Sleeping With Sirens, Wayside @ Northcote Theatre, Melbourne 5/12/2024
It’s been a hot one in Melbourne on Good Things Festival eve. The final warmups before the end of year event see us land at the Northcote Theatre for a intimate and immersive show with Kellin Quinn and Sleeping With Sirens.
Quinn, who never seems to age, is the centre of all attention tonight. Flanked by the band who are activewear tight, a light show that dazzles and a venue configuration to making sure all eyes are on stage, a Sleeping With Sirens show is ultimately designed to be about how Quinn becomes at one with the audience.
The walk on stage was understated by the band however is an indicator to the relationship with fans as loud cheers, screams even, from the young audience abound and the band explode into Talk It Up, Settle The Score lifted by the crowd’s involvement word for word in what becomes the theme of the evening.
As someone who rarely sings at a concert, you become aware of the magic that these songs, their lyrics, and of course Mr Quinn creates with his audience when virtually every word is performed by the crowd all night with yourself being the odd one out.
The ‘whoah’ in Do It Now Remember It Later has the cameras out as the uptempo dance beat gets the floor moving. Kick Me is a bouncing number that the venues wooden floor expands with.
Quinn explores all parts of the stage and makes sure that everyone has the opportunity to sing that chorus that means so much to them whether it’s Never Enough or the spine tingling A Trophy Father’s Trophy Son.
How can you not get the feels when the audience takes control singing ‘you’ll miss me when I’m gone’ during Better Off Dead? The surfers are out, people sat on shoulders like the music is a magic carpet ride and Quinn is Aladdin in this fairytale.
A short acoustic set is just what the crowd need to be louder again as the infectious lyrics to With Ears To See, Eyes To Hear morphs into the Goo Goo Dolls classic Iris which to be fair, Quinn knows he does not have to sing such is the spark in the air.
Go Go Go, Crosses and Bloody Knuckles ramp it up – somehow – more as the music gets darker and Quinn works the chemistry in the air.
There is an encore to finish the night and If You Can’t Hang and If I’m James Dean, You’re Audrey Hepburn has the bar staff dancing and singing word for word too. That is the magic dust that Kellin Quinn and his band sprinkled on this evening, and everyone was ecstatic to be covered in it. Let us do it again at Good Things.
Live Review By Iain McCallum