Album Review: Set It Off - 'Elsewhere'
After living the longest midnight hour, it’s time for a change of scenery. Welcome to Elsewhere.
American three-piece Set It Off have come back bigger, better and brighter than ever before with their latest album. Following from 2019’s Midnight, the guys escape the dark skies and lonely nights to enter a neon wonderland - but not everything is as cheery as the pink/yellow/green hues suggest.
The singles gave a sneak peek into the subject matter of the record, and begins with the lead single and leading track on the album, ‘Skeleton’. A fun, loud, reckless track that highlights being the literal bare bones of a person because of others - or at least this is one definition. The analogy of a skeleton can be a powerful one in many contexts, but it’s found through this tune that the cheery near-psychedelic world the band have found themselves in is less sunshine and more rain clouds. With lyrics speaking of frontman Cody Carson being “vulnerable” and asking to be “your skeleton”, it shows to have these lonely and isolating undertones. This continues into ‘Projector’, which was inspired by people who deny their wrongdoings and project their feelings and issues onto others unfairly and unnecessarily.
Only two songs into a 16-track listing, it’s obvious that the bouncy and catchy nature of the melodies is a disguise; everything is tricking the senses into thinking life is better now and the pain and solitude is a thing of the past. Compared to the slightly slower and calmer tones of Midnight, with the use of orchestral instruments such as violins and trumpets, Elsewhere ascends beyond a healthy and manageable manner. An over-correction. The music smiles but Carson’s words are bitter, stinging with every spit. The language is strong, the insults are scathing.
The road to Elsewhere is paved with anger and resentment - and it’s so satisfying.
As modern-moving as Set It Off can be musically, Elsewhere has very obvious elements of musical trends of the past. The electronic beats and layered vocals in the chorus and outros are giving that 90s pop vibe that the band most likely grew up with, and later became inspired by. The track ‘Why Do I’ is one of the most audibly influenced by decades of pop passed, and is one that would be a live fan-favourite just from its surface-level bubbliness and weightless feel. In a similar way but a different influence is the following track ‘As Good As It Gets’, which lifts more of its sound from the 2000s, teetering between the mainstream pop and alternative emo of the era. Set It Off is not to be trusted this cycle. The unpredictability is striking but exciting.
Elsewhere is an adventure in an album, put succinctly, and continues the Midnight story nearly perfectly as it tricks the fans into thinking things are perking up. No more midnight thoughts haunting, no more drowning in the hourglass - but instead, it’s now manifested into this bitter revenge painted so sweetly where they’re taking control of themselves, their minds and their narratives.
It’s time to dye your hair and own your emotions. This is Elsewhere.
Words by Jo Cosgrove
