Saves The Day Band • Page 59

What am I missing? I'm honestly interested to hear what appeals to you about this record. Cuz I'd LOVE to get into it but just never really had any of the songs grab me. Even though I don't love the trilogy each of those albums has at least a song or two that I think highly of ("Sound The Alarm" and "Delusional" from Sound The Alarm, "Bye Bye Baby" and "Get F*cked Up" from Under the Boards, and "Living Without Love" from Daybreak. Seriously I'd appreciate it if you could explain.

Hmmm. Would you care to expand on what bugs you about Daybreak? I thought they honestly gave it a good college try for the most part musically, with no obvious moves in the music to try to appeal to teenaged scenesters. However I gotta say that I find it odd that you single out "Undress Me" as a favorite, because that's probably the opposite for me, as the too-specific lyrics (meeting on Halloween, the obvious "red dress" callback to "The End") get on my nerves quite quickly. And this isn't a problem I specifically point out just for Chris Conley. I also feel the same about every time John Lennon has to address songs to Yoko. I personally have no problem at all with Yoko, but I like being able to paint my own pictures in my mind when listening to a song, and not be forced into one image. And since Chris went so hard with the blatantly biographical 9 there was basically no chance I'd like that one.

Crazy thing after everything is I will always give whatever future albums, EPs or singles a chance solely based on the goodwill they have from me based on Stay What You Are and In Reverie.

 

Regarding Self-titled: "Xenophobic Blind Left Hook" feels like a very IR song to me. You might say it is "too specific" lyrically (it is based on a real experience) but it reminds me of "What Went Wrong" in that it tells a story with characters. Also, it's not like Saves the Day hasn't always been super specific ("Please Dave just drive," etc) . "Supernova" also feels like IR, although maybe a tad sped up.

I'd say self-titled is closer to a true follow up to SWYA than IR though. "Ring Pop" and "In the In Between" are highly reminiscient of SWYA guitar tone, energy, and melody. Some songs, like "Verona" and "Lucky Number" feel like a natural transition between SWYA and IR. "Stand in the Stars" feels like a sequel to "This is Not an Exit."

That being said, I can see the argument that many of the songs feel like watered down versions of SWYA songs. Like I said earlier, the vocals are a problem here.

As for my apathy toward Daybreak, I can't give a satisfactory answer for those who like it. I think it's lacking in hooks musically, and the lyrics go for dark but are just cliche. "Daybreak" is compelling, but honestly I just don't like it as a 10 minute long song suite; it really should just be three separate songs. Musically I enjoy "1984" and "Let it All Go" but I really dislike the vocal delivery (the way the music drops out when Chris sings "let it all go" and the "yeah yeah yeah I love you" of 1984 are both grating). "Undress Me" in my opinion is the one song that feels honest and vulnerable where the build-up feels earned.

I'm the same though: I'll always listen to upcoming music and give it a fair shot. I might be past the point where I preorder an album before release though (9 really did a number on me, lol)

 

Well I for one love the super specific lyrics. This past few weeks I've been giving the trilogy a fair chance to revisit it in detail. I loved Sound The Alarm right away and was mildly underwhelmed by the following chapters back in the day, but there's something cool in each of them for sure! I'm also really fascinated with the story of In Reverie and why Sound The Alarm came out to be as dark as it is - while for now IR becomes to be so appreciated, well but the damage's been done and it's interesting how bands feel about it years later.

 

In Reverie has a whole different tone-the guitars and drums are way more power pop and slower. There’s moments where they capture their earlier punk tendencies but overall it doesn’t reach the pop punk heights. It’s got all the dark lyrics like SWYA so I don’t understand why that hasn’t hit those fans the same way.

I never thought of the self-titled as a proper follow up to IR, but I think I can see where that connection can be made. It definitely shares the lukewarm reception that IR got at first. I’ve come around to ST lately and I’m in agreement that it could be viewed as a follow up.

I am one that really enjoyed 9, I’ve not done a ranking but it’s not my favorite by any means. I’ve listened to 29 a bunch of times and love it. I also think their long songs should have just been split up because they don’t really feel like a cohesive track but just a bunch of song ideas that didn’t get separated...

 

9 is really good

 

yep

 

Has anybody got some examples of albums with like lukewarm reception, which later turned out to be considered classic? I'm thinking of In Reverie, Walking On A Wire or Pinkrerton back in the day - trying to gather a few just to study the pattern, cause it seems really interesting to me, on par with the albums that made some bands "sellouts" in the public eye, which also baffled me since very young age.

