Albums : Sleeping With Sirens : Feel
Albums : Sleeping With Sirens : Feel
Listen To Sleeping With Sirens : Feel
Who Is Sleeping With Sirens?
Now three years into their existence, the post-hardcore quintet Sleeping With Sirens continue to evolve and mature as artists, gradually shaping their unmistakable blend of fury and melody into a sound that’s wholly their own. The band’s new five-song acoustic EP, If You Were a Movie, This Would Be Your Soundtrack, presents another crucial step on the band’s ongoing journey toward their sonic destiny.
Featuring three new cuts as well as two previously recorded songs radically re-arranged for the acoustic setting, the EP showcases the group in a different venue than their usual, high-volume environment, while also giving new subtlety to the re-recorded tracks. Sleeping With Sirens are famous for their informal acoustic shows—usually performed outside venues for fans after gigs—and now that magic has been captured for listeners everywhere to enjoy.
“We wanted to put out a record you can listen to while chilling at night and kind of winding down, or while doing your homework, or of you want to have some quality time with your girl or your guy. We wanted to give fans an album to listen to then, instead of just something that’s always in your face and heavy,” explains vocalist Kellin Quinn. “We don’t want our band to be defined to a certain sound or theme; we want to be able to dabble in everything and accomplish different styles of music. This acoustic album was a way for us to grow up and show people that.”
Sleeping With Sirens—which also includes guitarists Jesse Lawson and Jack Fowler, bassist Justin Hills and drummer Gabe Barham—was formed in 2009. The Grand Rapids, Mich.-based group’s first album for Rise Records, With Ears To See And Eyes To Hear, debuted in March 2010 at #7 on Billboard's “Top Heatseekers” chart, and at #36 on “Top Independent Albums.” Guitarists Nick Trombino and Brandon McMaster departed after the album, and were later replaced by Lawson and Fowler, who first appeared on the retooled band’s second album, Let's Cheers To This. Released in May 2011, the record peaked at #78 on Billboard’s “Top 200” chart, as well as #13 on “Top Independent Albums” and #5 in “Hard Rock.” The band has toured extensively, sharing stages with fellow scene stalwarts like We Came As Romans, Falling In Reverse, Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Blessthefall, Emmure, For All Those Sleeping and Motionless In White.
To record If You Were a Movie, the band traveled to Los Angeles for sessions with veteran producer Mark Trombino (Jimmy Eat World, Finch, Blink-182). The result was five rich, stripped-down cuts loosely presented in the structure of a film, with each song title starting with a scene number. Even the album cover illustration, which pictures a couple seated in a car overlooking a sweeping skyline, reinforces the EP’s cinematic theme.
“When I started dating my fiancée, we spent all our time watching movies at home, hanging out at the house. We’re both fans of movies and the cinematic portion of life,” remembers Quinn. “I made her a mixed CD a long time ago called If You Were a Movie, This Would Be Your Soundtrack. I just thought it would be a cool name for an actual album. It’s got a little history.”
Quinn utilizes the moody, dynamic textures of If You Were A Movie to reach new heights of lyrical depth and intimacy, tackling topics like love and relationships with a more nuanced approach than past recordings. The constant amorous tug-of-war that most couples inevitably face is given particular emphasis in the previously unreleased “Scene Four: Don’t You Ever Forget About Me.”
“I was thinking about a fight I was in and decided to write a song about it,” says Quinn. “I had the idea that ‘no matter how hard we fight or how tough things get, just don’t forget about me. Don’t go to sleep without thinking about me,’ just clinging onto that idea that anything can work as long as you put forth the effort.”
On a different note, Quinn and company take a moment to acknowledge their good fortune as artists, and blast other bands who aren’t as humble, in the new track “Scene Two: Roger Rabbit.” “’Roger Rabbit’ was written about just feeling really uninspired with everything that was going on with music. Everybody wants a hand-out; they want everything to come easily,” says Quinn. “I think that’s the wrong vision and the wrong understanding of what it is to live. Sometimes things take time, they’re not easy, and that’s ok. That’s part of the adventure of everything.
