Sleep Thieves, are Sorcha Brennan (vocals, synths), Wayne Fahy (Vocals, synths, bass, programming), and Keith Byrne (synths, guitar, bass, programming). The Dublin-dwelling trio met through Twitter where they bonded over film soundtracks and vintage synths. This musical friendship was solidified in the recording of their self-released EP, Islands in 2012. Their follow up full length album, You Want the Night, was released on June 17th via Minty Fresh (US). If Kate Bush had joined Enya and Bat for Lashes to pen a soundtrack for Jane Eyre this album could be it. Haunting, dreamy and cinematic, it opens up and rolls in like a storm over the moors, calling out to a forgotten love, enticing and caressing the listener.
For the album, You Want the Night, the band collected together an analogue and digital studio set up. Recorded by band member, Keith Byrne, this intimate approach allowed the band time and space to explore and create music with the confidence that only close friendship can provide. The band endeavoured to be set free of the constraints of filtering their ideas and sonic visions through a third party but instead to take charge and steer their own recording schedule and sessions. Rian Trench (Solar Bears) came on board to mix the tracks.
After seeing them live, The Irish Times tagged the band “noir-disco” and first album single City of Hearts perfectly captures that sound. The band describe their music as the sonic realization of memories, visions, emotions and experiences, set to a backdrop of the city skyline, inspired by its perpetual pulse. In 2014 they have gigged extensively, performing 2 sets at Electric Picnic to large audiences (“Sleep Thieves drew the first crowd of the festival” – Hot Press). They also travelled to the US and played at Culture Collide LA and San Francisco alongside Cloud Nothings, Nina Persson and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. They ended the year touring Ireland as part of the FMC tour with Fight Like Apes and Kid Karate.
Sleep Thieves have opened for MS MR, Gazelle Twin, Wild Nothing, Destroyer, Austra, St Etienne and Spector (UK). They will definitely entice you to stay up late, whether to dance or drift off in a daydream, but you won’t hold that against them.
Tracks from album You Want The Night has seen regular radio play on BBC 6Music and XFM London and the album has also been included in many ‘album of the year’ rundowns including Nialler9, RTE 2FM, Eddie Temple-Morriss on XFM, Pansentient League and more. Sleep Thieves music is also a runaway success on the Spotify music service, with the band’s tracks being played more than 1.8 million times to date.
(Sparks) pairs vintage synths, sweet vocals and driving rhythms into a neon-hazed glow.
– Nialler9
(Sparks) big, bouncing bassline hits from the very first second, wrapping the rest of the track inside its dark-of-the-night 80′s stylings.
– Goldflake Paint (UK)
If ever they film a sequel to Nicolas Winding Refn’s hyper-stylish film Drive, Irish trio Sleep Thieves should be on the short list of for scoring duties. (Sleep Thieves) are a welcome force in the electro-pop (or ”Disco-Noir,” as the Irish Times put it) landscape.
– Pigeons & Planes (US)
