Monday, April 20, 2015

Reviewing Sleeping With Sirens' "Madness."

Madness Emerges

The squealing has returned for another album, and if you don't know what I mean, then you may not have heard the vocals of Kellin Quinn of Sleeping With Sirens.
"Madness" is the fourth studio album by Sleeping With Sirens, succeeding "Feel" the previous sweat stain of an album that in my opinion caused their guitarist Jesse Lawson to leave.

Before "Feel" came the hit post-hardcore albums, "With Ears To See And Eyes To Hear" and, "Let's Cheers To This" that brought Sleeping With Sirens their fame and fortune.  These two albums represent the fast-paced, no holds barred, post-hardcore sound that Sleeping With Sirens is sneaking away from.
"Madness" is Sleeping With Sirens’ first album signed under record label Epitaph. Epitaph houses classic bands such as Bad Religion, and Operation Ivy, but also the new faces of rock and metal such as Bring Me The Horizon, and Escape The Fate. “Madness” is produced by hit-maker John Feldmann, who is known for working with Good Charlotte and Panic! At The Disco.
“Madness” is a good sign of the band’s transition into pop-oriented music.  
“With their latest album, Sleeping With Sirens have tried to appeal to every group that has ever taken an interest in their particular sound, creating a disorienting, cluttered set of songs that lacks any definitive direction,” wrote Branan Ranjanathan in Exclaim! Magazine. Ranjanathan gave, "Madness" a four out of 10.
Sleeping With Sirens may be trying to appeal to every end of their fan base, however, “Madness” has had more pop songs in an album than any other album before. With fewer punk songs in each album, the evidence shows the band is working towards becoming pop.  Rather than forgetting all of their previous fans and jumping into the pop scene, Sleeping With Sirens has chosen to work their way into it.
“Madness” isn't a bad album and it isn’t their best, however, it shows improvement from the disappointing “Feel.”   Sleeping With Sirens fans are bound to buy it, and pop fans, but the punk fans might want to steer clear of this one.
If you enjoy synthesized violins then you will love “Madness.” The pop songs of “Madness” have monotonous electronic drums that can make a punk listener want to stick drumsticks deep in their ears. On the upside, Kellin’s vocals are still as serene and attention grabbing as ever.
The rock songs in “Madness” are inconsistent in intensity. “Fly,” for example, uses a great driving guitar at the beginning, only to let the synthesizer takeover, but then the chorus prevails and creates a great mixture of both rock and synthesizer. In these tracks, the guitar gives a wonderful rock sound.
Sleeping With Sirens just can’t get enough acoustic. Though there are only a few acoustic songs – one being a bonus track – they give the listeners a moment to relax.  Veteran fans may complain about the synthetic strings and simplistic theory, but everyone can appreciate an acoustic guitar and pretty bells.
Thank goodness that there are still some punk songs. Sleeping With Sirens jumped on making the fast-paced “Kick Me” the hit single for “Madness.”  Kellin is back to screaming, the double bass pedals are kicking, the guitar is driving around your head like NASCAR, and the bass is booming in the back. These songs hold the values from "With Ears To See And Eyes To Hear" and "Let's Cheers To This" and keep the fans coming back for more.
In their own words Sleeping With Sirens said, "‘Madness,’ frankly, is an unashamed masterpiece of melodic pop rock perfection, driven by an undercurrent of punk aggression and beautifully tempered by an overwhelming soulfulness and sensitivity." 

“Madness” may be melodic pop rock, punk, and soulful, but not a masterpiece.
 Rating: Seven out of 10.
Pop songs:  Gold, Save Me A Spark, Left Alone, Heroine, November.
Rock songs:  Go Go Go, Fly, Better Off Dead, Don’t Say Anything.
Acoustic songs:  The Strays, Madness, 2 Chord.
Punk songs:  Kick Me, We Like It Loud, Parasites.

Nearest show:  "We Like It Quiet" acoustic tour in San Diego, CA 

Current lineup:  Kellin Quinn: Vocals.  Jack Fowler: Lead guitar.  Nick Martin: Backing unclean vocals, rhythm guitar.  Justin Hills: Bass guitar.  Gabe Barham: Drums.

Studio albums' discography:  "With Ears To See And Eyes To Hear" (2010).  "Let's Cheers To This" (2011).  "Feel" (2013).  "Madness" (2015).

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