Set It Off (band)

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Set It Off
Set It Off performing in 2015 at Warped Tour in Connecticut
Background information
Origin	Tampa, Florida, U.S.
Genres	Pop rock pop pop punk alternative rock
Years active	2008–present
Labels	Fearless Equal Vision
Website	setitoffband.com
Members	Cody Carson Maxx Danziger Zach DeWall
Past members	Blake Howell Benji Panico Dan Clermont Austin Kerr James Arran

Set It Off is an American rock band that started in Tampa, Florida. The band initially gained a large following through vocalist Cody Carson's YouTube channel. Their following took on the name "143 family" later to be known as "Dreamcatchers". Set It Off was subsequently signed by Equal Vision Records after releasing a string of successful extended plays. In 2018 they signed to Fearless Records, and in February 2019 the band released Midnight, their fourth studio album, through the label.

History[]

Formation (2008)[]

Cody Carson met Dan Clermont in high school, as both were in the marching band. Austin M. Kerr and Zach DeWall were in their own band together prior to the formation of Set It Off. The two bands brushed against each other while playing local shows, occasionally at the same time. After high school, Carson left for Ohio to attend the Oberlin Conservatory of Music as a classical clarinet student. In his first year, after exchanging a series of YouTube videos with All Time Low's frontman Alex Gaskarth, Carson asked if he could sing "Coffee Shop Soundtrack" on stage at the group's upcoming concert at the Cleveland House of Blues via a YouTube video,^[1] to which Gaskarth agreed.^[2] The performance helped Carson confirm his dream of starting a rock band,^[3] and not long afterwards, Carson dropped out of college and used his school money to come back and start up the band.

DeWall and Kerr were amongst the first to join the band, and Dan Clermont also followed. James Arran was Set It Off's initial drummer, but financial struggles made gas purchases difficult for him, which resulted in Arran resigning on August 24, 2008.^[4] Blake Howell became Set It Off's next drummer but soon left the band due to difficulties his family was facing.^[5] Howell was replaced by Benjamin Panico (a.k.a. Benji Panic) on October 30, 2009; however, he and the band have since parted ways so that Panico could pursue his GED and later start his own photography studio. Howell was able to introduce the band to their current drummer, Maxx Danziger. Dan Clermont, the bands lead guitar player, officially left the band in 2019 due to family troubles.

Early releases (2008–2010)[]

• Released their first EP: Baby, You Don't Tripajaharda, on October 31, 2008.

• Self-released their EP:^[6] Calm Before the Storm^[7] on May 16, 2009.

• Self-released the single, "Hush Hush" on September 6, 2010. A music video was made to accompany the song on October 4, 2010.

• Released the single, "Together Forever" on November 16, 2010, which it later officially photographed in 2014.

• Released the single, "@Reply" on December 25, 2010. A music video was later made to accompany the song.

• Self-released their EP: Horrible Kids, with the single "@Reply" on it.

Horrible Kids (2011–2012)[]

On July 19, 2011, the band announced its signing to^[8] Equal Vision Records.^[9] It's also announced that, through Equal Vision Records, the band would issue a remastered version of its self-released EP Horrible Kids, along with the single "Chase It!" on August 30, 2011.

Carson stated,^[8] "Our main inspiration in writing this album was derived from personal experiences growing up. I loved being able to turn to songs that I could personally relate to. I want to provide that same kind of coping source for people. I want people to be able to turn on Horrible Kids and pick a song that pinpoints exactly what they're going through and allows them to vent through it."^[9]

After being released, the album debuted in the top 100 Alternative Albums on iTunes.^[10] Horrible Kids was recorded at Red Sparrow Studios in Wilson, NC. It was produced, engineered, and mixed by Brandon Ham and John Harrell.

Cinematics (2013–2014)[]

Band performing (2013) at Warped Tour

In July 2012, Set It Off announced the release of its debut full-length album Cinematics, released that same year. A deluxe version was released on September 18, 2012.

The band partnered with VH1 Save the Music Foundation and donated $1 of every album sold before September 23 to help support music programs in schools. The band also added their own bonus to the donation, creating a total of $5,000 directly from the band. Equal Vision Records agreed to match the band's donation amount if the band reached No. 1 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart.

Cody Carson highly praised the organization's goals, stating, "We're honored to be working with VH1 Save The Music. If it wasn't for the music education program in my high school, Set It Off would not exist. I would not have met our guitarist, Dan Clermont, I wouldn't have been directed toward Oberlin Music Conservatory, and I wouldn't end up with even half of the musical knowledge I possess now. More people need to be able to experience the unity, leadership skills, and work ethic taught by being involved in music education programs in schools. Set It Off strongly endorses this organization for these, among many other, reasons. We're so excited to raise money for them and help spread the word about the importance of music education."^[11]

The album, which was produced, mixed and recorded by Zack Odom and Kenneth Mount at ZK Productions, debuted at the No. 174 position on the Billboard 200, No. 4 on the Top Heatseekers, and No. 38 on the Independent Albums chart.

