Indie / Alternative Rock
About:
"With great power comes great responsibility." Surely a meaningful quote, but who can take credit for it? Thomas Jefferson? Sigmund Freud? Socrates? Nope. Spider-Man. It goes to show how something sort of profound can spring from an unlikely source. Any reluctant underachiever can make a difference: nerdy dude who gets bit by a mutant spider or awkward bipolar kid in a vaguely "indie" punk-pop band. That is the premise behind the band and the new self titled record Say Anything - we are in danger and any one of us has the power to save us. It's a fitting concept for a cult-favorite band who, on November 3rd, will release a definitive artistic statement aimed at the masses.
Like the origin of any unlikely hero, Say Anything was forged from conflict: a feisty young punk band from Hollywood formed during the birth of "hipster" elitism, always out of place. In that day any group of rich kids with a penchant for the Velvet Underground and enough five o'clock shadow could be paid millions of dollars to be walking billboards for "anti-culture" consumerism. Say Anything shunted pretension, choosing initially to play sincere and nervous rock music and opening locally for the touring bands they closely identified with (The Weakerthans, Rilo Kiley, The Promise Ring). A few years passed and songwriter Max Bemis continued to feel alienated from the collegiate "scene;" He witnessed young rebels devolve into the counter-culture clichés they sought to avoid in the first place, "reverse psychology" victims of homogenized humanity. By identifying this mass-marketed "hip” lie, Bemis found his "arch villain" and, imbued with purpose, Say Anything's music became a new monster - as theatrically pop-based as it was angular and dark. Influenced by bands like Fugazi, The Who, Botch and Smashing Pumpkins, Say Anything dually expressed its irreverence through sing along punk and almost awkwardly confessional Woody Allen-esque lyrics.
The band soon released their rock-musical debut Say Anything…Is a Real Boy on Doghouse Records, garnered a cult fan base, and then entered a partnership with RCA Music Group. They earned a niche of their own, more relatable than sometimes high fallutin' "indie rock" bands but more intelligent than the youth oriented "emo craze." A cathartic live show began to attract thousands of kids a night. Say Anything became unusually critically-lauded for such a pop-based "punk" band. Bemis's openness with his bipolar disorder increased awareness of the disease's affect on musicians and led to him creating a close, respectful relationship with Say Anything fans that has endured their success. Their sophomore double record In Defense of the Genre affirmed they weren't leaving fans behind despite the "hype machine" they'd been placed in. Say Anything's first two records went on to sell several hundred thousand copies and the band became an underground rock fixture rapidly leaking into the mainstream.
So now what of the good fight? Had their cause fallen by the wayside of the normal mechanizations of the music business? After his tumultuous early twenties, overcoming an abusive relationship and a struggle with mental illness, Bemis was finally able to clear his head. He even fell in love and got married. Informed by this spiritual awakening, he finally sat down to write a record that would encapsulate Say Anything while at the same time naturally appeal to a broader audience. Recorded early in 2009 by acclaimed producer Neil Avron (Everclear, Linkin Park, Weezer), Say Anything's self-titled record is almost undeniably the one they'll be known for, highly accessible but replete with dark, sardonic lyrics and musical twists.
It feels like the record the band has been destined to make: one that your Jonas Brother worshipping 12 year old sister and your quarter life crisis Arcade Fire fan big brother can both somehow enjoy. The record explodes with the gnarled, chunky chords of its fierce opener "Fed to Death," defining the band's crusade against both nihilism and fundamentalism. The Clash-meets-Queen single "Hate Everyone" cheekily captures the first stage of personal renewal: waking up on the wrong side of the bed. "Do Better" is an orchestral do-good-feel-good anthem for the mentally perverse. "Mara and Me" finds Bemis declaring to fight his alienated nature over a frenetic Mike Patton-eque musical landscape replete with mathcore flourishes, circus music and a "surf" breakdown. "Property" tells the story of the world's worst boyfriend, skewering modern gender politics and serving an evil 50's doo wop love song over a punk rock beat. "Crush'd" satirizes Justin Timberlake and Lil Wayne, while at the same time evoking a sweaty, Jewish Coldplay. The proverbial hooks keep coming all the way to an epic resolution, the "Hey-Jude" meets Minor Threat hymnal "Ahhhh....Men." The record tells YOUR story: it's both a strange romantic epic and a call to arms.
Like Spider-Man, Say Anything is a bunch of skinny, weird dudes who have been given a gift; the privilege to speak their minds in the venue of mass culture. They aren't the type of band to take that for granted. Making music, despite being a rather silly preposterous enterprise, CAN actually affect massive change. There are wrongs to fight against: society eating itself, the influence of a corporate controlling power, the death of TRUE morality or even one person feeling their will to live slip away. This album is a weapon for that fight and clearly Say Anything wants you enlisted, laughing like a lunatic and dancing all the way.
