words and photos by Stephanie Augello

A text message exchange:

Chris Russell: (Received Thu @ 9:49a) Hey, I’m in Savannah til 1ish.

Stephanie Augello: (Sent Thu @ 9:49a) Now?

Chris Russell: (Received Thu @9:50a) Yea just got here.

Stephanie Augello: (Sent Thu @ 9:50a) Sorry…I haven’t slept and wanna break my computer…I got confused.

With that dialogue began a brief adventure in tourland.  We ventured on foot from Forysth Park, down to Parker’s Market (so my sleepless self could get some coffee), and then back down Habersham (so Chris, touring sound engineer for New York band The Sleeping, could chill out after spending the night sleeping on the floor of a tour van).  It all spun to a melodically explosive conclusion at Oasis in Charleston, SC, where The Sleeping gave the south a taste of what has made the music scene from my home so legendary.

The band’s latest album, The Big Deep, was released by Victory Records on September 28^th, and has received a plethora of praises from listeners across the globe.  London-based site Caughtinthecrossfire.com stated, “…this album ingrains itself in your memory after a few listens…They mean business, and have set out to make a record that will stand the test of time.  They may have achieved just that.”

After bearing witness to the verve and intensity of a live show by The Sleeping, I must say that their presence as a unit is nothing short of captivating.  Their music is characterized by high energy rhythm, yet never loses touch with the innate melody of intelligent song structure.  As performers, they are adept at synchronizing their movements, and maintain a consistent energy level throughout their set, revving up the crowd from the first to final notes.

At the end of the night, I approached singer Douglas Robinson to inform him that seeing them play brought me back to shows from my high school years, when bands like V.O.D, Mind Over Matter, Inside and Silent Majority instilled hapless Long Island kids with the desire to not only attend shows, but to cultivate the rich music scene we had been so lucky to have been born into.

That night, The Sleeping gave me an assuring pat on the back.  After years of feeling disillusioned, it became evident to me that the scene wasn’t a dream of yesteryear after all.  In a previous write-up for NewYorkisBoring, I reflected upon a time when I got pushed into a mosh pit, and then kicked in the face at a show at Long Island’s The PWAC.  I will leave you with the lyrics to the song The Warped Weeble Wobbles were playing when that happened: “We’re the hardcore kids.  Our time is now.  We’re the hardcore kids.  And we’re gonna show them how.”

//