“It’s important to use the time you have and take advantage of it, because you never know when it’s all going to go away,” continues Quinn. “You never know when you’re going to take your last breath, and all your fame and everything you’ve worked for will disappear. When you have the day, you should say all you have to say.”
Fans will also be pleasantly surprised by the two stripped-down rearrangements of prior recordings that appear on If This Were A Movie. Both “With Ears To See And Eyes To Hear” and “James Dean & Audrey Hepburn” take on a new life on the EP, and in the process, convey entirely different emotions as acoustic recordings. Quinn says the new version of “James Dean,” which was written in a moment of homesickness, is even more powerful than the original.
“It was the first time I’d been away from home for a while, the first experience of the band, I was just missing home, missing my fiancée and our life together, because you have to sacrifice a lot of time apart to be in a band and be a musician and be on the road,” Quinn reflects. “It’s a sacrifice because you’re doing good things for the people that want to come out and see you and love you, but you’re sacrificing the person you want to be with all the time. It was cool to rewrite that song acoustically, because I feel like it really shows the emotion that you can’t really capture with screaming. The real passion and longing comes through in the acoustic track.”
The remainder of 2012 and all of 2013 promise to hold even more exciting new developments for Sleeping With Sirens, starting with the band’s first-ever run on the Vans Warped Tour this summer. After more touring in the fall, the group also plans to head into the studio in winter 2013 to begin work on their forthcoming third full-length. Until then, If You Were A Movie will serve as the latest reminder of the dazzling directions in which Sleeping With Sirens are headed.
“Get excited for 2013: There are a lot of big things coming, and this acoustic album’s something to tide you over. Listen to it and enjoy,” says Quinn. “Get ready for the new [full-length] record, because it’s going to be insane. It’s going to be the best thing we’ve ever done. We’re going to go 100% into next year. We’re excited for our band, and our fans, to be part of it. We’re making music that is still going to be the Sleeping with Sirens that everyone loves, but we’re definitely also growing and maturing. We’re always moving toward bigger and better.”
Feel Review
It’s more than fitting that Florida’s Sleeping With Sirens have made their home at Rise Records as their careers are absolutely set to sky-rocket from the release of Feel. I’ve heard their third studio album numerous times throughout the last month and each time not only has it surprised me, but it has become more and more apparent how big this band could actually get. The quintet have been cranking out their post-hardcore with a side of soaring pop melodies for several years now, but after the massive success of stateside friends Pierce The Veil, especially here in the UK, it appears the love for the genre and the band has exploded. I quickly realised how wrong I was about their pull on these shores when they sold out their first headline UK tour earlier this year, forcing venues to upgrade several times due to demand. Who knew?!
I loved their last album, 2011’s Let’s Cheers To This which demonstrated Sleeping With Sirens' knack for handling both post-hardcore’s relentlessness and pop-punk’s spritely oomph. It gave me favourites like ‘If You Can't Hang’ and ‘A Trophy Fathers Trophy Son’ and at the centre was lead vocalist Kellin Quinn. Yes, you can call him a poster boy with his swooshy hair and puppy-dog eyes (not that I’d noticed...) but the young guys’ undeniably unique vocal range, or tenor leggiero if you want to get technical, sets the band apart from a lot of copy-cats in their scene. He caught my attention and won a heap of new fans particularly when he teamed up with Pierce The Veil and their own distinctive vocalist, Vic Fuentes, for their huge 2012 hit ‘King For A Day’ and appeared in its kick-ass bank heist video.
Now with Feel, Quinn is joined by lead guitarist Jack Fowler, rhythm guitarist Jess Lawson, bassist Justin Hills and drummer Gabe Barham. And with the help of Cameron Mizell who worked with the band on their 2010 debut, With Ears to See and Eyes to Hear, they finalised a healthy twelve tracks for album number three. The title-track is the perfect choice for an opener with the broadest and most mature sound I’ve heard yet from the Sleeping With Sirens troupe. With a slower, stadium band-like delivery and openly cheesy lyrics, it’s as catchy as lice – “I felt so dead inside, but now I feel so alive for the first time. And I feel! I feel so alive again!” Quinn from the off pushes his renowned range to the top of its comfort zone as strings, power chords and pounding drums join him.