History :
Early years (2000–02)
Max Bemis attended Windward School along with Michael Levin and Evan Span. He also attended Camp Ramah in Ojai, California where he met drummer Coby Linder, who attendedShalhevet High School. Upset after a bad breakup, Bemis began writing songs; his first one was called "Sappy". In 2000, Bemis, Linder, Levin, Span, and Josh Eichenstein, a friend fromBeverly Hills High School, formed a band under the name Sayanything, in reference to the movie Say Anything.... Bemis, Linder, and Span recorded the band's first EP Junior Varsity. Span then left the band, and the three remaining members recorded their debut full-length album Baseball: An Album By Sayanything in 2001. Both albums were self-released with only a few hundred copies distributed. According to Bemis, the last time he played the songs from Baseball was during his high school days, but he has said that he "will play them again at some point in some capacity." On Sunday the 5th of July 2009, Max announced through his twitter page that he "felt thankful" to his fans and decided to make a video of him playing an unspecified song from Baseball and that the video would be up sometime during the coming week. The video was of Bemis playing the song "Colorblind" on an acoustic guitar. Say Anything has said they will be performing this song on their upcoming tour.
In 2002, Levin left the band, leaving only Linder and Bemis. Bemis enrolled at Sarah Lawrence College, seemingly putting the band on hiatus. However, Bemis devoted much time at the school to recording songs by himself on a four-track recorder in his dorm room. At this point Bemis made a creative shift towards darker material influenced as much by classic rock and traditional indie-rock as the punk rock that had, at this point, constituted Say Anything's sound. These songs would later become known as the Dormroom Demos. Although never officially released, the songs are easily available due to file sharing and online fan message boards.
Signing with Doghouse Records (2002–04)
Sometime around 2002, Sayanything added a space to their name to become Say Anything. In late 2002, Bemis and Linder recorded theMenorah\Majora EP and released the album online.[7] By this point, Say Anything's releases had generated "a major bidding war." Drive-Thru Records pursued the band and called Max Bemis "the next Bob Dylan." Brett Gurewitz of Epitaph Records recorded "A Boston Peace," one of the dorm-room demos, with the band. In early 2003, Say Anything signed with Doghouse Records stating sarcastically that that Doghouse "put out such obscure, borderline D.I.Y. records as The All-American Rejects."
After signing with the label, Bemis began writing songs for his band's Doghouse debut. With tremendous self-created pressure, he threw himself into pushing the sonic boundaries of the band and maturing their sound, incorporating elements of math-rock, indie-pop and theatrical pomp. He and Linder also started the search for a producer. The two met several producers but eventually decided on Tim O'Heir and Stephen Trask. Bemis struggled with different ideas for the record and decided the album should focus on "the artistic struggle, the fact that every creative person has this sick ambition to affect some sort of change in society with their art, to be more than just a guy in a band or a poet or a sculptor." Bemis originally intended the album to be a rock opera with a full script, narration, and a cast of characters. It was tentatively titled Zona! Zona! However, Bemis became overwhelmed by the entire process of writing and playing most of the instruments and had a breakdown.
"I literally lost my mind while we were recording," stated Bemis regarding the breakdown. The breakdown centered around a mockumentary discussed by Bemis and O'Heir. Bemis' condition led him to believe he was being secretly filmed for the mockumentary; the situation culminated in him walking the streets of Brooklyn thinking he was being filmed while encountering friends (who were actually strangers). After recovering, Bemis decided to focus solely on the music and dropped the idea of a script. Around July 2003, the band began recording ...Is a Real Boy, their first album with Doghouse Records. Bemis said the two people he wanted to "outdo with ...Is a Real Boy were Andy Warhol and Jesus." In addition to working with O'Heir and Trask, Say Anything worked with Forrest Kline (of power pop band Hellogoodbye) to record the For Sale... EP, released in 2004. The band also worked with ECA Records to record a promotional album that was never released.
...Is a Real Boy was released August 3, 2004. The album featured Linder on drums and Bemis on vocals, guitar, bass guitar, and keyboard. ...Is a Real Boy received positive reviews, including a 99% from AbsolutePunk.net and four and a half stars (out of five) from Allmusic. When the band began touring in support of ...Is a Real Boy, they picked up Dan DeLauro, Casper Adams, and Kevin Seaton.
Say Anything signed with J Records in 2005, owned by Sony BMG Music Entertainment, one of the "big four" record labels. When asked why he signed with a major label, Bemis stated, "We were looking to expand our fan base as well as have more money to tour comfortably. I also wanted enough money to work with an awesome producer for [In Defense of the Genre]." In June 2005, Say Anything was forced to cancel a six-week headlining tour with Circa Survive and Emanuel on the third day of the tour due to health problems with Bemis, including "full-on paranoid delusions" in Austin, Texas. At this point, Bemis' bipolar disorder and drug addictions were wreaking havoc on the band. Bassists DeLauro and Seaton had already parted ways with the band. Andy Jackson left in September after only a few months of touring with Say Anything. Adams, who was clashing personally with Bemis despite a close friendship, was fired after a show.
