British metalcore outfit While She Sleeps recently launched a bold new initiative whereby fans can become part of what they have dubbed Sleeps Society.
Sleeps Society is basically a subscription-based platform whereby fans can gain greater access than ever before to the band and comes hot on the heels of While She Sleeps new single of the same name and album announcement of the same name for April next year.
Vocalist Loz Taylor caught up with HEAVY during the week to shed more light on Sleeps Society.
"I'll go back a couple of albums if you like,” Taylor offered. “So we put out a record called You Are We and I think that record sparked this whole idea off initially. This was a couple of albums ago but we were in a bit of a funk with labels and management - not that management and labels are terrible - but we were just having a bit of a hard time the way things happened and we decided to do a record via a pledge campaign which is basically like a crowdfunding thing. At the time I had just come out from throat surgery and these days at the click of a button people can find a brand new band so we were in a bit of a funk. We didn't really know who still cared about the band if you like and through this pledge campaign we noticed people really still gave a shit about this band and that's what sparked the idea. The reason that campaign was so successful for us was that it was straight back down to Earth. We were sticking it to the man, cutting out the middle man as well, and it was direct from the fans to the band and vice versa. That gave us such a good connection and allowed us to release the record how we wanted to and I think that's what sparked this whole idea of the Sleeps Society because it's no secret that streaming platforms don't really pay out to the sort of artists at our level. The demand is there for the band but for ten quid a month you can listen to any music you want in the world. I think it takes something like 5000 streams to generate twenty quid and we go through this in the new music video. With that in mind, we brought this idea to the table pf how can we stand up to the demand the band has got but still make the whole business side of running a band sustainable;e so we don't have to basically be like a clothing line, you know? We wanted to be able to concentrate on the most important thing which is the music and delivering it to the fans in the best possible way and giving our fan base what they want. So the Sleeps Society is basically the Patreon based society that the people who really really care about this band can dive into that and donate a bit of cash per month to the band to help sustain it and in return, it means that we can have a more direct relationship; we can focus on what's important and we can give the people that are really in for this band and value it as much as we do, we can give them a bit more time and loads od extra benefits and perks and insight into the running of the band and how we're going to continue the band going forward. It's really special for us and it's amazing to see so many people in there with us and supporting it. We feel like its kind of the future of the music industry. We're not saying that we're the first people or the first band to do a Patreon sort of thing because tonnes of bands have done it but we think we've got a fresh look at it and a fresh model and we think it can be great for up and coming bands and bands in our genre to move forward and sustain their careers."
In the full interview, Loz talks more about the short and long term benefits of Sleeps Society, the latest song and accompanying film clip, the upcoming album and its musical direction and more.