The Inspiration Behind This Blog
TITANS OF SIREN AT POSSUMSTOCK ‘25
Why am I writing this?
The candid answer is
I was told by a label exec that I should.
There are so many anecdotal stories that are worth sharing that you wouldn't see or experience if you weren’t at our shows.
I personally enjoy reading them when I’m bored. And writing them too.
Here’s the longer-winded, in-depth story:
A few months ago, I reached out to a record label exec with questions about getting signed to a label as a smaller rock band. This guy had worked with bands like Green Day, Rise Against, and quite a few more polarizing bands.
At that time, Titans of Siren had just come off playing a sold out show opening for Slackjaw, and we were confident in our ability to keep building that momentum, especially when presented with similar opportunities. I’ve spoken about this before, but not every band can win over a large audience if handed the opportunity to play in front of one. Every musician dreams about playing a sold out show, but I’ve seen bands crack under the pressure to perform well and connect with the audience.
We also had been growing rapidly on social media like Instagram (still are) due to videos that had gone viral (1M + views). I always figured that virality would be a record label’s dream come true due to the amount of brand presence it builds without the financial backing.
The exec, Larry, responded to me and gave some very helpful, candid advice. I’ve left out some of his response because he goes down a very specific path for us as a band, but you can get the gist of it.
…
Kirk,
I just looked at your Instagram, those are some fun videos. I completely understand why they went viral. It's not because of the music, it's because it's really good content. It's the kind of thing the IG algorithm loves and can share with people. Hopefully it's brought some new people to your IG and gained you some new followers.
Your songs - your songs are good. I'm listening right now. Great, classic punk rock. Reminds me of the bands I grew up with like Black Flag, Descendents and the later iterations like Rise Against and today's biggest, Turnstile. If I'm wrong, forgive me. You may not see yourselves as that, but that's what I hear. Stay the course. Keep making the best songs you can.
Build fans. Yes, IG, TikTok, etc are necessary. But nothing is more powerful than an email and mobile # list. Capture those names, emails, and phone numbers and send out a weekly note talking about shows, songs, antics, etc.
If you do all of that, you'll build a story where A&R people will come to you. It's really hard. The good news is that you can do this all yourself today where you couldn't about 10 years ago. The bad news, everyone can do this too. And many are.
There is no replacement for hard work and no silver bullet. Just be the best and hardest working band in the world and people will come to you. That's the best advice I can give.
…
At the time, Titans was practicing and building lots of momentum for our summer shows, so I didn’t have a ton of time to sit down, compile a list of emails and phone numbers and start working on a weekly mailer. I figured I’d give it time. My sales territory for work had just doubled as well, so there was a lot of work to do on that end. Sure, those are excuses, but I couldn’t take everything on at once without being sure I could give 100%..
…
My girlfriend and I impulsively bought Turnstile tickets at The Pinnacle in downtown Nashville a week ago. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was long overdue for a good touring band show. I had seen bands like Beartooth, Relient K, and Glass Animals play some of the larger venues in Nashville, and they were all good shows. “Good” as in, they sounded great, but nothing was unforgettable. The artists came out, they played the hits, they all did their scripted “Thanks Nashville. We won’t forget you. You are so important to us and this is one of the best crowds we have played for,” and then they left town to continue their respective 70-show North American tours.
I was weary of the hype for Turnstile. They clearly have a ton of label funding for their newest record, “Never Enough.” I did enjoy the record and still have some of their songs on repeat, but I wouldn’t call it “monumental” like some bigger media outlets are claiming.
For example - one of the biggest popstars in the world, Charli XCX, announced that it’s “A Turnstile Summer” during her set at Coachella this year. She had an incredible marketing campaign for her record “BRAT” last summer calling the summer of ‘24 “a BRAT summer.” There was a lot to the campaign, so look it up if you’re interested in music marketing. Millions and millions had to be spent on this marketing push for her record.
Anyway, she comes out with the “Turnstile summer” quote, which obviously builds momentum and broadens the fanbase for Turnstile - A pop music loving fanbase that would probably never touch hard rock/punk music with a 10-foot pole.
