Jennifer Ligo

The Summer Set has come a long way and still has big plans for the future. In 2007, the band formed in Scottsdale, Arizona while the members were still in high school. Two brothers, bassist Stephen Gomez and guitarist John Gomez, started The Summer Set by recruiting Brian Dales as a vocalist. Jess Bowen, from the Gomez brothers’ previous band, Last Call For Camden, joined as a drummer. For guitar, Josh Montgomery replaced Weston Michl, the original guitarist who also played in Last Call For Camden, to round out the pop lineup.

The band’s name itself gives off sweet summer vibes, taking inspiration from a New Jersey town, Somerset. The teenagers had unfolded an atlas and randomly picked the perfect name for their pop rock oriented band. They started off on MySpace and put out a few EPs on their own. This led to their signing with a label after they graduated from high school.

The Summer Set officially dove into pop rock with their first album Love Like This under Razor and Tie Records on October 13, 2009. Love Like This featured “Chelsea”, “The Boys You Do (Get Back at You)”, and “This Is How We Live.” They followed with their second album, Everything’s Fine, released by Razor and Tie Records on July 19, 2011. Popular songs from this album included, “Someone Like You”, “When We Were Young”, and “Thick as Thieves.” Overall, Everything’s Fine, had somewhat darker themes than the band’s previous album to emulate their lives during the past few years; eventually, things work out, but it takes some rough experiences to get to a good place. Over the years, the band has toured with the likes of All Time Low, Yellowcard, Hey Monday, Cartel, The Cab, also playing the AP tour, Bamboozle and Warped Tour.

The Summer Set is also currently number one on the leaderboard for Macy’s iHeart Radio Rising Star talent search. The winner of the contest is determined by fan votes. If the band wins, they will be playing on the biggest stage at the iHeart Radio Music Festival. Fans can vote up to 25 times per day to help keep the band at the top of the leaderboard and get them the chance to play at the festival.

The Arizona band recently put out their newest album entitled Legendary. The third studio album was released on April 16, 2013 via Fearless Records and is the pure spirit of a young summer. Currently, Legendary is available for streaming on SoundCloud and for purchase on iTunes. “Legendary”, the title track, is catchy, sparking up despondent memories while looking to the future at the same time. With a reference to the popular television show, How I Met Your Mother, the song focus on trying to feel “legendary.” It’s about knowing that you can mean the world despite anything that happened in your past. The song is a modern twist on a classic tale of someone trying to get back on their feet. The band also has a video for the song “Lightning In A Bottle” which features the members running free on a summer night, lighting sparklers, driving with a hand in the wind, and having a good time in the “afterglow”. Perhaps living it up is part of making yourself amazing. “Rescue” is another great track, featuring creative vocals and a fun beat, which really helps to set the song apart from the others. Passing on the message of rescuing someone who is bringing them down, this song embodies the spirit of the album. In the process of helping someone out, one achieves purpose and becomes “legendary”, in the sense of being a hero.

The entire album is one I can picture playing with a group of friends as we pile into a car, roll down the windows, and feel the breeze as we speed down the highway, heading down to the beach. It’s a perfect summer sound, filled with bubbly melodies and uplifting harmonies. The lyrics describe the perfect young summer, where everything is about freedom and fun. It’s as though there is nothing holding anyone back from the memories to be made. Especially with finals drawing near and plans for summer being created, this album definitely helps one look forward to what is in store for the summer of 2013. Even with the inevitable ups and downs, each summer is always one to remember. Hopefully, this one will be legendary.