About
It’s been a crazy twelve years for sleepmakeswaves, the little Sydney quartet who dreamed big.
Hundreds of shows amongst 16 Australian tours, 6 European tours, 2 North American tours, 2 Asian & New Zealand tours…
Unexpected critical acclaim including 3 ARIA nominations, 2 AIR Award nominations and a nomination for a J Award, amongst highly rated reviews from Rolling Stone, The Music, The Independent and more.
Airplay including 3 songs added to triple j rotation, spending a combined 20 weeks in the CMJ Top 200 at US college radio and airing on BBC6.
Even a glimmer of brief commercial success with 2 ARIA Top 40 albums and a #1 spot on the 100% Independent Chart for ‘Made of Breath Only.’ They even cracked the Top 100 in Kazakhstan.
Formed via an ad on Myspace (remember that?), the band’s story started online and they continue to benefit from fans sharing their music on the internet. From their debut unexpectedly clocking up 50,000 downloads online, to hitting 200,000 views as the soundtrack to a romantic ‘Twilight’ movie fan video, or as the thumping opening theme for the AFL football season coverage on Channel 7, sleepmakeswaves’ music has always taken a life of its own amongst fans online.
Recently, their triple j Like A Version tribute to Robert Miles’ ‘Children’ hit close to 1 million spins online, as did their Metallica tribute ‘To Live Is To Die’, whilst the band’s Spotify listeners top 1 million worldwide.
However, the story of the band is not complete without a nod to the work put in on the live stage.
Amongst the 300+ live dates played over the past few years, the band have visited 30 countries and headlined sold out shows on 5 continents. They’ve played festivals including SXSW (USA), ArcTangent (UK), Euroblast (Germany), Dunk Festival (Belgium), Strawberry Festival (China) & NH7 Weekender (India).
They’ve toured with and befriended a host of iconic and diverse acts – Karnivool, COG, Devin Townsend, Underoath, Russian Circles and many more.
They’ve forged links with and created touring opportunities for many of their international peers in Australia – 65daysofstatic, Rosetta, The Contortionist, This Will Destroy You, And So I Watch You From Afar and more.
They fulfilled a decade-long dream in their hometown by headlining Sydney’s iconic Metro Theatre to a packed house and recording the show for triple j’s Live at the Wireless (going on to headline there several more times).
Despite all these unprecedented milestones, most importantly, their biggest achievement has been to endure and continue making music and performing for their fans. Through lineup changes, an ever-more-difficult economic climate for independent niche artists, theft of money and equipment, computers crashing, lost baggage, injuries, illness, operations, failed relationships, fire alarms, red tape and more, this band has maintained the passion and enthusiasm to continue creating. Their fans have supported them – through pre-order campaigns to make new albums, through ticket sales, merch sales and social media, through images shared of tattoos, gifts of birthday cakes in Poland, drinks in Hungary, videos of cover versions from India, tour guides in China, or just a handshake and
a smile at the merch desk after the show.
So…the continuation of this band is an ongoing a celebration of all that. A way to say thank you for everything, with a quick glance backwards, before continuing on with many more new things to come.
Expect plenty of surprises, new music and one heck of a live post-rock show from this hard-working still-young band.
Left to right:
Alex Wilson – bass, keys, electronics
Otto Wicks-Green – guitar, sometimes vox
Tim Adderley – drums
Current touring guitarist: Lachlan Marks or Jonathan ‘Kid’ Khor
Ex-SMW band, but dubz family 4eva: Tom Binetter, William Smith, Jonathan ‘Kid’ Khor, Daniel Oreskovic
We live and work on the land of the eora nation and extend our deepest respect to all gadigal elders past and present
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The old bio…because it’s the internet so why not.
sleepmakeswaves are an instrumental rock band from sydney, australia.
The band came together in late 2006 with a desire to write textured, dynamic and emotive songs combining delicate beauty with dramatic climaxes. After their 2007 demo generated unexpected buzz, they went on to independently produce 2 further EPs. Strong word of mouth and critical praise saw the band’s listener base grow worldwide, with over 50,000 people downloading their tracks online and airplay on triple j, Radio K and the BBC.
In late 2011, the band released their debut studio album “…and so we destroyed everything” through independent Australian label Bird’s Robe Records. Over three years of touring in support of the album, their busy schedule included 8 Australian tours, 3 European tours, touring the USA and playing SXSW, tours with 65daysofstatic and Karnivool – and an unprecedented nomination for an ARIA Award in 2012.