Follow-up ‘Here We Go’ is a typical party-starter with the guys bringing their familiar up-tempo, pop-punk infused sound and fiery edge; Quinn retorting passionately “...But I will never fucking understand the hate you have for me. ‘Cause I only have one shot at this. The past is past, move on to better things!” Then ‘Free Now’ slows things down considerably taking an emotional fork in the road (“I wrote this song for my father...”) Fans will already know about the singer’s past and his dad’s exit just before his 4th birthday. The event understandably still fuels Quinns’ songwriting and having recently settled down with his new wife and baby, it’s clear he wants to be the best dad he can be.“Who will I be for my daughter? This little baby, she means the world to me” It’s safe to say it’s a power-ballad which definitely hits home.
There’s a number of cameos throughout Feel so I’ll address them next. Single ‘Alone’ features a verse from US rapper MGK (or Machine Gun Kelly) which isn’t as bad as it sounds on paper and we even see the frontman taking a shot at rapping himself (sort of). It’s a typically big and polished radio-friendly hit with a massively-memorable chorus line although I’m still not quite sure what’s going on in the guinea-pigs-in-a-science-lab music video... ‘I’ll Take You There’ packs heart and heat featuring a small but impressive cameo from Shayley Bourget, singer of Californian post-hardcore band Dayshell. Layers of strings, guitars and sky-high vocal melodies make it an intense encounter.
And ‘The Best There Ever Was’ is the first of two in which we hear Sleeping With Sirens exercising their ego’s. But with Gabe’s rapid rhythms, Jess and Jack’s sharp, aggressive riffs and a guest appearance from Georgia’s deathcore merchants Attila here, specifically their lead vocalist Chris "Fronz" Fronzak; it’s the heaviest and most fun track going. “It ends with me on top, you down there at the bottom. Don't fuck with us, we're the best there ever was!” Quinn charmingly emphasizes at the end of every sizzling chorus. The biggest let-down is the final cameo from one Matty Mullins of Texan metalcorers Memphis May Fire. ‘Congratulations’ is an overcooked, pompous shame and is the weakest track of the album for me.
Starting with a phone message for Mullins from Quinn asking to join in him “changing the world”, it then takes the riff from The Used’s ‘Pretty Handsome Awkward’ and becomes a bit of a cringy rock n roll mess. “Congratulations to every label that ever turned me down. Me and my top 20 record aren't too worried about it now” Mullins brags in his verse. It’s only a bit of fun I guess, and there are other moments of cheesiness scattered across Feel...but this is pretty bad. As for the rest, well a massive highlight is ‘Low’ which is simply a fantastic single with a relentless, energetic force, a hugely passionate vocal performance from Quinn and enough sing-along refrains to go gaga over. Oh and if you like plenty of “woah-ohs!” there’s an abundance later in the piano-led ballad ‘Sorry’.
‘Déjà Vu’ is one for the ladies (“You know I love to get the sheets messed up. Put your hands on my chest because it might get rough!”) and although unfathomably cheesy, is a really fun track! ‘These Things I’ve Done’ is quickly becoming a favourite with what I think is one of their best chorus melodies. And closer ‘Satellites’ ends things on a grander Thirty Seconds To Mars-like scale very much like the title-track - “So here we are! We're waiting for a fall. And on the radio they're calling on satellites, like they're going to save us all” belts the frontman in what could be the lead song on a disaster movie soundtrack.
There has been a massive hype building for Sleeping With Sirens and with Feel they have crafted an album that most certainly lives up to it. Sleeping With Sirens have brought enough of that familiar hardcore spark back from previous releases to please long-term fans but also introduced themselves to newcomers by pulling the best from their poppier-rock repertoire. I can forgive the odd naff lyric and turn down ‘ego alley’ as the majority of Feel is great and a massive step up for the band. All rise for the new princes of pop-hardcore.
Contact Sleeping With Sirens
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Blog | Pinterest | GM | Press | US Booking | UK Booking
Contact Altsounds.com
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Email
Sources : Sleeping With Sirens Photo | Listen To Feel | Sleeping With Sirens Biography | Feel Review
Purchase : iTunes | Amazon | Walmart
Listen To Sleeping With Sirens : Feel
Who Is Sleeping With Sirens?
