Sheffield’s While She Sleeps have released an extended cut of their ‘SO WHAT?’ documentary. Originally released alongside the band’s 2019 album ‘SO WHAT?’, the new version pulls no punches and goes deeper into the life of While She Sleeps. It was premiered digitally live on YouTube on Saturday night to help foster a feeling of togetherness, as was experienced by those who attended its in-real-life premiere at the end of last year. “We wanted to make this documentary to shed some light on the real world of Sleeps,” says guitarist and vocalist Mat Welsh. “We didn’t want to make something that made things look better or more glamorous than they really are. We just wanted a fly on the wall capturing the rollercoaster that is making an album. It’s a process that never comes easy for us and SO WHAT? was no exception. We filmed for 7 months and, like with everything, it got condensed down into something that was digestable within a mere hour. So we thought it could be fun to make an extended version and show it to our fans at some kind of DIY movie night, hosted at our warehouse last December. The night was really special, there’s something beautiful about everyone watching something at the same time, experiencing the emotions together. But those times of events and group gatherings seem like a world away, so we thought it could be cool to do this in a digital way, giving our fans something fun to look forward to. A means of being together while we’re all apart.”
While She Sleeps recently had to wrap up their first full headline tour of North America early due to the at-the-time impending Covid-19 crisis, but not before enthusing crowds across the country at the shows they did manage to play. Never a band to rest on their laurels, even in these tour-dry times, While She Sleeps have been dropping quick-selling, new self-designed merch lines and recently released an evocative, kaleidoscopic lyric video for ‘GATES OF PARADISE’.
Recorded with producer Carl Bown, ‘SO WHAT?’ marked another defiant step forwards for the Sheffield band of brothers. It’s the sound of While She Sleeps reborn. “You get a taste of this new area that we’re flowing into,” explains guitarist Sean Long. “Even though it’s still really heavy, you get this twinge of what’s to come.”
And, if you are aware of While She Sleeps’ work ethic, “what’s to come” will be here sooner rather than later.