The Clarity

The Clarity
Artwork as depicted by Adult Swim.
Single by Sleep
Released	July 18 2014
Recorded	2014
Genre	Stoner Metal
Length	9:50
Label	Williams Street; Southern Lord Records
Producer	Sleep, Noah Landis
Sleep single chronology
Dopesmoker (1999 / 2003 / 2012)	The Clarity (2014)	The Sciences (2018)

The Clarity is a single by Sleep, released on July 18, 2014.

Background

On June 2, 2014, Adult Swim announced their sixteen bands for their yearly "Adult Swim Singles" program. Each week from June 9 to September 14 a new single would be released. On June 2 it was revealed that among bands like Oozing Wound and Mastodon that Sleep was one of the bands providing a song for the compilation, as funded by Adult Swim. It was revealed that it would be the first new recording from the band in nearly twenty years (Dopesmoker was largely written between 1993 and 1995 and recorded in 1995). Sleep wrote and recorded the song in a few days, describing it as a "lyrical follow-up to a lifetime of marijuana enjoyment".

The Clarity was released on July 18, 2014 as a free download. Soon after the band announced the song would be self-released on vinyl as a 12" single (45 RPM) with the b-side featuring etched art by David V. D'andrea. The first pressings of the vinyl were released on August 7, 2014 with a second pressing following on October 31 that same year. 1500 copies on clear vinyl were pressed and exclusively distributed by Southern Lord Records.

Sleep have since worked The Clarity into their live performances with the first known performance of the song being on August 24, 2014 at the House of Blues in Boston, Massachusetts.

It's also of note that this is the first Sleep studio recording to feature Jason Roeder on drums and also the first recording not produced or engineered by Billy Anderson. In a 2018 interview, Matt Pike would confirm the single would be part of a recording session along with The Sciences and Leagues Beneath.

In October 2016, Southern Lord Records announced they would be repressing The Clarity on clear vinyl. On 5 January 2017 The Clarity was released via Southern Lord Records. This Southern Lord version has been recut by Adam Gonsalves/Telegraph Mastering and pressed on 180 gram vinyl at RTI. The Lord version also has the ultra heavy-weight vinyl housed in a thick plastic picture disc style sleeve with the iconic Sleep logo silk-screened in glow-in-the-dark ink on the front.

The Clarity would be re-issued in 2021 as part of the compilation EP Iommic Life.

Tracklist

• 1. The Clarity - 9:50

Sleep - The Clarity (Music Video)

Personnel

• Al Cisneros - Bass, Vocals
• Matt Pike - Guitars
• Jason Roeder - Drums
• Noah Landis - Recording
• John Golden - Mastering
• David V. D'andrea - Artwork (Vinyl Version)
• Adam Gonsalves - Lacquer Recut (2016/2017 Vinyl Edition)

Vinyl Pressing Quantities

NOTE: The first two pressings were self-released by the band while the third press onwards are published by Southern Lord Records. The fourth press had a lacquer recut by Adam Gonsalves.

First press:

• x1000 Black
• x420 Green

Second press:

• x??? Black
• x??? Green
• x1500 Clear

Third Press

• x1500 Clear

Fourth Press:

• x???? White
• x???? Orange
• x???? Black
• x???? Green/Clear (European Exclusive)
• x???? Clear Red

External Links

• Interview with NPR in relations to the single.