SikTh

Sikth, recognized among the more pivotal acts shaping the djent wing of progressive metal, emerged as a versatile English rock unit in Watford, Hertfordshire in 1999, though the definitive lineup of vocalists Mikee Goodman and Justin Paul Hill, guitarist and pianist Dan Weller, bassist James Leach, and drummer and percussionist Dan Foord did not lock in until 2001. Two favorably received EPs, Let the Transmitting Begin and How May I Help You?, preceded the release of the band’s first studio album, The Trees Are Dead & Dried Out Wait for Something Wild, in 2003. Touring support for Anthrax and Killswitch Engage on international dates followed, as did prominent festival appearances including Download and Fuse Leeds, before the group delivered its second album, Death of a Dead Day, in 2006. Goodman and Hill declared their departures the next year to focus on separate projects, and Sikth formally disbanded in 2008. The years afterward saw the ensemble’s stature within the underground metal scene expand rapidly, leading to a 2013 announcement of a reunion capped by a headline slot on the Red Bull Stage at the subsequent Download Festival. Speculation about a new studio project soon surfaced, and in early 2015 the members confirmed plans for a crowd-funded EP, Opacities. Their third album, The Future in Whose Eyes?, arrived two years later to considerable anticipation.