Sleepwalk - View From The Outside Sleepwalk

"View From The Outside was tracked over twelve days at Earth Analog in Tolono, Illinois – the studio of Matt Talbott, guitarist/vocalist of one of Sleepwalk’s major influences, Hum. The band once again worked with Zac Montez (Whirr, Cloakroom), a producer known for textured atmospherics who also helmed their Underneath The Shade album. Montez’s love of electronic music enhances View From The Outside as an unusually three-dimensional aural and emotional experience.

“The [newer] compositions are definitely more thought out,” mulled Davis, the band’s principal songwriter and lyricist. “A good balance of gloominess, hooks, and raw emotions.”

View From The Outside roughly (if unintentionally) divides into two halves: the first opaquely political and more reflective of the band members’ collective hardcore backgrounds; the second more personal, experimental, and perhaps hinting at their future. Third single “Shell” epitomizes Sleepwalk’s vulnerable, confessional side, its robust riffs and snaking leads framing Davis’s struggle with introversion. “It’s about the frustration of how I’ve closed off as I get older … like I’m in a shell,” he said. “And hoping one day to break out of that.”

“I hope that listeners get a sense of belonging or community, and the catharsis of letting out a little bit of aggression with some of the songs,” Davis concluded. “But also, with the somewhat uplifting stuff like ‘Jan 22,’ getting a really overwhelming emotional response.”View From The Outside will be released on November 13, 2026."