Sleeping With Sirens: Behind The New Heavier Chapter

As 2020 marks 10 years of their music, SLEEPING WITH SIRENS career can easily be compared to that of a revolving door; new opportunities flood through along with unexpected changes that have helped mould the Florida-five piece from their 2011 Warped Tour metalcore fit into a vivacious, courageous heavy rock band who dance between the limitations of genre. Now they’re armed at the floodgates and ready to storm the charts with their sixth studio album, How It Feels To Be Lost, said to be the band’s return to their heavier roots or as guitarist Nick Martin explains, is “creating music that made us feel like we did when we first started creating music.”

“The influences behind the heavier direction were us. Our life experiences. Kellin’s personal experiences over the last few years,” Martin says as he delves into the band’s unexpected move into a heavier direction. The winds of change haven’t always been favourable to the band, their 2016 Gossip LP was met with heavy criticism for its softer approach that detached from their older metalcore styles. “We closed that chapter (the Gossip era) a while ago. And I don’t say that in a rude sense. I say that in a positive way as we’ve evolved as musicians, friends, and human beings. We’ve always been a rock band. A heavier band. Even though our softer, more melodic catalogue, it still rocks. We’re just constantly evolving and finding ways to bend and break those boundaries.”

From what we’ve heard so far, their next era will see them rekindle an old flame with their previous styles from their 2010 With Ears to See and Eyes To Hear sound, but now they’ve brought with them 10 years of experience and knowledge that makes pre-released tracks Agree to Disagree and Leave It All Behind have a refreshing twinge of something new, but not unfamiliar. Martin pinpoints the moment the band knew they wanted to return to their beloved older sound, calling it his “oh shit” moment.

“We had an “oh shit” moment during the Gossip cycle where we were playing a festival, and a few songs into the set, Kellin started changing the setlist and throwing in our heavier stuff, we had the time of our lives. It was like he called an audible during a football game, it changed the whole entire team and the outcome of the game. We got offstage and just had that moment of “we’re a rock band”.

SLEEPING WITH SIRENS‘ discography has always been one of honesty and symbolism from its lyricisms, down to every finite detail like their album name and album art. Martin explained that for the band How It Feels To Be Lost symbolised “being imperfect and being ok with that. Knowing you’re not alone in this world because there’s no such thing as being perfect. That we all go through struggles in life, at every age. But through all of those struggles, there’s a realization that there’s a light at the end of every tunnel. We all share those feelings of being lost in life. That’s what makes us human beings. Makes us imperfect.”

As the band comes full-circle to their old styles it’s a reflective moment for fans who’ve seen them rise through the rankings of the Warped Tour metalcore/post-hardcore scene circa 2010-2013 that saw the likes of SLEEPING WITH SIRENS, PIERCE THE VEIL, BRING ME THE HORIZON, ASKING ALEXANDRIA, ATTACK ATTACK! etc bring underground music into a commercially profitable “fangirl” era. But old habits die hard and the wave of success became short-lived for many bands who struggled to escape into new avenues of music without being brandished ‘sellouts’. “We’re a few of the “survivors” to come up together in that specific scene,” Martin says as he talks of their new tour with BRING ME THE HORIZON and their journey together. “We’re extremely grateful & humbled playing shows with BRING ME.”

Looking more into their ride into success from that era Martin said he never expected to get so big, “because when we started in bands, it was all out of the love for music & expressing ourselves. Not about becoming influential.” Influential they were, their second acclaimed release Let’s Cheers To This climbed the rock charts with a 4/5 ranking among critics and throttled them into tours with ALESANA, WE CAME AS ROMANS and ATTACK ATTACK!. Still, nine years later and Martin assures fans that “it’s still just about having fun for us. That’s it!” That’s also how they describe their following sixth studio album How It Feels To Be Lost, ‘fun.’

What has the past few months leading up to your new album been like?

Martin: The past few months have been incredible with having new material out and seeing the overwhelming response to everything we’ve been putting out. It’s a new chapter we’re definitely excited about and we want this damn record to be out already! [laughs]

You guys just dropped a new track Agree To Disagree that’s paired with a stunningly cinematic music video. What’s the cinematic process that goes into making a SLEEPING WITH SIRENS music video as epic as they are?

Martin: I give all the love & props in the world to Sitcom Soldiers who did our latest music videos. We’ve done countless videos with them in the past and they’re like family to ya. They understand our band. They understand Kellin’s vision when it comes to artistic execution. When you blend those creative minds together, you get these great videos that complement our music.

You’ve just announced a tour with BRING ME THE HORIZON and POPPY, whilst it’ll probably be hard to pinpoint just one, in the past years of touring is there anyone tour that sticks out to you as amazing, crazy, weird or just different?

Martin: This tour definitely goes up there as an amazing one and it hasn’t even started yet! We’re constantly doing tours that are different or outside of the box. Because why not? We don’t like doing tours where every band sounds the same. What’s the fun in that?

Speaking of throwbacks, your first album With Ears To See And Eyes To Hear will reach 10 years next year. If you could go back and tell yourself one thing before that album, what would it be? 

Martin: That album pre-dates me. I’m coming up on my six year anniversary of being in the band. But, I do know that album means a lot to the band and I love hearing their stories about how it came together.

You’ve given fans a taste of what’s to come with from your new record with your latest singles, but if you could summaries the new era for SLEEPING WITH SIRENS in one word what would it be?

Martin: Fun

How It Feels To Be Lost is out now via Sumerian Records. The band are featured in our current digital issue which is available via our Patreon Page. Subscribe now to check it out! 

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