July is
finally here, which means Warped Tour’s visit to Boston is coming quickly. In
honor of this legendary event (it’s my first Warped Tour), I’m going to be
counting down the days until July 19 by writing about a different band every other
day, and maybe find some hidden gems besides the all stars currently headlining
the tour.
Today,
I’m going to look at the band Alternate Press has called ‘screamo’s newest
sensation’ – Michigan quintet Sleeping with Sirens. Most likely, you’ve heard
of their lead singer, Kellen Quinn, as he rapidly transforms into this year’s
Johnny Craig as the man of seven thousand features. With appearances on Memphis
May Fire and Pierce the Veil’s new records this year, and a whole host of other
cameos before, along with multiple features on the cover of AP, Sleeping with Sirens
is being hyped as one of the year’s (and the tour’s) most important bands. For
this reason, I decided to get off my ass and actually give them a
listen-through.
Sleeping
with Sirens quietly emerged onto the scene in 2009 from members of Broadway and
We Are Defiance. The band rapidly gained
notoriety for lead vocalist Kellin Quinn’s skills as a countertenor – for the
uninitiated, this means that Quinn, a man, can reach notes reachable only by
female soprano singers. Countertenors are rare, and impressive to hear, but we’re
looking at post-hardcore here. High vocals are a staple of almost any act.
Look at
the Warped lineup and listen to most of the acts – Blessthefall? High vocals.
Breathe Carolina? High vocals. Of Mice and Men? High vocals. A band which has
made itself known exclusively in post-hardcore for how high their vocals are is the
equivalent of a dubstep artist becoming famous for having a bass drop.
But
that’s just a cursory problem I have with the band. I decided to jump right
into them with their 2010 album With Ears
to See and Eyes to Hear, and, you know what, Quinn actually has a really
nice voice. There’s no denying he’s a talented
vocalist, with an impressive range and a fair amount of passion behind his
voice – something a lot of singers these days seriously lack (Kyle Pavone
*cough* *cough*).
That
being said, the band can’t be defined only by their vocals – how do the
instrumentals fare? Ears to See was a
fairly anemic ride through a generic post-hardcore show, but their followup
album, released a year later and entitled Let’s
Cheers to This, was a slight shift that ultimately made the album a lot
more fun of a ride.
For
starters, the entire feel of the album is faster and catchier, verses and
bridges build up to soaring and powerful choruses. Quinn’s range is exploited
in almost any song. There are fast, frenetic rock songs followed by rollicking
ballads – and this variety actually makes listening to the album far more
interesting.
Because
the band is so vocal heavy, the band doesn’t need to use breakdowns or any form
of instrumental trickery to keep the pace up. While they do, it’s Quinn’s
passionate vocals that ultimately give the most energy. Screaming is also
surprisingly sparse, which characterizes the band even more – and ups the whole
pulse of the song when it does. Riffs
are basic, but effective. The rhythm work is all right, and overall the
instrumentals are solid. It’s good to know that the band sacrificed
instrumental prowess because their singer was moderately gifted.
But my
largest problem with SWS remains the fact that, at their core, they lack ways
to define themselves. Just having an impressive vocalist isn’t enough to make a
good band – you need something unique. What they have so far is commendable,
but it’s interesting that they’re getting so much press. Bottom line: I find
them a little overrated but fun. They are, undeniably, just another emo band that managed to get a little more attention than usual. If you’re in the mood for some decently
generic post-hardcore, this is your band.
Listen to 'The Left Side of Everywhere' here:
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