Following the Louder Than Life Festival, which took place in Louisville, Kentucky, from September 18 to 21, several members of the metal community who attended the event have publicly called out Sleep Token fans for their behavior.
Taking to the Louder Than Life Bound 2026 group on Facebook, many metal fans have shared evidence and criticism of poor concert etiquette during Sleep Token’s set. Concert etiquette has been a growing issue in the past several years, especially during larger sets from popular artists. Fans throw things on stage—bracelets, drinks, phones, etc.—often making the artist a target, and sometimes causing injury.
At Louder Than Life, however, Sleep Token fans treated other fans with disrespect. Numerous fans were intentionally dropped while attempting to crowd surf. Crowd surfing, of course, has been a common occurrence at rock shows for decades. The long-established etiquette is that fans help support the surfer, carrying them safely on the wave…