Songwriter, Lead Vocalist and Producer, Marianas Trench’s Josh Ramsay

Marianas Trench has matured into one of the most distinctive forces in theatrical pop-rock, and at The Ritz in Raleigh on October 9, 2025, they delivered a performance both precise and emotionally charged. Their official website is marianastrench.net. Founded in Vancouver in 1999, the band comprises Josh Ramsay, Matt Webb, Mike Ayley, and Ian Casselman. Over their career they have released six studio albums—Fix Me (2006), Masterpiece Theatre (2009), Ever After (2011), Astoria (2015), Phantoms (2019), and Haven (2024)—and have earned multiple Juno Award nominations, including a win for Group of the Year in 2013. Their sound spans pop rock, symphonic rock, emo, and glam elements, and Ramsay’s songwriting and production credits (including co-writing Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe”) have added mainstream reach to their reputation. On this show, they mixed deep album tracks and fan favorites—“Stutter,” “Fallout,” “Who Do You Love”—with selections from Haven like “Lightning and Thunder” and “A Normal Life.” The group’s harmonies were tight, transitions flowed fluidly, and when Ramsay stepped into the crowd to sing parts of “Haven’t Had Enough,” the crowd followed him in volume and intensity. The stage visuals underscored the show’s title: ever-shifting backdrops suggested wind, lightning flashes, clouds, and drifting fog. Smoke and haze framed quieter moments, while bursts of strobe lighting punctuated the musical climaxes. The audience response was fervent—chants, call-backs, and wave after wave of applause, especially during their encore pairing of “Stutter” and “Fallout.” Merchandise for Marianas Trench included “Haven” hoodies, limited boxed sets, tour T-shirts printed with date lists, and journals themed around the album’s narrative. Behind the scenes, the band is known to circulate among crew and fans post-show, sometimes signing items at the merch booth.

Marianas Trench

The Summer Set, whose official site is thesummerset.com, entered the Raleigh stage with momentum and connection. The Arizona-based pop rock band—composed of Brian Logan Dales (vocals), Jess Bowen (drums), John Gomez (guitar), and Stephen Gomez (bass)—rose to prominence through albums such as Love Like This (2009), Everything’s Fine (2011), Legendary (2013), and Stories for Monday (2016). After a hiatus from 2017 to 2021, they returned to active status under labels including The Militia Group, Razor & Tie, Fearless Records, and LAB Records, releasing Blossom in 2022 and their 2025 album Meet Me at the Record Store. On the Raleigh date, The Summer Set delivered about ten songs that balanced nostalgia and new momentum. They played hits like “Chelsea,” “Boomerang,” “Lightning in a Bottle,” and layered in newer tracks such as “ADIDAS” and “Algorithm & Blues.” Dales engaged the crowd physically—once climbing a barricade to sing along with fans at the edge of the stage. A playful surprise was a brief cover of ABBA’s “Mamma Mia,” which elicited audible delight. Their performance pace was relentless but with room to breathe; lighting design shifted from warm hues during melodic moments to sharper tones in climactic passages. The crowd energy ebbed and surged in turn, with singalongs breaking out mid-set and cheers building toward their finale. The Summer Set’s merch included signed lyric sheets, vinyl of Meet Me at the Record Store, graphic tees referencing both vintage and new era imagery, and lyric art prints. Stories from tour insider circles suggest the band and their crew coordinate tightly, ensuring backstage transitions are efficient to support their full engagement on stage.

The Summer Set

The opening act, senses (emerging under the “emo-friendly, punk-curious” banner), set the emotional and atmospheric tone early. Their social profiles refer to tour updates via senses.komi.io and their fare on promotional listings describes them as a Los Angeles–based act on the rise. senses is supporting Marianas Trench on The Force of Nature Tour and slated to support The Summer Set in the UK/EU leg. Their catalog to date has included EPs such as Take Me Out of Here and I’m Still Breathing. In Raleigh, their roughly eight-song set (mirroring other stops on the tour) delivered raw energy, with emotive vocals, driving guitars, and direct crowd address. They opened quietly and built in tension, drawing the audience in before culminating in a cathartic closing number. The lighting during their set used sharper contrasts—cool tones during quieter passages, then brighter washes and occasional strobe accents as momentum grew. Though their merch presence was smaller, they offered EP CDs, enamel pins, lyric art prints, and shirts declaring “emo-friendly, punk-curious,” which many early fans wore throughout the night. Fan-shared backstage anecdotes suggest senses sometimes share their soundcheck playlists with crew, and are hands-on with their own lighting cues—even requesting color shifts in real time to match dynamics. Their inclusion in this tour underscores their rising profile and growing synergy with both The Summer Set and Marianas Trench’s fanbase.

senses