The Family Tree Tour rolled through Nashville this past week to play a packed-out show at Marathon Music Works. Sleeping With Sirens brought along Dayseeker and M.A.G.S. to complete a perfect balance of older and newer artists for the fans to get to know and love.

The line just to get into the venue was so long that it seemed like over half the crowd missed M.A.G.S.’ set. What could be heard from outside was phenomenal and the energy that poured out of the building was palpable and exciting.

Dayseeker continued to build on the momentum with “Gates of Ivory” and “Crooked Soul”. Just before they started “Burial Plot”, they asked for the lights to go out and for everyone in the crowd to hold up any source of light, creating an intimate moment for an intimate song. When discussing songs from their most recent album, Dark Sun, lead singer Rory Rodriguez took the time to explain the significance of those songs in his life and how they pertain to his father’s passing and the birth of his child. As heavy as those blurbs felt, the crowd didn’t feel pulled down by the raw vulnerability, but rather they pushed back love and support onto the stage and towards the band. 

Sleeping with Sirens finally took the stage and reminded everyone that they still had it after all these years and weren’t some legacy band from middle school iPod Shuffle days. The setlist was more focused on the greatest hits rather than any one particular album. Classics like “A Trophy Father’s Trophy Son” and “If I’m James Dean, You’re Audrey Hepburn” garnered cheers from the millennials in the crowd, while newer releases like “Talking to Myself” and “Agree to Disagree” got the younger kids dancing. An acoustic cover of “Iris” by The Goo Goo Dolls brought the entire room together to experience that universal feeling of hearing the song in any rendition. The night ended with just as much energy as it started with, and the traffic trying to leave Marathon was well worth the experience.

The Family Tree Tour runs through the beginning of June.