On their 2013 album, Legendary, the Summer Set's bright and sparkling teen pop sounds like it was constructed from various parts discarded from Katy Perry sessions, given a bit of emo-pop grime, and then run through an Auto-Tuner. Not just the vocals, but everything. Even the bow tie lead singer Brian Dales sports on the back cover of the CD. Thanks to this process, every song sounds custom-built for the radio. Not just that, but every song sounds built to be played next to any kind of pop song circa 2013 (rap excepted). The big choruses are country-pop-friendly; the electronics that underpin everything are dance-around-your-bedroom-friendly; the guitars are a little bit crunchy in an emo-pop kind of way; and the vocals have a kind of yearning youthful-ish appeal. Add in the occasional moments of fun.-style dramatics (check "Rescue" for a song that was surely written after Some Nights hit) and you have genetically modified pop that should be a sure success. The only weird thing about the record is the lyrical content. Leaving aside the How I Met Your Mother references and the two James Dean references (including the incredibly misguided "And if I was James Dean/You could be my Audrey/'Breakfast at Tiffany's' for two"), there is a surprising amount of F-bombs and "adult" themes mixed in among the paeans to teenage love and cutting loose after school. It seems somewhat misguided to make a record that sounds like One Direction gone emo, then fill it full of words and concepts that are just slightly beyond the natural fan base your music so desperately courts. The overwhelming slickness of it all, and the awkward lyrics, makes the Summer Set's music pretty easy to pass by. There are lots of bands working the same turf, and doing it much more enjoyably.
© Tim Sendra /TiVo