Cody Carson of Set It Off performing in San Francisco, CA at Great American Music Hall. March 24, 2019. Photo: Jared Stossel
Set It Off
w/ With Confidence, Super Whatevr, L.I.F.T.
Great American Music Hall
San Francisco, CA
March 24, 2019
Photos and review by Jared Stossel
Several of the members of Set It Off (namely vocalist Cody Carson and guitarists Dan Clermont and Zach DeWall) are going to collectively kill me for a portion of this review, but it needs to be said. I first discovered Set It Off on MySpace back in 2009 (fuck, I'm old), and it was completely by accident, as most MySpace musical discoveries were. The point of this little anectode is so that I can write the following sentence: I believe that I am one of the few people in history who is able to say that I have been listening to Set It Off since the Baby, Don't You Tripijaharda EP. (This is where they kill me; I'm pretty sure they cringe when they hear that people listened to this release, with Carson once reflecting to me in person, "Hah! That was a Garageband album!") I don't say this to sound like a hipster, I say this because on Sunday night, at San Francisco's Great American Music Hall, I played witness to the Set It Off show that I had waited for years to see.
I had been lucky enough to see Set It Off perform in smaller venues over the years, like Bottom of the Hill, and even at smaller stages on the Vans Warped Tour over the years. But shortly after the release of that first GarageBand EP, the band released an EP entitled Calm Before The Storm. I rushed to show it to literally anyone that would listen. It was music that was produced in the vein of bands like All Time Low, reminiscent of the "Put Up Or Shut Up" era of their career, and I loved it. There was something entirely special about Set It Off, something that I couldn't exactly put my finger on, but that I know would come to show in the next several years of their career. As the years went on, the band began incorporating elements of pop, post-hardcore, hip-hop, alt-pop, and much more into their subsequent full length albums.
You can only hope that an artist will attain a larger level of success, given the landscape we currently inhabit where a new artist pops up every three seconds and music is only a small monthly subscription fee away. And last Sunday's show in San Francisco finally gave me the Set It Off show that I had so eagerly hoped they would get to perform. The venue was packed from front to back, all evening, with not one fan sacrificing their place on the floor throughout the duration of the evening. Set It Off didn't even go on until 10:45 in the evening, well past the start time that's usually expected for shows of this nature. Yet, no one moved. This amount of dedication reminded me of something: a memory that rushed me back tothe first couple of years I had started going to shows. This was the level of passion and dedication I noticed at nearly every single show. Over the years, people have drifted away from the alternative scene, gone on to experience different genres, "grown up". Yet no music scene I would go on to experience in the years of reviewing, photographing, and attending shows was nearly as die-hard as this one (except maybe EDM shows, but that's for a different piece altogether).
What was even more staggeringly awesome to witness was that people seemed just as dedicated to the performances of the openers' as they did to the headliner. They sang along and moved to every note and word from DCD2's newest addition, L.I.F.T. (Love In Future Times), the sing-along-inducing alternative rock of Super Whatevr, and the energetic pop-punk of Australia's own With Confidence. The energy was ramped up the second L.I.F.T. took the stage, and it only elevated from their throughout the evening. You could feel the sweat permeating the air by the time Set It Off took the stage for a high-caliber set that spanned the course of their nearly-ten year career. A majority of tracks came from the band's most recent album, Midnight, which was released earlier this year via Fearless Records. But tracks from their previous albums like Upside Down, Duality, and even Cinematics were admiringly received by fans. But of course, these songs didn't come without their fair share of surprises; a track like "N.M.E" from Duality featured the band building up into the bridge, only to turn it into a riff-fueled version of "It's Gonna Be Me", an N*Sync staple that only a band like Set It Off could perfectly execute. Carson's voice treads the line between pop superstar and veteran Warped Tour frontman, and it works to the highest degree. A remixed drum solo from drummer Maxx Danzinger led into a near-flawless execution of a number of older tracks from the band's catalogue, including the contagiously catchy "Why Worry" and a medley of tracks from both Duality and their severely underrated Cinematics album.
As of Sunday, this was the last date of the band's current U.S. headlining tour, with another leg beginning later this year (Emarosa will join this time around). As the crowd emptied out into the streets on a cold San Francisco evening, I felt a sense of relief. Not only had I gotten to see the show that I'd always hoped this band would get to put on, but I walked feeling that the alternative music scene that I was once fostered in would be alright. Set It Off's performance proved to me that a younger generation still cares desparately and wholeheartedly about live music. They hang onto every word, every note, and every moment, just as I did years ago, and still do years later. Considering that you're going to have a number of chances to see Set It Off on this next leg of their headlining tour this summer, make seeing them a high priority.
Set It Off Set List
Lonely Dance
Uncontainable
Criminal Minds
N.M.E. (W/ “It’s Gonna Be Me” mashup)
Hypnotized
Killer In The Mirror
For You Forever
Unopened Windows
Upside Down
Bad Guy
Drum Solo/Remix
Dancing With The Devil
The Haunting
Dream Catcher / No Disrespect / Ancient History / Bleak December / Admit It / Miss Mysterious / I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead / Swan Song / Forever Stuck In Our Youth
Why Worry
Midnight Thoughts
Partners In Crime
Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing
Upcoming Set It Off dates w/ Emarosa, Broadisde, Lizzy Farrall
June 11: Colorado Springs, CO - Black Sheep
June 12: Lawrence, KS - The Bottleneck
June 14: Burnsville, MN - The Garage
June 15: Milwaukee, MN - The Rave
June 16: Des Moines, IA - Wooly's
June 18: St. Louis, MO - Fubar
June 19: Nashville, TN - The Basement East
June 21: Indianapolis, IN - The Citadel
June 22: Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall
June 23: Grand Rapids, MI - Elevation
June 25: Buffalo, NY - Rec Room
June 26: Poughkeepsie, NY - The Chance Theater
June 28: Hartford, CT - The Webster
June 29: Richmond, VA - The Canal Club
July 2: Pawtucket, RI - The Met
July 3: Amityville, NY - Revolution
July 5: Reading, PA - Reverb
July 6: Silver Spring, MD - The Fillmore
July 7: Charlotte, NC - Amo's Southend
July 9: Lake Park, FL - The Kelsey Theater
July 12: Pensacola, FL - Vinyl Music Hall
July 13: Austin, TX - Empire Garage
July 16: Tucson, AZ - 191 Toole
July 18: Los Angeles, CA - El Rey
July 19: Fresno, CA - Strummer's
Set It Off
www.setitoffband.com
www.facebook.com/setitoff
@setitoff
With Confidence
www.withconfidencemusic.com
www.facebook.com/withconfidenceband
@withconfidence_
Super Whatevr
www.facebook.com/superwhatevr
@superwhatevr
L.I.F.T.
www.loveinfuturetimes.com
www.facebook.com/loveinfuturetimes
@therealdeadkids