In 2014, the band kicked off another amazing run, touring with Karnivool & Dead Letter Circus, headlining their biggest Australian tour to date and playing a rapturous set at Newtown Festival in their hometown. Their new album ‘Love of Cartography’ reached #31 on the ARIA Charts (#2 on the 100% Independent Chart behind Sia) and was nominated for an ARIA Award, a J Award and AIR Award, as well as featuring the triple j playlisted singles ‘Something Like Avalanches’ and ‘Great Northern.’
In 2015, sleepmakeswaves announced the ‘Great Northern’ tour, taking in 55 shows across 22 countries, including the UK, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, from March to June.
In late 2015, the band capped off the year at the 5-year anniversary show for Bird’s Robe Records and Port Macquarie’s Festival of the Sun, including a farewell to longtime guitarist Jonathan Khor.
2016 saw the released of ‘traced in constellations’ as a single and a 54-date tour including a return to North America for the first time in four years, touring alongside progressive rockers The Contortionist & Monuments. The band, with new guitarist Daniel Oreskovic, also recorded a show-stopping session with Audiotree Live, released as an EP mid-year.
Following the mammoth US run, sleepmakeswaves were announced as support for COG on their sold out reunion tour. In addition, the band headlined their own shows nationally with support from The Contortionist & Tangled Thoughts of Leaving.
2017 so far has seen the release of ‘Made of Breath Only’, the third full-length album from sleepmakeswaves. Peaking at #15 on the ARIA Chart and #1 on the 100% Independent Chart. The band have continued to tour extensively, including sold out Australia and New Zealand theatre tours alongside Underoath & Devin Townsend Project and a headline tours of China & Australia. The band will travel to the UK for Bristol’s prestigious ArcTanGent Festival in August, before embarking on an extensive headline tour of Europe throughout October, including performances at Norway’s Vivid Festival, Germany’s Euroblast Festival, ProgPower in The Netherlands, Aloud Music Festival in Barcelona & Bergmal Festival in Switzerland.
With a devoted following around the world for their innovative and expansive music, coupled with an electrifying live show, the future looks bright for this young instrumental quartet.
About ‘Made of Breath Only’
Made of Breath Only is the third album from Sydney ambient/melodic post-rockers sleepmakeswaves.
This is the band’s most ambitious and challenging record. Drawing influences from struggling relationships, months spent away on the road and the growing angst amongst a world in turmoil, the record reflects darker themes, whilst balancing these against the incredible joy found through connecting with a growing global audience for their music.
Recorded at LaCueva Studios in Byron Bay with producer Nick DiDia (Karnivool, Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Powderfinger, Rage Against The Machine), the album ranges from the melody-laden earworm of ‘Midnight Sun’ to the pummelling progressive rock of ‘Tundra’ and the album centerpiece ‘The Edge of Everything.’
– ‘This is the perfect instrumental rock album. 5/5.’ – TheMusic
– #15 ARIA Chart (#1 100% Independent Chart)
– ‘Tundra’ added to triple j rotation
About ‘Love of Cartography’
Love Of Cartography is the second album from Sydney ambient/melodic post-rockers sleepmakeswaves.
Following their ARIA-nominated debut …and so we destroyed everything, the band have created their most epic, intricate and powerful record to date. Love Of Cartography showcases their dynamic and energetic approach to modern post-rock, whilst retaining their signature melodic hooks.
With a series of memorable and thundering sequences, the album presents the band’s continued desire to map new creative directions within an instrumental rock framework.
The band’s heavy touring schedule of the past three years (sharing stages with 65daysofstatic, Karnivool & Russian Circles) has honed their powerful live energy, which has been captured impressively on the album.
Recorded in Byron Bay at Studio 301 with producer Nick DiDia (Karnivool, Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Powderfinger, Rage Against The Machine), the album’s 10 tracks range from the epic bombast of ‘Perfect Detonator’ to the delicate and subtle electronic flourishes of ‘A Little Spark.’
– nominated for 2014 ARIA Award
– nominated for 2014 J Award
– nominated for 2014 AIR Award
– ‘Something Like Avalanches’ & ‘Great Northern’ added to triple j rotation
– #118 on the USA CMJ Top 200
Track listing:
1. Perfect Detonator
2. Traced In Constellations
3. Singularity
4. Emergent
5. Great Northern
6. The Stars Are Stigmata
7. A Little Spark
8. How We Built The Ocean
9. Something Like Avalanches
10. Your Time Will Come Again
www.sleepmakeswaves.com
www.facebook.com/sleepmakeswaves
www.birdsrobe.com