I felt a bit liberated. Maybe there was something cathartic to ending that period with a rock concert.

The venue

I chose to attend the Bristol concert, giving me an excuse to visit some old friends there. They played at The Fleece, who seem to host mostly rock and alternative shows (including a lot of tribute bands). It’s a medium-sized venue, in the Redcliffe part of Bristol. There were some benches outside for drinking and smoking (though those might have belonged to an adjacent pub).

The show

Having arrived at the advertised time, I discovered I was way too early, so I waited a bit by the riverside. Then there were 2 supporting acts, which weren’t advertised online. The fact that the dance floor was fairly empty should have tipped me off that the main event wouldn’t start until much later.

What I hadn’t anticipated was the sheer volume of the music (yes, I was a noob). The first clue that I was underprepared was seeing people pop in ear protection. Some came on lanyards, some had neat little pouches; this wasn’t your typical teenage, rebel concert-going crowd. They were prepared.

After the opening act, my ears were complaining. I noticed the bar staff was wearing ear plugs, so I got a pair. Now, these were cheap, run-of-the-mill foam ones (I’m surprised they could hear people’s drinks orders). The only thing I could feel was the bass drum, and that was because of the sheer displacement of air that the speakers produced. However, I found a balance between hearing the band play, which is what I had come all this way for, and a reduced risk of permanent ear damage. I would later acquire some Alpine PartyPlugs, which are made specifically for live music, and eventually start wearing them on my keychain after forgetting them a few times.

I was blown away by the precision of the playing. As I mentioned, this music is far from pop and its ubiquitous 4-chord progressions. All the taps, flams, accents were there, precise, crisp. The songs that I knew gave me chills. Not just a constant barrage of noise, most of their tracks have quite contemplative and beautiful sections. This is why their songs work great even in an acoustic form (see their Soft Sounds album). However, the energy is always there, and it ramps up quickly. You’re immediately jumping, shouting half-remembered lyrics, playing air drums.

While not an unknown band, this genre is a bit niche. It was great to hear large parts of the crowd singing the lyrics.

Throughout the summer of 2021, they dropped a few singles. In November 2021, they released the full album, entitled Spring Island (a few months late, “due to delayed vinyl manufacturing”). As soon as it was announced, I preordered it (Bandcamp FTW), and got some sweet FLACs and digital downloads a week before release. The physical release got delayed yet again, but it arrived just in time for Christmas. Good stuff.