Second Chances

It was only recently that I began broadening my horizons in music. I was confined under the notion of following in the roots in grew up with, country. Yet, now, I’ll give anyone a chance, for the music industry has been becoming less dependent of natural talent and more reliant on electronic fixes. That is not to say I do not like electronic music by any means. I just don’t prefer the musician to have their voice fabricated with the new technology.

But there was one band I swept off my radar before I even tasted their vast style of music. For whatever reason I decided that Sleeping With Sirens did not fit my personality or taste. A choice I made in a split second, and one I came to regret.

The first songs that were presented screamed. It was not coherent, or a least by my standards. The sound rebounded in my head, crashing with loud drums and ridiculously hard resonance of guitar.

However after the first encounter, I did not remember the name of the band. It was only by luck that I was searching for a cover of “Iris” (a song originally written by The Goo Goo Dolls).
 

 

The soft melodic piano begins coaxing in Kellin Quinn’s voice (pictured center). An acoustic guitar enters. The arrangement intrigued me. His voice fit perfectly into the melody. Yet, it was not the exact same as the original version. Subtle differences could be heard.

With Quinn’s vocal range being a high tenor, when he reaches the upper range of pitches it is often thought he may be singing falsetto. In reality though, this is still his voice. The correct term for Quinn’s voice is leggiero Tenor, allowing him to also have a “strong and colorful chest register, often extending quite low” (Jones). That explains the low screams that are scattered through out Sleeping With Sirens’ albums.

Beginning as an independent band in 2009, Sleeping With Sirens is now signed to Rise Records. Their latest album was released on June 4th, just before they began traveling the country with the Vans Warped Tour Music Festival. This is a summer long event stopping in major cities across the United States.

With the tour ending mid-August, Sleeping With Sirens is now headlining their own tour “Feel This” promoting the album of Feel.

Yet it wasn’t only by chance that I stumbled upon this band again. My cousin, Kali, is a die-heart fan of Quinn, convincing me to explore the variety of songs which have been produced with the band. It was the fact that she requested “Rodger Rabbit” at a wedding reception we both attended. Although the song was not played that night, I remembered the title, looking up the track later.

It was the moment I absolutely knew I made the wrong decision. Music is not an idea. It touches an aspect of everything, which is why judgment should not be placed upon a tune, a band, or music in general. Give the world a chance. And music is always worth a second chance.

To find more about a leggiero Tenor:

http://www.voiceteacher.com/leggiero_tenor.html

To listen to Sleeping with Sirens’ cover of “Iris”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyOqIKGbYkg