My So-Called Summer, formerly Reliant Tom is an American indie pop band based in Stephentown, New York.https://radioradiox.com/2026/02/27/my-so-called-summer-thanks-for-asking/"Reliant Tom Confronts Grief on “11-2”" Pop Dust. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
Background Reliant Tom originated as a band in 2015."Reliant Tom Release Dramatic New Music Video for “The Beach”" Mxdwn.com. Retrieved February 8, 2021. The Brooklyn-based post-rock electronic band and experimental performance art group is centered around its core creative duo of composer Monte Weber along with choreographer and vocalist Claire Cuny."‘Play & Rewind’ (LP) by Reliant Tom" Skope Magazine. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
The duo’s first two releases included a self-released, self-titled EP in 2016"RELIANT TOM - RELIANT TOM'S EP" Divide and Conquer. Retrieved February 8, 2021. and a full-length debut effort Bad Orange in 2018."Album Premiere: Play & Rewind by Reliant Tom" The Big Takeover. Retrieved February 8, 2021."Explore Reliant Tom's moody, gritty world on "Bad Orange"" The Deli Magazine. Retrieved February 8, 2021."Reliant Tom Echoes Grief on Post-Rock Single ‘Nevermind the Garbage’" Girl Underground Music. Retrieved February 8, 2021. Released in the Spring 2020, through Chicago-based Diversion Records, the group's sophomore effort is entitled Play & Rewind."Album Review: Reliant Tom – Play and Rewind" Mxdwn.com. Retrieved February 8, 2021."Reliant Tom - Play & Rewind" The Spill Magazine. Retrieved February 8, 2021. The group self-released their 3rd and final album Dancer in the Darkhttps://spillmagazine.com/spill-music-premiere-reliant-tom-disco-moon/ as Reliant Tom in 2023 before changing their name from Reliant Tom to My So-Called Summer in 2025. https://music.mxdwn.com/2025/09/01/news/claire-cuny-monte-weber-announce-retirement-of-reliant-tom-moniker-introduce-new-project-my-so-called-summer/
Reception Pop Dust's Randy Radic stated of their track "11-2", "Claire's haunting tones invest the lyrics with stark melancholy”."Reliant Tom Confronts Grief on “11-2”" Pop Dust. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
Matt Matasci of MXDWN wrote, "Claire Cuny’s rich, sultry vocals take the forefront. Plinking piano keys and a gradually shift into heavier instrumentation add a dramatic flare to the song, showcasing the undeniable chemistry of Cuny and her bandmate Monte Weber” regarding their song "Never Mind The Garbage"."Reliant Tom Release Dramatic New Song “Never Mind The Garbage”" MXDWN. Retrieved February 8, 2021. About the same track, Black Book Magazine wrote, "Building from moody ballad, to Cobain-worthy midesection and ending in a sparse trance of harmonis, the track viscerally captures the rise and fall of emotions that come with death”."BlackBook Premiere: Visceral New Reliant Tom Single ‘Nevermind The Garbage’" Black Book Magazine. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
Discography Reliant Tom EP (2016) Bad Orange (2018) Play & Rewind (2020) When We Were Young (2021) Dancer in the Dark (2023)
References
External links ReliantTom.com Official site