On June 25, 2013, the expanded edition of the album was released with a new cover. In October 2013, Fearless Records released the album Punk Goes Christmas, which featured an original Set It Off song, "This Christmas (I'll Burn It to the Ground)."

Duality (2014–2016)[]

On January 2, 2014, Equal Vision Records released a video on its YouTube page announcing that Set It Off would be recording a new album with John Feldmann, which would be released October 14, 2014. The band recorded the album in Los Angeles with several producers, including Brandon Paddock, Tommy English and Matt Appleton.^[12] A music video for "Why Worry" was filmed at St. Mark's Church in the Bowery in Manhattan on August 21, 2014, using fans as extras. That August, it was announced that the band would be supporting Black Veil Brides on their headline Black Mass Tour through October and November, joining Falling in Reverse and Drama Club.^[13] The first single off the album was released on September 9, 2014.^{[citation needed]} The album was included at number 5 on Rock Sound's "Top 50 Albums of the Year" list.^[14]

2014 also saw Set It Off featured on Fearless Records' Punk Goes Pop 6, on which the band covered Ariana Grande's "Problem".

On February 25, 2015, the band announced they would be playing at the Vans Warped Tour '15 on the Journeys shoe stage.

On March 2, 2015, a music video for "Ancient History" was released, featuring actress Chelsea Mee.

May 20, 2015, Set It Off announced that Austin Kerr would no longer be a part of the band, Kerr subsequently went on to pursue a solo hip hop career.

On July 4, 2015, a music video for "Forever Stuck in Our Youth" was released.

In November 2015, Fearless Records released the album Punk Goes Christmas: Deluxe Edition, still featuring Set It Off's original song "This Christmas (I'll Burn It to the Ground)".^[15]

On January 13, 2016, a music video for the album's title track, "Duality," was uploaded to YouTube.

On March 22, 2016, the band announced it would be playing at the Vans Warped Tour for the second year in a row, this time on the main stage.

Upside Down (2016)[]

Set it Off playing live in 2017.

The band released its album Upside Down on October 7, 2016. It doubled Duality's first-week sales.

Additionally, the band released both music and lyric videos for their song “Life Afraid.”

Signing to Fearless Records and Midnight (2018-current)[]

In 2018, Set It Off announced that they would be leaving Equal Vision and signing to Fearless Records.

At the beginning of the year, Set It Off did a livestream video on YouTube in order to write a song with its audience. Over 1,000 people came into the stream and submitted their lyric ideas. The band members took their favorite lyrics from those suggested and added guitar parts and melodies to create their single "Hourglass Love", released on YouTube soon after, on January 4.^[16]

On July 24, Set It Off released its single "Killer in the Mirror" with a music video.

On November 19, they announced on Twitter that their fourth studio album "Midnight", would be released on February 1, 2019. Also, on that same day, they released their single “Lonely Dance” including a music video.

On December 14, they released two singles, "For You Forever" and "Dancing with the Devil", from "Midnight".

On January 1, 2019, they released "Midnight Thoughts" exactly at midnight to celebrate the new year.

On May 4, 2019, allegations of sexual assault against Dan Clermont were released on an anonymous Twitter account. The band announced on May 6, 2019, that Dan would be taking a hiatus from the band to be with his family while this matter is addressed.^[17]

On June 12, 2019, vocalist Cody Carson announced that he had a vocal haemorrhage, just after the final date of Part 2 of the Midnight World Tour. He continued with Part 3 of the tour despite this.^[18]

On June 28, 2019, an acoustic version of "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing" from Duality was featured on Punk Goes Acoustic Vol. 3.

On September 11, 2019, after Part 3 of the Midnight World Tour, vocalist Cody Carson announced that due to his vocal cord injury he had to have surgery. As a result, Part 4 of the tour has been delayed to March 2020.^[19]

On September 30, 2019, the band announced the departure of Dan Clermont in a Tweet. The Tweet mentions he left “in order to focus on other areas of his life”. Subsequently, according to the same Tweet, the band announced they have decided to continue on as a three-piece group.^[20]

On February 14, they released their fourth EP titled "After Midnight".

Music videos[]

Set It Off has music videos released for the songs "Pages & Paragraphs", "@Reply", "Horrible Kids", "Breathe In, Breathe Out", "Swan Song", "Why Worry", "Ancient History", "Wild Wild World", "Partners in Crime" (feat. Ash Costello), "Forever Stuck in Our Youth", "Duality", "Uncontainable", "Something New", "Life Afraid", "Hypnotized", and "Killer in the Mirror", "Lonely Dance”, “Dancing With the Devil”, and "Hourglass". Additionally, there is a music video for Set It Off's Punk Goes Christmas song, "This Christmas (I'll Burn It to the Ground)". Official lyric videos have also been released for "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead", "Swan Song", "Kill the Lights", "Bleak December", and "Life Afraid".

