The Sleights speak from the heart whilst proving their musical growth on album three!
To say the past eighteen months have been flat-out for the Sleights is something of an understatement. Hailing from Colorado Springs, a place they affectionately describe as “8 hours from anywhere”, the band have quickly become used to nine-hour drives and long shifts out on the road. Since early 2025, they’ve played over 75 shows across the US West, recorded a split, 2 LPs, 2 EPs, toured with Californian pop punks the Bombpops, and even written the official anthem for Switchbacks FC – their hometown football team.
If you don’t know anything about the Sleights, then a good place to start would be their self-description as a “loud, fast and fun” band that make straight-shooting “piss and vinegar pop punk”. It’s pretty accurate. But, in this latest release: ‘Don’t Worry! It’ll All Be Over Soon’, they’re pretty good at pairing darker, harder-hitting themes with their brighter, driving hooks. It’s an album that delves deeper: musically, lyrically and emotionally. Beneath fast-paced, skate-punk melodies and singalong choruses, topics like depression, disillusionment, relationships and loss are explored. The band feel it’s their best album to date, with personal connections to this material heightened by the loss of a close friend right before recording began.
Arriving on 7th August 2026, in partnership with Rad Girlfriends Records, the album is also more political than anything they’ve done before, a direction they weren’t so comfortable with until more recently. Vocalist and guitarist Luke Blanton explained: “Everything keeps getting worse for everyone I know and there is a palpable feeling of dread floating in the air.” It’s clearly important to the Sleights to make it clear they’re pissed off. After all – so many others are in the same boat.
With all that said, the band certainly haven’t lost their sense of humour and still manage a satirical take on everything that’s going wrong today. If you don’t laugh, you’ll cry – I guess.‘Don’t Worry!’’s lead single is ‘Alone’. The ultimate “fuck it” anthem, it immediately gets stuck in your head and sets the tone brilliantly: straddling upbeat, infectious pop punk with undercurrents of deflation and discontent, in the same way bands like Face to Face and Against Me! did before them. It might just be the catchiest song they’ve penned yet. The video features friends of the band and follows a tongue-in-cheek, speed-dating-gone-wrong format – inspired by dating horror stories and ultimately echoing the song’s hook of “we’re all alone, fuck everything”.
Second single, ‘Wasted Time’, hatched from an old project Luke had been planning with friends from other bands.Nothing ever came of it, but the song survived and the Sleights make it their own here. Verses have a rapid-fire, ‘Mr. Brightside’-esque storytelling approach that describe the aftermath of a relationship ending. “It’s a shame I wasted my time, I’m better now” is a raw sentiment that will resonate with many listeners. Adam Huscher gifts us a brighter, more optimistic-sounding solo that counters the subtly sombre, emo-pop tones throughout.
‘LSD’ sets us off at manic tempo with plenty of crunchy guitar and crashing drums. Blanton’s vocals tap into the styles of Trever Keith, Caleb Shomo and Dave Grohl. There’s a tragic kind of self-reflection to this one, underneath all the fearless speed and soaring lead guitar, as Blanton barks: “All hell’s inside of me, all fucked up on LSD”. Darker themes continue in ‘The Void’, ‘After All’ and ‘Traffic Lights’ – though they still carry emotional weight, the latter two have shades of something more cheerful. All three are helped along by that familiar comforting sound of late 90s-early 00s pop-punk.
The cathartic ‘Breakfast’ has a strong 00s alternative sound. Musically, the guys really shine here, particularly Victor Carbonell on bass and Todd Morrison on drums. There’s some nice guitar work breaking up the midsection, and vocals project emotion even whilst staying on an even tone throughout. Don’t let their lively energy fool you; they can get deep – and they’re doing it more than ever this time around.
Oddest track on the record goes to ‘BODAP’: an eleven-second ripper about the type of car that What’s Left Records owner Bryan Ostrow drives – in case you were wondering.
‘Drowning’ is a sonic, thumping hardcore crusher that shows the band’s political anger. It’s easy to overlook this element on tracks like this, though they ensure the volume isn’t turned down on their state-of-the-world commentary: “I hate the left and I hate the right / They’re trying to destroy us and they’re looking for a fight”. It’s not political overload, but you can feel their rage and paranoia rising with every passing beat – not to mention the mid-song headbanger of a breakdown – with drums pounding and lead guitar wailing.
‘Empty Head’ is another infectious number with an opening line of: “I’ve gone and fucked it up / I tried so hard but it’s never enough”, offering an emo feel that makes you overly nostalgic for the early 00s.
Another great advertisement to sum the whole album up is final track ‘The Picture’. It’s a full-throttle highlight with choruses following a manic chant style to deliver an almost deliberately satirical take: “Welcome to the spot where the party never ends / This fucking place is killing all my friends / Where the lost boys go to drink and play pretend”. It feels like an especially personal lyric, knowing what we now know about the album’s background.
As well as its two lead singles, standout tracks include ‘LSD’, ‘Drowning’, ‘Breakfast’ and ‘The Picture’. The shorter, faster numbers make a great impact but still manage to put their message across – whether political, or tackling relationships, grief, mental health or unhealthy coping mechanisms. All eleven tracks bristle with energy and earworm hooks, and production is top-quality throughout.
If you like your punk rock multi-layered with catchy yet impactful messages and a helping of emo, alternative and power punk on the side, then you’re going to love this.
‘Don’t Worry! It’ll All Be Over Soon’ is out on 7th August – pre-order the vinyl HERE.
This August, the Sleights are playing:
3rd – The Midway Café, Boston, MA
4th – The Hart Bar, New York City, NY
5th – Asbury Park Brewery, Asbury Park, NJ
10th – Get Tight, Richmond, VA
11th – Reggie’s, Wilmington, NC
12th – Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
13th – Bearded: A Social Tavern, Charleston, SC
14th – Tommy’s Pub, Charlotte, NC
15th – Spinellis, Louisville, KY
16th – Birdhouse, Knoxville, TN
17th – Comet, Cincinnati, OH
18th – FUBAR Lounge, St. Louis, MO
19th – SK8BAR, Kansas City, MO
21st – Bar 404, Denver, CO (album release show)
28th – Tres Litros, Salida, CO
29th – CB Punk Fest, Crested Butte, CO
Later this year, the Sleights are playing:
12th September – What’s Left Records, Colorado Springs, CO (album release show)
10th October – Fancy Spider Fest, Trinidad, CO
Get tickets HERE.
Main Photo Credit: VICTOR CARBONELL
- LSD
- After All
- Drowning
- Traffic Lights
- Wasted Time
- The Void
- BODAP
- Breakfast
- Alone
- Empty Head
- The Picture
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