ALBUM REVIEW: Set It Off – Set It Off

Every so often, there are albums you listen to that when listening to, you wish you never had done. The new self-titled album for SET IT OFF, is exactly that. It is a collection of twelve songs that are almost impossible to differentiate from each other all feeling like a rip of FALLING IN REVERSE which by no means is a compliment. They’re a band that are newly independent and have unleashed this new era on us on their own terms which was just a terrible mistake, having no guidance from a producer has landed us with this turgid mess of a record. 

Opener Pathological launches us into the album proper where we are met with the god awful rapping style from frontman Cody Carson harping on about he is a victim when truly, the only victim is you dear listener. Thankfully this isn’t as prevalent throughout this album than it could have been so they deserve a round of applause for holding themselves back on this one. Musically, there are few interesting moments but it eventually just falls into a generic alt-metal sound that never goes anywhere that makes you wish you were doing anything but listen to this. From here on in, each song feels like they were thrown in a blender and set to liquify as each song just blends into each other, rendering you unable to tell which one is which. Punching Bag and Rotten go one after the other and you genuinely think that the prior song is quite a long song before the element of surprise catches you as you realise that you have made your way through not one but two songs, making your ears the figurative punching bag. Switch follows on from these and really highlights the levels of cringe that are so prevalent throughout listening but in reality the best thing you can do when listening is just Switch the album off. 

If you thought the cringe levels were high during Switch, then the ante is upped with the awfully titled Fake Ass Friends. If this had been a song written by 17 year olds first starting out, it could have been forgivable but when you realise this is written by a band approaching 40 then you turn it off and go outside for a breath of fresh air for a little bit before returning to it. This song could have been a little bit cleverer had it been mocking the bands that have songs like this but sadly just becomes nothing. By the time What’s In It For Me comes around, you’ll find yourself asking yourself that very question as the answer is very little apart from an actual decent breakdown just before the song ends, giving a silver lining to an exceptionally dark cloud. Evil People is the one saving grace this album has with it being the equivalent to finding a pound coin on the floor, it won’t improve your day but it’ll cheer you up in the moment. It has a decent sneering side to it that this album has tried very desperately to achieve from the start but failed up until now, so brownie points for that. Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing (REBORN) does in fairness, see the band hit a little bit of a stride as it has a fun beat to it that brings a nice little bounce to it with some good drumming and a fun sinister sound. The whole song however does feel like one of ICE NINE KILLS songs but without the irony and makes you think that you could indeed be listening to them instead. 

Vicious Cycle continues the album as it tackles the themes of falling back into the same old cycles and struggling to get out of it, which shows some maturity on the record and does add a little bit of substance to it which does feel too little too late as you wish this album could have a little more umph to it. Creating Monsters is also a more interesting offering than most songs on this record but only just. The beat is fun and it has a decent rhythm to it a la PANIC! AT THE DISCO to the point you could imagine Brendon Urie singing it which makes it a little bit better but not by much. Parasite is the penultimate track of the album, and as it looks at those who hang around with the band just so they can also be someone as well, the song itself is actually semi decent but is let down by the rapping halfway through that kills any momentum and good grace this album could have left. We finally get to the last track of the album and Worst Case Scenario acts as the album’s finale, ending on more of a whimper than the bang SET IT OFF feel like this album is. 

2025 has been a great year for music so far, this album is just a minor blip opposed to what else has come out. If you do like this, then fair enough but to those who are a casual listener who dips in and out of any kind of music, this album is the musical equivalent of an opened, flat can of Monster that lost its taste quite some time ago. 

Rating: 3/10

Set It Off is out now via self-release. 

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