The Graduating Class Present Their Good Mood-Inducing Single “Girl (Like The Summertime)” [Premiere]

It couldn’t be any worse of a year to be part of the graduating class, could it? Can you even imagine attending your graduation via Zoom? Eesh. A video call is probably the exact same way many youngins are going to be seeing their prom dates in a couple of weeks.

If that’s got you all bummed out, well, don’t feel so bad, we’ve got something to cheer you up! Thanks to the efforts of The Graduating Class, the band is debuting their spiffy new single, “Girl (Like The Summertime),” a poppy, sunny and upbeat tune that perfectly arrives at that time of year when you can finally leave your jacket at home. The Portland indie-pop crew is the perfect medicine for the spring blues with their fun, summery sound that’s somehow always good mood-inducing.

Despite its upbeat tone, “Girl (Like The Summertime)” is a reflective and more fragile song for the band as well as lead songwriter John Queant than you’d expect. As he explains, “‘Girl’ reflects on a major transition period in my life. I had just gotten out of a long term relationship, my previous band had fallen apart, and I was trying to use songwriting as a way to express feelings I didn’t quite understand. The lyrics are semi- autobiographical, but the song isn’t about any specific person, but rather how someone makes you feel. In the same way middle school students stare out the window, longing to be outside when it starts to warm up, I was writing about a person with that same sense of spontaneity and passion. The song feels even more fitting in our current state of social distancing. As the days get warmer, we’re all looking for someone like the summertime.”

The transition period that Queant just mentioned occurred two years ago, after some unfortunate events like the ending of a long-term relationship and pulling the plug on working with his longtime collaborator. In reaction to all of this, Queant decided to buy himself a synthesizer and he immediately went on a weekend binge with the thing, punching out three songs, including “Girl (Like the Summertime).” It was the most productive weekend of Queant’s life as a songwriter and it motivated him to form a band. Singer Natty Burmeister also just happened to reach out to him about collaborating that weekend and Queant’s life was suddenly turned upside down. Now after adding guitarist Keenan Dorn, keyboardist August King, and drummer Nate Hansen, The Graduating Class became settled.

With their songwriting confidence at a high, The Graduating Class couldn’t be any happier to be offering you some easy June listening. Drawing you in with groove and atmosphere, the band is thrilled to have you joining in on the class.

Artwork for “Girl (Like The Summertime)” by The Graduating Class