Concert Review: We Like It Quiet Tour

Words by: Emily Racanelli

Bands: Nick Santino, The Summer Set, and Sleeping With Sirens

Location: The Studio at Webster Hall in NY, NY

Date: Sunday, June 14, 2015 

It’s Okay To Look Back: We Like It Quiet Tour Review

It may be 90 degrees on a Sunday afternoon, but that most definitely is not stopping the herds of fans from forming a line outside of New York City’s iconic Webster Hall as early as 11 hours before doors. Armed with backpacks full of water bottles and decorated in Sleeping With Sirens merch and Hot Topic bracelets, the excitement of the impending night seems to cancel out the dangerously hot weather. While the sun chooses to aim its focus on the area directly outside the venue, some fans make the executive decision to lend a helping hand. At 10:00 a.m., a Webster Hall employee gave a group of girls $20 to complete some maintenance work. With that money, the girls went to a nearby drug store and stocked up on ice pops to help fellow fans beat the heat.

Despite the unity displayed in the afternoon, it is “every man for themselves” once 6:30 rolls around. People edge their way to the front of the line while angry mothers voice their concern about their child being there first. Once everyone is slowly moved into the underground studio, they pack together near the stage (sans barricade) and await showtime.

First up is solo artist Nick Santino. The former frontman of band A Rocket To The Moon (they recently broke up) tries desperately to gain the attention of the slew of teenage girls who only care to see SWS vocalist Kellin Quinn. It’s a shame that a majority of the kids weren’t paying attention, as Santino’s vocals are some of the most spectacular I’ve ever heard. Not only did he sing with perfection, but he also managed to conjure up a catchy song with the help of just one acoustic guitar. I had never heard of him prior to this performance, but I am now a fan! His indie-esque musical style pairs nicely with the pop punk lyrics he writes. For example, the song “Bad Taste” talks about leaving home to find a place that better understands you. The standout of Santino’s brief set was a cover of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” I expected everyone to scream these lyrics, as it is a classic punk song, but I was wrong. The volume only crescendoed as the chorus rang in, “Hello, hello, hello, how low?” as a young generation barely crossing the threshold into high school sang along to the only line they were familiar with. At 18, I felt much older being the only one who actually knew more than the notable chorus. My disappointment with the crowd was overshadowed by my newfound infatuation with this “Sad little emo squirrel.” (Nicknamed coined by my friend Alicia). It fits well. Santino’s perfectly coiffed hair along with sappy lyrics and one guitar created a cathartic 30 minutes exemplifying that all you really need is some emotion and an instrument to follow your dreams.

The mellow mood quickly picked up when The Summer Set walked on stage. My personal favorites on the tour, the Arizona quintet was able to display that they can still put on a show without all the electronic loops their songs are known for. As usual when I talk about TSS, I need to point out drummer Jess Bowen. Despite being an acoustic show, she still had me mesmerized for the entire 45 minutes with her intricate fills and constant smile. The pop punk scene has a lack of female musicians, let alone drummers; Bowen is a role model for all the impressionable young girls in the crowd. As far as vocals go, frontman Brian Logan Dales is always on point. The set opened with “Maybe Tonight” as he danced around the extremely small and cluttered stage while pointing the mic to the crowd. Later on, Dales switched to the piano and slowed things down with “Heart On The Floor.” Before the song, he complimented NY by saying “New York is the best city in New York City.” Of course, hilarious remarks like this set the stage for new tune “Wasted.” Contrary to what the name implies, Dales states that it is not a drinking song. However, with the rowdiness of the NY kids, he declared it a song true to the title just for the night. If “Wasted” is any indication of the new record, TSS are surely sticking to what they do best: poppy love-core with an emphasis on staying young and having fun. After all, the chorus holds a statement that I would bet money will be tattooed on 20-somethings desperate to cement their pop-punk roots in the face of adulthood: “I believe that youth wasn’t wasted on us.” It sums up everything The Summer Set stands for. In a genre thematically centered on self-harm and bad breakups, TSS jumps in with just enough emotion to fit in but lyrics that set them apart.

The rowdy kids settled down for the next intermission but grew anxious as the scheduled set time for SWS came and passed. 15 minutes later, the lights went down and the volume went up. The stage was set up like a living room, containing a couch and old-fashioned television adorning the SWS logo. A band known for occasional screaming and head-banging inducing double bass drums suddenly scaled back, especially with the hit “If I’m James Dean, Then You’re Audrey Hepburn.” The song was re-released as a part of an acoustic album, but the live version was completed different. It featured a reggae-swing vibe that nearly made me forget how aggressive the original one is. This pattern followed suit with the remainder of the set, as Sleeping With Sirens took all of their songs and not only stripped them down but completely altered the timing and melodies as well. This kind of creativity had me wishing there could be a live DVD of the We Like It Quiet Tour. The setlist was evenly distributed, consisting of some classics as well as standouts off latest record Madness. One of the latter was “The Strays.” While vocalist Kellin Quinn may be a 29-year-old father, he still knows how to write lyrics that connect with the misunderstood overtly-pierced younger generation, saying, “I would rather be the stray than be nothing to no one at all.”

Feeling left out soon becomes avoiding feelings and worries in all with “Go Go Go.” SWS showcases that not every song needs to attach a heartfelt sob story to it, but simply a catchy chorus. Fans made the floor shake with their incessant jumping as Quinn sang, “Go go go, I don’t wanna take it slow/There’s plenty of time for us to finally get it right/Why don’t we crash and burn tonight?” As the crowd gathered their composure, the set came to an end with a cover of “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls. A staple for every SWS show, it always hit a nerve with the line “Yeah, you bleed just to know you’re alive.”

“Iris” may be a constant in the SWS repertoire, but it only makes sense to finish things off with a throwback classic from the band’s younger days, “If You Can’t Hang.” The first SWS song I ever heard, it still brings back those memories of being 15-years-old, heartbroken and lonely at 3 in the morning. Albeit upset I couldn’t mosh for the breakdown, which screams “Imagine that! / ‘Cause you’re such a pretty pretty face,” I was perfectly content singing the mellower version while acknowledging how far I’ve come since those late nights when I was younger.

That pretty much sums up why there were a fair amount of older patrons, such as myself, scattered throughout the prepubescent crowd. It is not because we refuse to develop our taste in music, but because these songs are a reminder of how much we’ve grown since first being introduced to this genre. It was obvious that most of the high school kids in attendance were attracted to this music because reality just doesn’t seem to make sense; it’s a crossroads where you wonder if anything will ever get better. Rest assured, someday those kids will be the adults  hanging in the back of the venue singing along to the words that used to be the only thing keeping them alive. Now, they won’t feel the same rolling off your tongue. That moment is an affirmation that you are no longer that lonely 15-year-old with puffy eyes and broken skin. You got better.