Now three years into their existence, the post-hardcore quintet Sleeping With Sirens continue to evolve and mature as artists, gradually shaping their unmistakable blend of fury and melody into a sound that’s wholly their own. The band’s new five-song acoustic EP, If You Were a Movie, This Would Be Your Soundtrack, presents another crucial step on the band’s ongoing journey toward their sonic destiny.
Featuring three new cuts as well as two previously recorded songs radically re-arranged for the acoustic setting, the EP showcases the group in a different venue than their usual, high-volume environment, while also giving new subtlety to the re-recorded tracks. Sleeping With Sirens are famous for their informal acoustic shows—usually performed outside venues for fans after gigs—and now that magic has been captured for listeners everywhere to enjoy.
“We wanted to put out a record you can listen to while chilling at night and kind of winding down, or while doing your homework, or of you want to have some quality time with your girl or your guy. We wanted to give fans an album to listen to then, instead of just something that’s always in your face and heavy,” explains vocalist Kellin Quinn. “We don’t want our band to be defined to a certain sound or theme; we want to be able to dabble in everything and accomplish different styles of music. This acoustic album was a way for us to grow up and show people that.”
Sleeping With Sirens—which also includes guitarists Jesse Lawson and Jack Fowler, bassist Justin Hills and drummer Gabe Barham—was formed in 2009. The Grand Rapids, Mich.-based group’s first album for Rise Records, With Ears To See And Eyes To Hear, debuted in March 2010 at #7 on Billboard's “Top Heatseekers” chart, and at #36 on “Top Independent Albums.” Guitarists Nick Trombino and Brandon McMaster departed after the album, and were later replaced by Lawson and Fowler, who first appeared on the retooled band’s second album, Let's Cheers To This. Released in May 2011, the record peaked at #78 on Billboard’s “Top 200” chart, as well as #13 on “Top Independent Albums” and #5 in “Hard Rock.” The band has toured extensively, sharing stages with fellow scene stalwarts like We Came As Romans, Falling In Reverse, Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Blessthefall, Emmure, For All Those Sleeping and Motionless In White.
To record If You Were a Movie, the band traveled to Los Angeles for sessions with veteran producer Mark Trombino (Jimmy Eat World, Finch, Blink-182). The result was five rich, stripped-down cuts loosely presented in the structure of a film, with each song title starting with a scene number. Even the album cover illustration, which pictures a couple seated in a car overlooking a sweeping skyline, reinforces the EP’s cinematic theme.
“When I started dating my fiancée, we spent all our time watching movies at home, hanging out at the house. We’re both fans of movies and the cinematic portion of life,” remembers Quinn. “I made her a mixed CD a long time ago called If You Were a Movie, This Would Be Your Soundtrack. I just thought it would be a cool name for an actual album. It’s got a little history.”
Quinn utilizes the moody, dynamic textures of If You Were A Movie to reach new heights of lyrical depth and intimacy, tackling topics like love and relationships with a more nuanced approach than past recordings. The constant amorous tug-of-war that most couples inevitably face is given particular emphasis in the previously unreleased “Scene Four: Don’t You Ever Forget About Me.”
“I was thinking about a fight I was in and decided to write a song about it,” says Quinn. “I had the idea that ‘no matter how hard we fight or how tough things get, just don’t forget about me. Don’t go to sleep without thinking about me,’ just clinging onto that idea that anything can work as long as you put forth the effort.”
On a different note, Quinn and company take a moment to acknowledge their good fortune as artists, and blast other bands who aren’t as humble, in the new track “Scene Two: Roger Rabbit.” “’Roger Rabbit’ was written about just feeling really uninspired with everything that was going on with music. Everybody wants a hand-out; they want everything to come easily,” says Quinn. “I think that’s the wrong vision and the wrong understanding of what it is to live. Sometimes things take time, they’re not easy, and that’s ok. That’s part of the adventure of everything.
