Courtesy of Rise

Sleeping With Sirens have been named Alternative Press Magazines’ Artist of the Year for 2013.

The post-hardcore band have had a whirlwind 2013 so far. While critics are split on whether their latest album Feel is ‘better’ than their other two, no one can deny the band’s sound has changed as they push themselves out of their comfort zone and experiment with new styles and collaborations.

For their new album, SWS invited the likes of Memphis May Fire‘s Matty Mullins and rapper Machine Gun Kelly to lay down guest vocals on the album. The combination of fresh collaborations and an improved sound translated into commercial success for the group this year. Feel sold almost 60,000 copies in its first week since it was released on June 4, peaking at No. 3 on the Billboard album chart and No. 2 in the U.S. Rock Albums chart. By July 31, 2013 the band had sold more than 101,000 copies of feel.

The successes of their Warped Tour stops and their Feel This tour only add to the band’s achievements, but it hasn’t all been smooth sailing. SWS guitarist Jesse Lawson left the band last month, saying he wants to spend more time with his family and start working on his next musical venture.

It remains to be seen how the group will endure this loss. The band will be on a short hiatus in 2014 (though rumors of a more permanent hiatus were circulating, momentarily), but the band are expected to come out of the other side stronger. If they do, the ‘Artist of the Year’ moniker will certainly be well worth deserved.

Sleeping With Sirens and Kellin Quinn are featured on the January 2014 cover of Alternative Press, which goes on sale December 3, 2013. Check out a preview of the issue’s features here.

Watch Sleeping With Sirens’ “Congratulations” music video Ft. Matty Mullins below: