Leaving everything and the kitchen sink on the stage to the delight of thousands of cheering fans is nothing new for Allentown's Summer Scouts.
But that does not mean those pre-show jitters disappear for good.
Tonight, the band will open for Grammy Award-winning country music trio The Band Perry on what singer Katherine De Menno described at Musikfest's "grandest stage."
"We were just beside ourselves to finally have the opportunity to play the main stage," De Menno said Wednesday during a phone interview. "(We decided) let's just do the most powerful, fun, anthemic songs we have in our pocket. It's nice to keep that potent 30-minute set short and sweet, but really effective. It's a mix of overwhelming and exciting."
The performance will mark Summer Scouts' second Musikfest gig this week -- the group performed Aug. 6 on the Plaza Tropical stage -- and the third year playing the festival. "We're really grateful to Musikfest for having us back and giving us such a great time slot," De Menno said. "Right now, we're super stoked."
Landing the high-profile opening gig is the culmination of a whirlwind year for the power-pop quintet -- one marked by the highs of touring and the release of their debut full-length album, Furthest Reach, a handful of music videos and the lows of losing, and then gaining, band members. The outfit is rounded out by guitarist-vocalist Ross Huber, guitarist Scott Johnson, bassist Jared Gibson and drummer Tyler Saeger.
"It's been productive and full of change and adaptation and just moving forward," De Menno said. "It's given us time to be really reflective and continue doing what we're doing."
De Menno said the band spent July recording the follow-up to. Though the group is in the mixing stages of the new album, there are no plans to rush its release. De Menno said the LP may drop before the end of the year, but, realistically, an early 2018 is the most likely. A short fall or winter regional tour is also in the works.
"We're taking our time, making it what we want it to sound like," she said. "We're not locking ourselves into a timeframe. Sometimes that makes you release something that's not fully developed and ready."
De Menno said the band's goal was to capture the energy of their live show into the new songs. "There are a couple of softer moments here and there to break it up and give it that sultry vibe," she said. "We realized we have a lot of fun and that translates on stage. It has a lot of oomph behind it and people respond to it."
Summer Scouts perform tonight with The Band Perry at Musikfest in Bethlehem. Gates open at 6 o'clock. Show time is 7:30 p.m. Tickets cost $39-$59.