Wake the Sleeping Dragon! is the twelfth full-length album by American hardcore punk band Sick of It All. It was released on November 2, 2018 by Fat Wreck Chords in the United States (on CD and vinyl) and in Canada (on vinyl) and by Century Media Records in Europe (both on CD and vinyl). Wake the Sleeping Dragon! is the band's first release on Fat Wreck Chords in 15 years.
The album was announced by Sick of It All in August 2018. The first song of the upcoming album, "Inner Vision", was released the same month. A second song, the title track "Wake the Sleeping Dragon", was released in October 2018. A lyric video for this song was released a few days later. A day after the official release of Wake the Sleeping Dragon!, a music video for "That Crazy White Boy Shit" was released. A music video for "Self Important Shithead" was released in July 2019. In June of 2020 a music video for the song âÂÂBulls Anthemâ was released, the video was made entirely from clips that fans submitted of them singing the song.
the album title Wake the Sleeping Dragon! refers to a protest mechanism. In an interview Drummer Armand Majidi stated âÂÂOn this record, we had a more open, communal, tongue-in-cheek approach to lyric writing,â âÂÂSo many different topics were covered, some way more lighthearted than others. WeâÂÂve done âÂÂseriousâ so often, that what might stand out most to people is how much fun we had with the lyrics. ItâÂÂs always time for revolution, so that message is loud and clear on multiple songs.âÂÂ
As for some of the song meanings he added
âÂÂWe also sing about musical heroes like the Bad Brains (âÂÂThat Crazy White Boy ShitâÂÂ), inner demons (âÂÂThe Snake (Break Free.)âÂÂ), our distaste of animal abuse (âÂÂBullâÂÂs AnthemâÂÂ), annoying narcissism on social media, friends weâÂÂve lost, life on the road, impending wars for resources, as well as mosh pit patterns that can be linked to male pattern baldness. WeâÂÂve allowed ourselves greater lyrical freedom on this record for sure.âÂÂ
Jerry Farley produced the record Majidi gave Farley credit stating âÂÂThis is the first time weâÂÂve ever had a producer involved from start to finish, including the songwriting process. His objective viewpoints helped settle a lot of little issues that could have easily become stumbling blocks, and the songs themselves ended up benefitting from them.âÂÂ
The album cover was designed by Ernie Parada who had done work on the bandâÂÂs previous two records. He alongside lead singer Lou Koller came up with the idea to make it look 50s era monster movie poster, while also using the bands Alleyway Dragon mascot. Majidi added âÂÂLou and Ernie came up with the idea of doing monster-movie styled art as the cover,â âÂÂThe dragon climbing the Empire State was a concept I always wanted to see brought to life, so the two ideas were destined to come together this way.âÂÂ
The album was met with very positive reception, Stephen Hill of Metal Hammer wrote âÂÂTheyâÂÂve never sounded betterâ Tom of Punknews added âÂÂWake the Sleeping Dragon! is not sensitive, subtle, nuanced singer songwriter fare. ItâÂÂs aggressive, angry and in your face. In other words, itâÂÂs exactly what hardcore should be.â Jack from Cryptic rock wrote âÂÂThick Hardcore riffs and insistent vocals drive this album, and it manages to keep an insane momentum in spite of such a hefty track list. There are few, if any, dull moments. It is great to see a band with such a storied history still producing records of this caliber. With Wake the Sleeping Dragon, Sick of It All have proved unequivocally that they still belong at the forefront of Hardcore.âÂÂ
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