Charli XCX is signed to Atlantic Records. Turnstile is signed to Roadrunner Records. Both labels have the same parent company - Warner Music Group.
Draw your own conclusions.
ANYWAY, The thing that sold me on Turnstile was seeing footage from their free show in Baltimore earlier this year. You can find footage online. Every shot is filled with moshing, people singing along, bouncing around, jumping on stage and crowd surfing. It was so refreshing to see that type of genuine human emotion and fun when someone from the crowd can get on stage and not get tackled by security. This type of crowd behavior is common at hardcore punk shows, and Turnstile started as a hardcore punk band, so it makes sense. I saw that footage and thought “That’s what I want a Titans of Siren show to look like.”
When the Turnstile show ended, I felt reinvigorated. They absolutely lived up to the hype. The crowd was bouncing, moshing. The singer, Brendan Yates, was running around the stage and dancing with so much joy and energy. The man had enough energy to run a marathon, and they deserved every ounce of praise given due to the hard work and effort that they put into their emotional show. They made lots of points throughout the night of togetherness and inclusivity, which was a great reminder that music is about community and bringing people together. A major gripe I have when watching live music is the artist not looking like they are having fun. When I’m given a platform for screaming my ass off and acting like a crazy person with my 3 best friends on stage, I’m very happy and lucky for the opportunity to do that. I’m even happier when people applaud at the chaos. Then we have fans telling us that they enjoyed our show and want to buy merch? They want to spend money supporting that band directly? Over the moon.
Even with dark, depressing music, there’s gotta be a sense of joy by being able to share those experiences and getting those feelings off your chest, right?
Anyway, feeling the crowd shake such a large venue by jumping in unison to the beat of the Turnstile songs was an incredible reminder of the tangible power of music when the artist gives 100% of their energy to where the crowd is feeding off of it.
I had an adrenaline buzz for the next two days and watched the videos I took on my phone probably 10 times over again. Leaving that show, I was reminded of why I love music. The Turnstile show was on a Monday. When I left the show, I wasn’t thinking about work the next day, finances. I was thinking about how real POSITIVE and POWERFUL human interaction and connection exists in this day and age where our celebrities, politicians and social ambassadors act less mature and empathetic than my 5 year old nephew (I might be slightly biased).
It triggered my memory of going to a Cage The Elephant concert back in 2011. I was in high school at that point. The show was at The Pageant in St. Louis with some of my best friends at the time. I had a pre-calculus test the next day that I needed to study for, but I impulsively went to the show instead - with some convincing from my friends. That night was filled with incredible memories of singing, jumping, moshing, and crowd surfing. The singer Matt Schultz stage-dove and landed right on my arms during the bridge of their opener “In One Ear.” That show was one of the core reasons why I ended up wanting to be a rock musician. I remember not doing well on the pre-calc test, but it’s funny how miniscule and forgettable that is compared to the impact the Cage The Elephant show still has on me.
Shortly after coming down from the Turnstile high, I reflected on my experience in Titans of Siren. I quickly realized what a trip it has been to even get to this point. The majority of bands don’t make it past 1 year. We have done this for 4ish as a full band - 7ish when including the Springfield, IL basement days. We’ve already had so many unique experiences with friends, fans, bands, random people and venues that really detail the incredible journey that being in a band entails. Some good experiences. Some bad experiences. Some experiences we can’t believe are real. Is it hard work? Yes. Is it worth it? Yes. Do I think the stories are entertaining and worth telling? Hell yes.
So finally, after a few months of little downtime between traveling for work and massive shows for Titans of Siren, I FINALLY get to tell you the honest behind the scenes stories of my experience in a band that has really begun to take off. The first entry will be a recap of one of our biggest shows to date - playing the Big Stage at Muddy Roots festival in Cookeville, TN, featuring Eagles of Death Metal, Amigo The Devil, L.I.P.S., Bolt Swallower, and Immortal Lee County Killers.
