If Jakobs Castle were a physical place, it would exist somewhere in the present that’s also rooted in history—and that’s exactly how Jakob Nowell approached the 14 songs that make up Enter: The Castle. As the son of Sublime’s legendary frontman Bradley Nowell, there is no denying that Jakob is influenced by his father’s music and legacy. However Jakobs Castle is anything but a nostalgic rehash. Instead these songs are remarkably cutting-edge while still retaining the keen sense of melody that endeared his father’s music to millions of people all over the world. Nowell has described the project as “mixing California’s past with the fresh mystery of internet underground culture” and that’s a good place to start. But it’s only the tip of the proverbial iceberg when it comes to the sonic and emotional depth of this varied collection of songs.
In January 2023, Sleep Theory’s first song (“Another Way”) hit 500k views on TikTok within 36 hours of its release. But what seemed like an overnight success was years in the making. Since retiring from the US Army several years ago, vocalist Cullen Moore’s dedicated his entire life to carving his own path in the music industry. Officially starting Sleep Theory in 2019, the current incarnation of his musical journey began as a studio project to fuse his love of hard rock, funk and R&B. Now a four-piece band, Sleep Theory’s first two tracks both reached #1 on SiriusXM’s Octane, played their first run of shows to massive crowds, and signed to Epitaph Records for the release of their debut EP. Combining metalcore-like breakdowns with bluesy grooves and a pop sensibility made for modern radio, they’ve also racked up 13M global streams in 6 months and saw “Numb” crack the Top 40 on the Active Rock chart.