the maine cruel summer
[Photo by Guadalupe Bustos]

Hear the Maine’s emo cover of Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer”

The Maine appear on the cover of Alternative Press’ 2023 summer issue alongside Taking Back Sunday and PVRIS. Grab a copy here.

This year’s Sad Summer is nearing the end of another great run, and to up the fun of their final shows, the Maine shared a cover of Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer.” The song fits right in with their recent setlists, as the pop-rock outfit have been busting out covers of Lorde’s “Royals,” blink-182’s “I Miss You,” and Smash Mouth’s “All Star” as they trek across the U.S. on the traveling emo fest.

“We couldn’t get tickets for Taylor Swift’s tour, so we decided to cover ‘Cruel Summer’ so we can have our own concert on the tour bus,” vocalist John O'Callaghan says. “Now we just need to make some bootleg T-shirts and it’ll be like we’re front row. Hope you enjoy it!”

Read more: The Maine break down every album in their catalog

The Maine are also readying the release of their ninth studio album, which is out Aug. 1. The band have already shared two singles, “how to exit a room” and “blame,” ahead of its arrival and will ring in the record’s release day in Denver for 8123 Day. That evening, the Maine will headline the Fillmore Auditorium with openers Real Friends and Knuckle Puck.

Listen to their cover of “Cruel Summer” below.