In conversation with Sleeping With Sirens
After a brief sojourn into a slightly more poppy sound on their album Gossip, Sleeping With Sirens are back with as strong a rock sound as ever. Their new album, How It Feels To Be Lost, places them firmly back within the genre they’re known for, but it’s definitely organic and a work all of its own.
Speaking to bassist Justin Hills and rhythm guitarist Nick Martin backstage, it’s easy to understand why this is. The two explain that the record really did just come that naturally; the headspace of vocalist and lyricist Kellin Quinn resulted in lyrics which meant that “subconsciously, [they] just wrote heavy”. The result delighted many fans, particularly those hoping for an album more like the band’s older content. This, however, is simply a lucky side effect. Nobody in the band actively sought out such a sound.
“I think it was just us feeling it,” says Justin.
Nick certainly agrees. He’s well aware that the fans enjoy the older sound, but “[they’re] not going to write Cheers again… Those records are made for that time.” Both of them emphasise the importance of the albums being what the band wants. “At the end of the day, we have to put our name on it… Let’s be happy with that product.”
When it comes to the writing process for How It Feels To Be Lost, the origins of the album are firmly attributed to lead guitarist Jack Fowler and vocalist Kellin Quinn. The pair had “a certain energy” which meant Nick and Justin kept their distance to a certain extent, afraid of “f***[ing] it up”. By the time they entered the studio, the songs came fast; Justin even states that he spent 8 straight hours in the studio before realising how many of the songs he was finished with. The main goal was minimal pressure, in a change of pace to the time spent working on Gossip.
The speed at which the band were writing doesn’t seem to have affected the quality of the content, though. In addition to the album, there were at least two songs which were “really hard to cut” according to Justin, and at least a handful which Nick hopes will “see the light of day at some point.” That’s not even mentioning songs from other albums; in fact, the number of those is “insane.”
Of the songs that did make it onto the album, they apparently came together “seamlessly.” There was no need to push songs with a meaning that didn’t quite work, and they could work with “what feels good right now.” The music which appeared on the album worked naturally, and Nick feels that there weren’t any songs which “required a whole lot of extra love.”
As the conversation turns to songs which have a particularly strong meaning, Justin highlights ‘P.S. Missing You’, feeling that it “resonates for [him] vocally” as a result of the lyrics and their relatability. The heaviness of it doesn’t detract from the melancholy it invokes. “It makes me want to break down and cry… and it’s my own band.”
Nick points out ‘Another Nightmare’ as another meaningful song, again due to the lyrical content, which is a result of the fact that “[Kellin] wears his heart on his sleeve, and you can’t help but admire that”. In fact, it relates to the reason Nick so enjoys being a part of Sleeping With Sirens: “We have an emotional attachment to everything that we do, and that’s what makes everything that we do so genuine.” It’s something he hasn’t felt in other bands, and it’s what he feels elevates them.
One thing that the band pays a lot of attention to is their fans’ tattoos. The band’s Twitter account retweets a lot of pictures of them, and there have been some fairly interesting ones. “Today I saw Kellin’s face tattooed on a girl’s leg and it was really good,” Justin remembers. On a more serious note, though, they certainly have an understanding of the meaning behind it. Nick mentions his own most recent tattoo (a blackbird in reference to the Beatles) and the memories attached to it.
“That tattoo means the world to me,” he says, “and that’s why it’s always awesome when we see fans with Sirens tattoos.” A particularly common tattoo for fans to get is the band’s symbol, a W with a slash through it, and Nick highlights the importance of this, since all of the band members have the same one. “Now you’re family, now you’re closer with us.”
“And if you get them covered up,” jokes Justin, “we’re going to be p***ed.”