You Are We

You Are We is the third studio album by British metalcore band While She Sleeps. The band decided to release it through their independent label Sleeps Brothers, and funded the album through PledgeMusic.^[1] It was released on 21 April 2017 in collaboration with SharpTone Records, Arising Empire and UNFD. The album was produced by the band themselves and Carl Bown.^[2]

You Are We
Studio album by While She Sleeps
Released	21 April 2017
Recorded	July 2016–January 2017
Studio	Treehouse Studios, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England The Barn, Sheffield, South Yorkshire St Pancras Old Church, London (Special Edition)
Genre	Metalcore
Length	51:03
Label	Sleeps Brothers SharpTone Arising Empire UNFD
Producer	While She Sleeps Carl Bown
While She Sleeps chronology
Brainwashed (2015) You Are We (2017) So What? (2019)
Singles from You Are We
"Civil Isolation" Released: 4 September 2016 "Hurricane" Released: 20 November 2016 "You Are We" Released: 20 January 2017 "Silence Speaks" Released: 23 February 2017 "Feel" Released: 17 April 2017 "Empire of Silence" Released: 15 May 2017 "Steal the Sun" Released: 21 August 2017

Background and promotion

In early 2016, the band mentioned that they had begun writing for their third studio album. On 29 July, they announced that recording for the album had begun in their recently built studio. On 4 September, they revealed the first single, titled "Civil Isolation", and on 12 September launched pre-orders and a PledgeMusic campaign for the album. Also on 12 September they parted ways with their record label.^[3] The second single, "Hurricane", was released on 20 November, alongside an announcement of the album title and release date. The same day the band announce their signing to Australian independent label UNFD.^[4]

On 20 January 2017, the band released the third single and title track "You Are We".^[5] On 23 February, they released a song titled "Silence Speaks" featuring Oliver Sykes, vocalist of Bring Me the Horizon.^[6] In April 2017, the group embarked on a month long tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland. On 17 April, four days before the album release, the band released the fifth single "Feel".^[7] On 2 May 2018, the band announced the deluxe edition of You Are We set for release on 20 July 2018, featuring unheard material, demos and live tracks from their September 2017 stripped down show at St. Pancras Church.^[8]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	84/100[9]
Review scores
Source	Rating
Dead Press!	[10]
Metal Hammer	[11]
NME	[12]
Rock Sound	[13]

You Are We received an average score of 84 out of 100 based on 4 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim" on Metacritic.^[9]

Commercial performance

The album debuted on the UK Albums Chart at number 8.

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"You Are We"	4:47
2.	"Steal the Sun"	4:37
3.	"Feel"	4:39
4.	"Empire of Silence"	4:23
5.	"Wide Awake"	5:04
6.	"Silence Speaks" (featuring Oliver Sykes of Bring Me the Horizon)	4:55
7.	"Settle Down Society"	4:56
8.	"Hurricane"	4:43
9.	"Revolt"	3:57
10.	"Civil Isolation"	4:22
11.	"In Another Now"	4:35
Total length:		51:03

Special Edition

No.	Title	Length
12.	"Feel" (alternate live version)	4:30
13.	"Silence Speaks" (alternative live version)	5:51
14.	"Hurricane" (alternative live version)	5:21
15.	"Civil Isolation" (demo)	4:26
16.	"Feel" (demo)	4:53
17.	"Fear in Change" (instrumental demo)	3:14
18.	"I Am While She Sleeps"	3:28
19.	"Lost Ideas"	8:12
Total length:		1:30:58

Personnel

Credits adapted from Discogs.^[14]

While She Sleeps Lawrence "Loz" Taylor – lead vocals Sean Long – lead guitar, backing vocals Mat Welsh – rhythm guitar, vocals, piano, artwork, illustration Aaran McKenzie – bass, backing vocals Adam "Sav" Savage – drums, percussion, artwork, illustration Additional musicians Oliver Sykes of Bring Me the Horizon – guest vocals on track 6, "Silence Speaks" Marcia Richards of The Skints – additional vocals on track 8, "Hurricane"

Additional personnel Carl Bown – production, engineering, mixing, mastering While She Sleeps – production Phil Gornell – engineering Jim Pinder – engineering Ste Kerry – mastering Dan Jenkins – management Giles Smith – photography David Bichard – photography

Charts

Chart (2017)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[15]	26
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[16]	16
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[17]	31
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[18]	111
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[19]	15
Scottish Albums (OCC)[20]	14
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[21]	31
UK Albums (OCC)[22]	8
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[23]	3
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[24]	1
US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[25]	20
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[26]	5

References

1. "While She Sleeps: New Album on PledgeMusic". PledgeMusic. Archived from the original on 20 September 2016. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
2. Munro, Scott (21 November 2016). "While She Sleeps reveal new album You Are We". Metal Hammer. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
3. "AUDIO: While She Sleeps – Civil Isolation". Dead Press!. 6 September 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
4. "VIDEO: While She Sleeps – Hurricane". Dead Press!. 22 November 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
5. "While She Sleeps Streaming New Song "You Are We"". ThePRP. 20 January 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
6. "The story behind While She Sleeps' new song Silence Speaks". Louder Sound. 23 February 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
7. "VIDEO: While She Sleeps – Feel". Dead Press!. 19 April 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
8. "While She Sleeps Announce You Are We Special Edition". Dead Press!. 2 May 2018. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
9. "Reviews for You Are We". Metacritic. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
10. Heath, Mike. "REVIEW: While She Sleeps - You Are We". Retrieved 22 May 2017.
11. Hill, Stephen (30 March 2017). "While She Sleeps - You Are We album review". Metal Hammer. Team Rock. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
12. Bhagwandas, Anita. "While She Sleeps – 'You Are We' Review". NME. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
13. Sayce, Rob (13 April 2017). "While She Sleeps - 'You Are We'". Rock Sound. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
14. "While She Sleeps You Are We". Discogs. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
15. "Australiancharts.com – While She Sleeps – You Are We". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
16. "Austriancharts.at – While She Sleeps – You Are We" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
17. "Ultratop.be – While She Sleeps – You Are We" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
18. "Ultratop.be – While She Sleeps – You Are We" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
19. "Offiziellecharts.de – While She Sleeps – You Are We" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
20. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
21. "Swisscharts.com – While She Sleeps – You Are We". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
22. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
23. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
24. "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
25. "While She Sleeps Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
26. "While She Sleeps Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 3 May 2017.