Silverstein busted through the indie rock scene five years ago with the independent release Summer’s Stellar Gaze, and now the band is signed to Victory Records, leading indie rock with a new album, a sold out tour and plans to continue this success.

Silverstein is currently on the Never Sleep Again tour with Bayside, Aiden and Hawthorne Heights.

Although Bayside’s drummer, John “Beatz” Holohan, was killed in a car accident, the tour will continue.

“It set us aside, it set us back, but now we’re moving forward. The fans have been really supportive. We’re having a really good time,” said Silverstein’s drummer, Paul Koehler.

Silverstein still has a positive attitude and is carrying on with the show, along with Bayside, which re-entered as a two-piece acoustic set.

On the Never Sleep Again tour, Silverstein is bringing its new album, Discovering the Waterfront, live to the fans.

Koehler said the concept of the album focuses on the time in a person’s life when they are pushed to the end and forced to make a decision about something difficult that might lead them to a better place than staying somewhere that leaves them unhappy.

“The album starts out very dark and very heavy, and it ends very light and happy. It shows that life goes on and that you need to take a chance sometimes. We’re more hopeful than more people and we try to provide that.”

The lyrics are loose enough that they could apply to a dead-end job, school or a relationship when it ends, but are tight enough that it could make sense in any decision-making situation.

The idea of the album came from the fact that the band itself was a risk. Koehler said the band could have remained in their hometown of Ontario, Canada, or taken risks and pushed to make a career out of music.

MtvU has also noticed the success of Silverstein and has put its video of “Smile in Your Sleep” in rotation – a new concept to Silverstein.

“It’s awesome. We had an album that received no real video or radio play at all, but we still sold a considerable amount of records. We don’t rely on it, and I don’t know how much it helps,” Koehler said.

Even though Silverstein is gaining popularity, its members are glad they started off small because they have picked up fans along the way – and have gained fans that have stuck with them.

“You have those kids that have that experience. It’s good because there’s kids that are like, ‘Yeah, I saw that first show and it’s changed so much,’ those fans in the early stages are fans for life, and those fans are fans until our fifth album,” Koehler said.

As for Silverstein quitting the music scene in the near future, people have nothing to worry about.

“We’re going to ride it out for as long as it lasts,” Koehler said.

Contact ALL reporter Erika Kreider at [email protected].