Touring[]

Set it Off performing at Vinyl Music Hall in Pensacola, FL

Set It Off has currently played in over 22 tours.^[21] Set It Off was also accompanied on tour by merchandise manager, Marshall Travers, and tour manager, Andrew Cramb^{[citation needed]}. Cramb attended private school with several members of the band and had been on tour with the band since 2009. However, Cramb backed down from this position after graduating college. In 2013, Set It Off toured Europe with Yellowcard. In that same year, Set It Off supported Tonight Alive on its UK tour in October, along with Decade. The band played Warped Tour 2013 on dates 6/15-7/3 and 7/6-8/4 and played with Candy Hearts, State Champs, William Beckett, and We Are The in Crowd during WATIC's Reunion Tour in spring of 2014. The band also co-headlined the Come Alive Tour with Our Last Night, featuring Stages & Stereos and Heartist; supported Black Veil Brides and Falling in Reverse on the Black Mass Tour; and, beginning in February 2015, the group began its first USA headliner, The Glamour Kills Spring Break Tour, with support from Against The Current, As It Is, and Roam. The band played the entirety of the 2015 Vans Warped Tour.^[22] The band also played on the Rise of the Runaways Tour (January and February 2015), through various continents, with Crown the Empire and Alive Like Me.

Set It Off began a UK/Europe tour^[23] in May 2015, with stops in Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. From March 1 to March 28, 2016, Set It Off went on 'The Fight For Something Tour' with fellow band Tonight Alive^[24] and played the entirety of the 2016 Vans Warped Tour, except for the first show in Anchorage, Alaska.^[25] The band had since toured supporting Simple Plan and Sleeping With Sirens for some time after. This year, Set It Off went on their first headline tour from January 16 to February 16. Later, the band played at Vans Warped Tour, the last one ever, on July 27 in Mansfield, MA; July 28 in Wantagh, NY; and August 3 in Orlando, FL. As of January 2020, the band is headline-touring in the United States and Canada. In March 2020 they supported Japanese rock band ONE OK ROCK along with Brisbane-based band Stateside on the Australian leg of their Eye of the Storm world tour.^[26]

Their 2019 European tour (Midnight World Tour Part 4: UK/Europe) was postponed in September 2019 with rescheduled dates for March/April 2020 due to Cody Carson's vocal injury/vocal surgery.^[27] Broadside (band) was to open for them at the rescheduled dates. However, these dates had to be postponed a second time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The dates were moved to August/September 2020 with openers Broadside, Cemetery Sun, and Lizzy Farrall.^[28]

Musical style and influences[]

During Set It Off's early years the band fit into the pop-punk genre exclusively. Their debut album Cinematics (2012) featured orchestral elements, whereas its follow-up Duality (2014) was influenced by 1990s/2000s pop music. The band continued to progress in this direction with a third studio album Upside Down (2016) which featured some of the band's poppiest output yet.

The majority of the orchestral string sounds are programmed and sequenced synthesizers added during production rather than traditionally recorded acoustic instruments. In 2015, Kerrang! magazine summarized the band's genre as pop rock.^[29]

Back in January 2019, Cody Carson posted an Ask Me Anything on Reddit where he answered fans questions regarding their band. One person asked what inspired their band name to which he responded "Fall Out Boy song, IIRC. Calm Before The Storm," referring to one of the lyrics in said song.

Members[]

Timeline

Discography[]

Studio albums[]

• Cinematics (2012)
• Duality (2014)
• Upside Down (2016)
• Midnight (2019)

Extended plays[]

• Baby, You Don't Tripajaharda (2008)
• Calm Before the Storm (2009)
• Horrible Kids (2011)
• Duality: Stories Unplugged (2015)
• After Midnight (2020)

Singles[]

• "Pages & Paragraphs" (2009)
• "Hush Hush" (2010)
• "Together Forever" (2010)
• "@Reply" (2010)
• "Breathe In, Breathe Out" (2011)
• "Horrible Kids" (2011)
• "Swan Song" (2012)
• "Partners in Crime" (feat. Ash Costello) (2012)
• "Forever Stuck in Our Youth" (2014)
• "Why Worry" (2014)
• "Ancient History" (2014)
• "Duality" (2014)
• "Wild Wild World" (2015)
• "Something New" (2016)
• "Uncontainable" (2016)
• "Life Afraid" (2016)
• "Hypnotized" (2016)
• "Killer in the Mirror" (2018)
• "Lonely Dance" (2018)
• "Dancing with the Devil" (2018)
• "For You Forever" (2018)
• "Midnight Thoughts" (2019)
• "Catch Me If You Can" (2019)
• "So Predictable" (2020)
• "One Single Second" (2020)

Other appearances[]

• Punk Goes Christmas (2013) – "This Christmas (I'll Burn It to the Ground)"
• Punk Goes Pop Vol. 6 (2014) – "Problem" (originally performed by Ariana Grande, featuring Iggy Azalea)
• Punk Goes Acoustic Vol. 3 (2019) - "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing"

References[]

Citations