Music Addict Blog

            PWNZ Like: The Bigger Lights, A Rocket to the Moon, the Monster Goes Rawrr, Every Avenue

            At fourteen years old, it might be hard to decide what you want to do in life. But for drummer Jess Bowen and bassist Stephen Gomez, it wasn’t a hard decision. With Gomez’s younger brother, guitarist/backing vocalist/keyboardist John Gomez, they founded the band that would eventually become the Summer Set.

            Hailing from Scottsdale, Arizona, the band signed to Razor Tie Entertainment after recruiting vocalist Brian Dales and guitarist Josh Montgomery. After a series of EPs, they released their full-length, Love Like This, in 2009. Since the release of Love, the band have been on the road, promoting their dance-inducing power-pop, earning a spot on this year’s Alternative Press Tour and Bamboozle Festival.

            Love Like This is a youthful and cocky album, produced by Matt Grabe (VersaEmerge, A Rocket to the Moon, This Century) and Matt Squire (Forever the Sickest Kids, All Time Low, The Maine). The Summer Set’s style of music alternates between wildly fun and hopeless romanticism, all the while writing songs better than band many years their seniors. Dales’ voice is unique, whiny and nasally, high-pitched and suggestive without being over the top or forced. The Summer Set’s guitar-led country-dashed approach is both charming and teasing, providing an easy listen.

            In “Punch Drunk Love”,  TSS bear a strong resemblace to The Way We Talk-era the Maine, as they describe the qualities of an ideal girl and how Dales easily fall in love with that person. The lyrics are sincere and blunt, carrying the trademark power-pop of the Summer Set and their fun-loving Every Avenue-esque mentality.

            The sexy “Young” is a heart-pounding dance floor-ready number about living in the moment. Listening to “Young” is pure bliss. With its seductive beats, it puts Cobra Starship to shame. TSS sound captivating and mysterious, like the Young and Divine, drawing the listener in. “Young” is sweet and dreamy as Dales sings, “As long as I’m breathing, I’ll love you to death.”

            Arizona has bred amazing and successful rock bands like the Maine, the Morning Light, and This Century, and the Summer Set won’t be any different. This band definitely deserve a listen because they have dedicated their heart and soul into their music.

Sign up for the Summer Set’s mailing list and receive a free download to an exclusive acoustic version of “Chelsea”, courtesy of Hurley!
http://www.thesummersetband.com/

Catch the Summer Set on the Vans Warped Tour 2010! To see if they’re on your date, visit:
http://www.vanswarpedtour.com/warpedtour/band.asp?xid=20328

            PWNZ like: the Rocket Summer, Jack’s Mannequin, Between the Trees

            The Fairfax, Virginia band My Favorite Highway hope to spread optimism through their uplifting posi-pop sound. The band formed in 2005, founded by vocalist/keyboardist/guitarist David Cook and his cousin, bassist Will Cook, alongside drummer  Bobby Morgenthaler (who  appears on their material but left the band in March). David Cook was inspired by his father, a church worship minister who was also a musician and wanted to reach as many people as possible.

            Despite losing guitarist Andrew Goldstein (who later started the Fueled By Ramen act the Friday Night Boys) prior to recording and replacing him with Pat Jenkins, My Favorite Highway almost broke up in 2007. But the band persevered and signed to Virgin Records in 2008 and later rereleased their LP, How to Call A Bluff, in 2009. That same year, they were featured as one of Alternative Press’ 100 Bands You Need to Know special.

            How to Call A Bluff, which was produced by Paul Barber (the Bigger Lights) is inspirational and charged with electrical energy. The lyrics are raw and earnest, the music is like Between the Trees: grandiose and dramatic without being overdone. The lyrics on Bluff are easy to relate to—broad but not vague.

            “Say So” is a passionate piano-ladden pop song, where Cook’s vocals are grand and powerful like The Rocket Summer’s Bryce Avary. The message of the song is to always express your emotions and feelings—to be truthful to yourself and those around you. Basically, Cook urges the listener to open up. “Say So” is an amazing MFH song—it’s catchy, dancy and memorable.

            The slow-churning and contemplative “Walking on A Wire” is heartbreaking and remorseful as Cook clings to hope, begging a lover for forgiveness. On “Walking On A Wire”, Cook wants to give the relationship a second chance, admitting that no person is infallible and unable to not make mistakes. The guitars are heavy-hearted and lonely, adding to the weight of the gloominess of the song. The drums, which are usually adrenaline driven and loud, are soft and melancholic.

            Overall, MFH is a dedicated radio-friendly band that is striving to popularize posi-pop. In an industry that can sometimes seem shallow and flooded with negativity. We need more bands like My Favorite Highway.

Catch My Favorite Highway, on the Storytellers Acoustic tour. Check the dates here:

http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=8702818&blogId=534023316

PWNZ Like: Taking Back Sunday, the Starting Line, Sparks the Rescue

            Originally from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, Since Forever is an unsigned punk/gloom pop band on the rise. Opting for an intimate and personal approach with their shows, Since Forever has built a steady fan base by playing house parties in their home state.

            Their unexpected blend of angry and aggressive punk with heart-broken pop vulnerability is astonishingly streamlined and oddly likeable, so much so that their devoted fans voted them #1 for Alternative Press Magazine’s Hometown Heroes special.

            Since Forever’s re-issued material, Welcome to the Nightmare: Homecoming Edition EP, is raw, edgy, and chaotic. It brings to mind All Time Low’s Put up or Shut up EP and Sparks the Rescue’s album Eyes to the Sun. The quintet never seems to run out of energy. Welcome to the Nightmare has the rambunctiousness and hopefulness of a band’s first record.

            “Champions of Norath” is an edgier and harder dark, brooding song from Since Forever. It’s about feeling you’ve lost yourself and spilling all the frustrations and grudges you’ve built up to someone you confide in. Zach Esterwood’s voice adopts Kenny Vasoli of the Starting Line’s throaty growl. The background vocals sound like those of Fred Mascherino on Taking Back Sunday’s song “Cute without the E (Cut from the Team).” The raw choruses belt out Since Forever’s complex and illustrious lyrics.

            “Bears, Bears of Cloverfield” has a melancholic feel to it. Its deceivingly upbeat rhythm betrays the hopeless and sad nature of its lyrics. “Bears” is about overcoming the obstacles life throws at you. It criticizes society’s acceptance of self-destructive behavior and hurtful ignorance. An underlying message of hope and heart-stopping inspiration creeps through the negativity of the song, similar to the bitter-sweetness of the All-American Rejects’ “Move Along.”

            Since Forever are consistently urgent and energetic. Their album is a mix of expectation and tension. Welcome to the NightmareEP makes the listener wonder what Since Forever has in store for a full-length.

Can’t get enough of Since Forever? Go over to their YouTube page (http://www.youtube.com/user/Sinceforevertn )and watch them cover The Maine, Mayday Parade, Fall Out Boy, and more!

Download their new single, “Nashville Knights” on PureVolume.com!

http://www.purevolume.com/since4ever/albums/Nashville+Knights+%28Single%29