Sleeping With Sirens aren’t the band you remember: They’re better
In a climate where many bands can’t make three full-length albums, Sleeping With Sirens have kept it together for 10 years. They’ve been able to evolve musically and personally, remaining relevant in their ability to craft killer pop hooks and fist-clenching riffage. With a brand-new album, How It Feels To Be Lost, on an appropriate label (Sumerian Records), SWS are ready to excite and invigorate both fans and new listeners alike.
In the next issue of AP, the band speak openly about fan responses to their new music; the departure of drummer Gabe Barham; the dangers of the music business; and the sense of self-actualization they’ve achieved making their sixth album. In 2019, Sleeping With Sirens may have made your favorite record. Perhaps they will be your “new” favorite band.
Read more: Sleeping With Sirens part ways with drummer Gabe Barham
Prior to making How It Feels To Be Lost, vocalist Kellin Quinn found himself in quandaries both personal and creative. He began to self-medicate his frustration with alcohol in a major way until he saw what it was doing to himself, his family and his bandmates. Fearing he would never remember the memories of his children growing up, Quinn quit drinking Christmas Day in 2018 and recalibrated his life accordingly.
The depression that plagued Quinn has been replaced with renewed enthusiasm in his band, his abilities and his responsibilities as the father of teenagers. Musically, it features some of the hardest songs his band have ever created. They didn’t contrive something “extreme” for the sake of impressing people who typically wouldn’t be the slightest bit interested in them. But Lost is ample proof that SWS are ready to be a force again.
“There’s a fine line between giving a nod to where we came from, but not completely being like, ‘You’re right. We give up: We’re going to make that record like that one we made four years ago,’” Quinn says about the mindset permeating his band’s new album. “I think it was more important for us to evolve. I thought that if the music was darker and heavier, it would give it that energy and that aggression without me having to scream on everything. I think the screaming is there where it needs to be, where you have to explain that emotion like, ‘This is me at my darkest,’ or ‘This is me at my lowest point.’ That’s where I want to scream things, not just for the sake of screaming.”
But that’s not all: We’ve more from PVRIS, ISSUES, SLEEP ON IT, THE EARLY NOVEMBER, SELFISH THINGS, DREAM STATE, DIZZY, RIOT FEST and so much more. This issue is truly how it feels to rock, and you can join us right here.