“It’s important to use the time you have and take advantage of it, because you never know when it’s all going to go away,” continues Quinn. “You never know when you’re going to take your last breath, and all your fame and everything you’ve worked for will disappear. When you have the day, you should say all you have to say.”
Fans will also be pleasantly surprised by the two stripped-down rearrangements of prior recordings that appear on If This Were A Movie. Both “With Ears To See And Eyes To Hear” and “James Dean & Audrey Hepburn” take on a new life on the EP, and in the process, convey entirely different emotions as acoustic recordings. Quinn says the new version of “James Dean,” which was written in a moment of homesickness, is even more powerful than the original.
“It was the first time I’d been away from home for a while, the first experience of the band, I was just missing home, missing my fiancée and our life together, because you have to sacrifice a lot of time apart to be in a band and be a musician and be on the road,” Quinn reflects. “It’s a sacrifice because you’re doing good things for the people that want to come out and see you and love you, but you’re sacrificing the person you want to be with all the time. It was cool to rewrite that song acoustically, because I feel like it really shows the emotion that you can’t really capture with screaming. The real passion and longing comes through in the acoustic track.”
The remainder of 2012 and all of 2013 promise to hold even more exciting new developments for Sleeping With Sirens, starting with the band’s first-ever run on the Vans Warped Tour this summer. After more touring in the fall, the group also plans to head into the studio in winter 2013 to begin work on their forthcoming third full-length. Until then, If You Were A Movie will serve as the latest reminder of the dazzling directions in which Sleeping With Sirens are headed.
“Get excited for 2013: There are a lot of big things coming, and this acoustic album’s something to tide you over. Listen to it and enjoy,” says Quinn. “Get ready for the new [full-length] record, because it’s going to be insane. It’s going to be the best thing we’ve ever done. We’re going to go 100% into next year. We’re excited for our band, and our fans, to be part of it. We’re making music that is still going to be the Sleeping with Sirens that everyone loves, but we’re definitely also growing and maturing. We’re always moving toward bigger and better.”
Feel Review
It’s more than fitting that Florida’s Sleeping With Sirens have made their home at Rise Records as their careers are absolutely set to sky-rocket from the release of Feel. I’ve heard their third studio album numerous times throughout the last month and each time not only has it surprised me, but it has become more and more apparent how big this band could actually get. The quintet have been cranking out their post-hardcore with a side of soaring pop melodies for several years now, but after the massive success of stateside friends Pierce The Veil, especially here in the UK, it appears the love for the genre and the band has exploded. I quickly realised how wrong I was about their pull on these shores when they sold out their first headline UK tour earlier this year, forcing venues to upgrade several times due to demand. Who knew?!
I loved their last album, 2011’s Let’s Cheers To This which demonstrated Sleeping With Sirens' knack for handling both post-hardcore’s relentlessness and pop-punk’s spritely oomph. It gave me favourites like ‘If You Can't Hang’ and ‘A Trophy Fathers Trophy Son’ and at the centre was lead vocalist Kellin Quinn. Yes, you can call him a poster boy with his swooshy hair and puppy-dog eyes (not that I’d noticed...) but the young guys’ undeniably unique vocal range, or tenor leggiero if you want to get technical, sets the band apart from a lot of copy-cats in their scene. He caught my attention and won a heap of new fans particularly when he teamed up with Pierce The Veil and their own distinctive vocalist, Vic Fuentes, for their huge 2012 hit ‘King For A Day’ and appeared in its kick-ass bank heist video.
Now with Feel, Quinn is joined by lead guitarist Jack Fowler, rhythm guitarist Jess Lawson, bassist Justin Hills and drummer Gabe Barham. And with the help of Cameron Mizell who worked with the band on their 2010 debut, With Ears to See and Eyes to Hear, they finalised a healthy twelve tracks for album number three. The title-track is the perfect choice for an opener with the broadest and most mature sound I’ve heard yet from the Sleeping With Sirens troupe. With a slower, stadium band-like delivery and openly cheesy lyrics, it’s as catchy as lice – “I felt so dead inside, but now I feel so alive for the first time. And I feel! I feel so alive again!” Quinn from the off pushes his renowned range to the top of its comfort zone as strings, power chords and pounding drums join him.
