Sleep On It react to new music from Neck Deep, All Time Low and more

Two records in and Sleep On It have proven that they know what goes into writing and recording a great song. In this APTV exclusive, we gave frontman Zech Pluister, guitarists TJ Horansky and Jake Marquis and drummer Luka Fischman some headphones and had them play rock critic. SIO gave us their verdict on brand new songs from Neck Deep, All Time Low, Hayley Williams, August Burns Red, the Used and the Strokes.

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Naturally, everyone in Sleep On It gravitated to different elements. You’ll see what song made Horansky and Fischman break into air-jamming abandon. Wonder if that one song really feels like “a ’90s Weezer vibe”? And find out who gets props for taking some daring creative risks.

“When it comes to lyrics,” begins Pluister, “there has to be some kind of substance, no matter what it is. It doesn’t have to be super-deep, it doesn’t have to be super-intellectual. As long as what you’re singing about means something. I can pick up on that.” Marquis likes “dirty riffs.” Horansky is attracted to vocal melodies and hooks. Fischman pays attention to all the details of a a song’s production.

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Spolier alert: Pluister also gave us a hint of what’s going to happen on SIO’s third album.  The follow-up to Pride & Disaster may very well be the kind of game-changer we all need. There’s a quote from Jimmy Eat World that he’s taking as gospel.

Rest assured that unlike most rock critics, you’ll actually want to hear Sleep On It’s opinions. It’s probably the closest thing all of us will ever get to hanging out in their practice space. Good dudes, good songs, good insight. And it’s all here on APTV.