Max Richter is celebrating the tenth anniversary of his acclaimed, innovative album Sleep with a follow-up record, Sleep Circle. The new album is a 90-minute trip through the REM cycle, where Sleep was an eight-hour night’s rest. Sleep Circle will be released digitally, on CD, and as a deluxe edition vinyl on Friday, September 5th. In addition, Deutsche Grammophon will reissue the original CD-edition of Sleep.
Released in 2015 and co-conceived with his creative partner Yulia Mahr, Richter’s magnum opus, Sleep, is an ambitious eight and a half hour musical enquiry into how sound and the sleeping mind interact, exploring the effects of subsonics and repetition to enhance slow wave sleep. Richter consulted with neuroscientist David Eagleman during the album’s creation to better understand the workings of the sleeping brain.
The new record, Sleep Circle, is a hallucinatory trip into the hypnagogic state–the time period when the brain transitions between a state of wakefulness and sleep. The album’s 90 minute runtime reflects the length of a typical REM cycle.
Sleep Circle was born from new insights Richter gained after performing an abridged version of Sleep live in 2023, leading him to approach the songs with a more traditional architecture. The new recording was laid down at his own Studio Richter Mahr, built by Max and Yulia in the English countryside. The first single from Sleep Circle, the lullaby-esque “Dream 11 / Moth-Like Stars (Pt. 2),” is available to stream now.
Alongside the new album, Richter has also announced his largest ever performances of Sleep at London’s Alexandra Palace on Friday, September 5th and Saturday, September 6th. Fans can sign up for a presale on Tuesday, June 10th via Richter’s website. General on-sale begins Thursday, June 12th.
Order Max Richter’s Sleep Circle now.