Follow-up ‘Here We Go’ is a typical party-starter with the guys bringing their familiar up-tempo, pop-punk infused sound and fiery edge; Quinn retorting passionately “...But I will never fucking understand the hate you have for me. ‘Cause I only have one shot at this. The past is past, move on to better things!” Then ‘Free Now’ slows things down considerably taking an emotional fork in the road (“I wrote this song for my father...”) Fans will already know about the singer’s past and his dad’s exit just before his 4th birthday. The event understandably still fuels Quinns’ songwriting and having recently settled down with his new wife and baby, it’s clear he wants to be the best dad he can be.“Who will I be for my daughter? This little baby, she means the world to me” It’s safe to say it’s a power-ballad which definitely hits home.
There’s a number of cameos throughout Feel so I’ll address them next. Single ‘Alone’ features a verse from US rapper MGK (or Machine Gun Kelly) which isn’t as bad as it sounds on paper and we even see the frontman taking a shot at rapping himself (sort of). It’s a typically big and polished radio-friendly hit with a massively-memorable chorus line although I’m still not quite sure what’s going on in the guinea-pigs-in-a-science-lab music video... ‘I’ll Take You There’ packs heart and heat featuring a small but impressive cameo from Shayley Bourget, singer of Californian post-hardcore band Dayshell. Layers of strings, guitars and sky-high vocal melodies make it an intense encounter.
And ‘The Best There Ever Was’ is the first of two in which we hear Sleeping With Sirens exercising their ego’s. But with Gabe’s rapid rhythms, Jess and Jack’s sharp, aggressive riffs and a guest appearance from Georgia’s deathcore merchants Attila here, specifically their lead vocalist Chris "Fronz" Fronzak; it’s the heaviest and most fun track going. “It ends with me on top, you down there at the bottom. Don't fuck with us, we're the best there ever was!” Quinn charmingly emphasizes at the end of every sizzling chorus. The biggest let-down is the final cameo from one Matty Mullins of Texan metalcorers Memphis May Fire. ‘Congratulations’ is an overcooked, pompous shame and is the weakest track of the album for me.
Starting with a phone message for Mullins from Quinn asking to join in him “changing the world”, it then takes the riff from The Used’s ‘Pretty Handsome Awkward’ and becomes a bit of a cringy rock n roll mess. “Congratulations to every label that ever turned me down. Me and my top 20 record aren't too worried about it now” Mullins brags in his verse. It’s only a bit of fun I guess, and there are other moments of cheesiness scattered across Feel...but this is pretty bad. As for the rest, well a massive highlight is ‘Low’ which is simply a fantastic single with a relentless, energetic force, a hugely passionate vocal performance from Quinn and enough sing-along refrains to go gaga over. Oh and if you like plenty of “woah-ohs!” there’s an abundance later in the piano-led ballad ‘Sorry’.
‘Déjà Vu’ is one for the ladies (“You know I love to get the sheets messed up. Put your hands on my chest because it might get rough!”) and although unfathomably cheesy, is a really fun track! ‘These Things I’ve Done’ is quickly becoming a favourite with what I think is one of their best chorus melodies. And closer ‘Satellites’ ends things on a grander Thirty Seconds To Mars-like scale very much like the title-track - “So here we are! We're waiting for a fall. And on the radio they're calling on satellites, like they're going to save us all” belts the frontman in what could be the lead song on a disaster movie soundtrack.
There has been a massive hype building for Sleeping With Sirens and with Feel they have crafted an album that most certainly lives up to it. Sleeping With Sirens have brought enough of that familiar hardcore spark back from previous releases to please long-term fans but also introduced themselves to newcomers by pulling the best from their poppier-rock repertoire. I can forgive the odd naff lyric and turn down ‘ego alley’ as the majority of Feel is great and a massive step up for the band. All rise for the new princes of pop-hardcore.
Contact Sleeping With Sirens
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Blog | Pinterest | GM | Press | US Booking | UK Booking
Contact Altsounds.com
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Email
Sources : Sleeping With Sirens Photo | Listen To Feel | Sleeping With Sirens Biography | Feel Review
Purchase : iTunes | Amazon | Walmart
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