“Let Me Tell You” by Summer Rain

Big electricity and even bigger harmonies tend to combine for sheer fireworks when they’re under the command of smart pop musicians, and this is proven beyond a reasonable doubt in the new single “Let Me Tell You” from rising stars Summer Rain. Built with a classic rock mentality sewn into its melodic strengths, “Let Me Tell You” has a lot in common with the throwback content some of this band’s rivals have been recording in recent years, but with one distinct difference – it isn’t saddled with a retro sentimentality in its lyricism. Summer Rain wants to play old fashioned with a new school soul, and to me, they’re doing it brilliantly in this song. 

WEBSITE: https://musicsummerrain.com/

There’s no getting away from the smooth hook in this single, and although it’s made stronger by the percussive thrust in the backdrop, I wouldn’t be quick to credit the foundations of this groove with all of the sonic sophistication in the song. Contrarily, this is one of the more evenly-arranged tracks of its kind to come into my life lately, and best of all it never sounds self-righteous about it. I think there’s really no way that Summer Rain doesn’t realize what they’ve got going here, but they’re not the least bit smug about it. 

The lead vocal is striking from the center of the mix, but it’s never stealing the thunder away from the instrumental faceting in the song at all. Instead, because of how slick a set of verses we’re running into in this track, there’s a seamless integration of vocal and backing band around every turn. The chemistry between these players is really something to marvel at, and though this was my first time listening to them, I can tell that this isn’t the lone occasion on which they’re able to click so well. 

“Let Me Tell You” benefits tremendously from the sway of its rhythm section, and I think that the buoyancy of the hook lends a lot of additional swagger to the mix that wouldn’t have been here otherwise. Summer Rain doesn’t care about highlighting virtuosity in their sound, and if they did, I don’t think they would be killing it as a collective like they are in this single. This isn’t an amateur band, but a group of musicians who value the spirit of the medium much as they do the essence of what it is to create something together. 

If you haven’t heard the music Summer Rain is recording right now, you need to take some time out to spend with “Let Me Tell You” this December. There’s a simplicity and ease to their sound that has made a fan out of many a critic in 2021, and if their momentum continues pushing them down the creative road they’re on at this point in time, they’re going to have a hard time keeping the mainstream spotlight off of the melodies they’ve been dispatching from the American underground. “Let Me Tell You” is a hit waiting to be heard, and other critics will tell you the same. 

Mindy McCall