Getting back to "9" - I really liked that album, it sounds nostalgic, though it's new of course, and I respected the fact they kept "29" as one composition, even if it sometimes feels like it jumps to totally different sections. It's they way they intended listeners to listen to that span of a few different parts - all together. Which reminded me of how Ace Enders released "The World We Know" (I think my favorite I Can Make A Mess album) as just one long audio file with all the songs together initially. To challenge people to really sit through the whole record.

I think now it's even weirder, considering you get paid per stream on Spotify etc. - instead of getting 9x0,004$ after listening to the whole album they could be getting 15x0,004 hahh (oh well).

 

Clarity

 

I almost said Clarity too but I think that people liked Clarity and that their fanbase was into it, but it just wasn't a commercial success. with like IR, it was the fans who didn't like it

 

I can’t think of many newer ones but...

Pet Sounds, After The Goldrush, White Crosses, Village Green Preservation Society, Exile On Main Street, Tom Petty - Mojo, The Only Ones

 

That’s a good distinction.

A lot of albums like IR, White Crosses, Coming Home, Adore etc are divisive among the fanbase but seem to settle in as fan faves in time

 

Yeah! I think I agree with @jordalsh on that one. What I have in mind more likely is when the band is already quite succesful and people have huge expectations, then the album doesn't meet their specific vision of their music and people just shit on it making it a flop, where later with some more distance it becomes a fan fav hmm.

I started giving it some more thought, cause it's amazing to me how after that many years and examples on how music can grow on you, people are still so quick to write something off after initial reactions.

With Jimmy Eat World it's more that they haven't been too succesful until Bleed American, but well obviously Clarity became more cherished after a while as well!

 

Collapsible Lung never came around with RK fans, but I maintain that it isn't THAT bad

 

I love Daybreak and find the guitar work on it absolutely stellar.

 

Listening to Daybreak the past few days, it suffers from a tired vibe more than weak songs.

I wonder if that has something to do with rerecording the album when Manny and Durijah quit?

The recording sounds good, but the performances are kinda lifeless, it’s like it has no wind in its sails

 

Vheissu maybe? I'm not a huge Thrice fan myself, but I know some of my friends were bummed that they weren't playing "fast songs" anymore.

More contemporary examples might be Light we Made by Balance and Composure or Hyperview by Title Fight. Might be too early to call them classics and I think their preceding albums are probably better overall, but they also were divisive. Maybe even Rented World by the Menzingers, which is flawed for sure but I think more interesting than the following two records (still good, but maybe a bit paint-by-numbers OTIP follow ups).

 

Turnover's Good Nature?

 

Well, Spencer Peterson from Hidden In Plain View recorded the drums and to my mind he's an amazing performer, he also played on "Warpaint" by The Dangerous Summer. "Daybreak" was supposed to be another one I'd dive back in for today in the car, but I forgot my CD, so next time again.

 

Oh yeah! I'm actually a huge Thrice fan and I do remember that - people generally turned their backs to the new sound! But it wasn't a flop, cause there were much more people that really got into them WITH the new sound! I liked them before, but with "Vheissu" they really did something outstanding.

As for B&C that would be true, to an extent where actually the band didn't follow through, I think it was a make or break record. I love it, but it wasn't as succesful as it could have been. "Hyperview" on the other hand was a hit, I think, lots of bands started copying their sound, it's even well-known in my country over here.

 

My examples of risk taking albums I like include Ignorance is Bliss, In Reverie, Pinkerton, On a Wire, Coming Home, Pretty Odd, & Faso Latido

 

I was going to say Coming Home, Faso Latino, and Say Hello to Sunshine.

All stellar records in my opinion and (hot take) my favorite record by each artist.

 

Say Hello to Sunshine is terrible, I never really cared for A Static Lullaby and don't know what Bliss refers to, but In Reverie, Pinkerton, On A Wire, Coming Home, Pretty Odd are all good to great.

 

Spencer played on the 2nd version, I think. They recorded the record w Manny and Durijah and were I think mixing when those two dipped, then started over a few months later, and then Spencer quit before the album came out.

The whole process of getting that album out sounds laborious and tangled

 

Welcome the Night by the Ataris. I fucking love that album. I don’t think many people ever came around to it though.

 

Welcome The Night is a good example of a divisive album the audience hasn’t really come around to. It’s a good album too!