On October 3, 2005, Bemis had another breakdown; this time, it involved harassing children, spitting in food at an outdoor cafe, spending a "half-hour pouring a bowl of soup onto the floor, one spoonful at a time," engaging in a street fight and finally being admitted to a mental hospital by an off-duty policeman. This incident forced Say Anything to cancel another tour, this time with Bemis' personal idols Saves the Day, along withSenses Fail and The Early November. The band was replaced by Emanuel. After returning from his stay in the hospital, Bemis' mother and the remaining members of the band selected theMenninger clinic in Houston, Texas, to rehab Bemis. Eventually, Bemis approved of their decision, admitted himself to the Menninger clinic, and has reportedly not had a relapse since.
First headlining tours (2005–07)
Under J Records, Say Anything re-released ...Is a Real Boy with a bonus CD entitled ...Was a Real Boy on February 28, 2006 (although the album was originally slated for release on October 18, 2005 and later January 17, 2006). However, copies were leaked before the release by Tower Records and His Master's Voice, with some copies selling on eBay at inflated prices. According the album's liner notes, ...Was a Real Boy was originally intended as a charity album, but the band dropped the project. This charity project was to be called Vs. AIDSand was recorded in Kevin Seaton's garage. Bemis said that "it was J Records' idea to reissue ...Is a Real Boy. They believe it has a mainstream appeal that wasn't really reached when Doghouse released the record." Around this time, the band also released "Alive with the Glory of Love" as a single.
Alex Kent joined the band to play bass guitar after the band met him while touring with Lance's Hero. Jake and Jeff Turner joined to play guitar and help with backup vocals after Adams and Jackson left. Parker Case completed the sextet when he joined to play guitar and keyboard after his previous band JamisonParker broke up. At the time, JamisonParker and Say Anything shared the same manager, Randy Nichols; the band met Case while at a train station on the way to Nichols' wedding. Since then, the band's lineup has not changed.
In summer 2006, Say Anything toured with Dashboard Confessional; Ben Lee was with the tour in the US, while John Ralston joined the tour in Canada. The band was asked to be a part of the Warped Tour 2006, but instead opted for the Dashboard tour. Bemis later made statements implying he did not feel he was emotionally ready for a Warped Tour.
Say Anything completed one of their first headlining tours in fall 2006, when they toured with Piebald and mewithoutYou. Days Away, Brazil and Forgive Durden opened for the band on select dates. In February 2007, Say Anything performed on Last Call with Carson Daly. The band also released their second single, "Wow, I Can Get Sexual Too," which was from the...Was a Real Boy bonus disc. Also in that month, the band announced a co-headlining tour with Saves the Day and The Almost, John Ralston, The Dear Hunter, and Manchester Orchestra as openers on select dates. The band completed the tour successfully during April and May of that year. In August, Say Anything announced a co-headlining tour withHellogoodbye sponsored by MySpace. The tour took place during fall of the same year with shows in the US and Europe.
In Defense of the Genre (2007–08)
In the weeks before the release of their third album, Say Anything released several songs from the album on MySpace. They also announced pre-ordered copies could be ordered with a signed CD booklet. The band released their first single from the new album, "Baby Girl, I'm a Blur", on October 2, 2007. In Defense of the Genre was released on October 23, 2007. It was released in a dual-disc format complete with 27 songs and contained many guest vocals. When asked about the name of the record, Bemis said, "Whatever 'genre' (or music) one loves needs a defense, because half the world is too ignorant to really understand something before they dismiss it." Before recording the record, Bemis stated, "I hope that [In Defense] will be more inspiring and uplifting. I want [the record] to be The Joshua Tree with balls on laughing gas."
Andy Jackson, a former member of the band and close friend of Bemis, was responsible for recording many of the cameo appearances. He recorded some cameos while at the Warped Tour 2007 with Hot Rod Circuit and others in his home studio. Jackson recorded vocals from several musicians, such as Gerard Way, Adam Lazzara, Anthony Raneri, Anthony Green, Hayley Williams, Aaron Gillespie, Jordan Pundik, and Chad Gilbert. Chris Conley and several others also provided guest vocals. Alternative Press called the record "a truly magnificent sophomore effort" and gave it a 4.5/5, while Spin gave the album four stars and Corey Schmidt of PastePunk said, "There are a few really great songs here."
In January 2008, Say Anything announced a US headlining tour with Manchester Orchestra, Biffy Clyro and Weatherbox. The tour took place in March and April of that year. After finishing this tour, Say Anything announced a headlining tour in the UK that took place in June. The tour was in support of In Defense of the Genre, which was released in the UK on June 23, 2008.
Say Anything released the video for "Shiksa (Girlfriend)" on April 9, 2008. On April 25, Say Anything performed on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. During summer 2008, Say Anything joined the Warped Tour for the first time, appearing on all dates. On August 1, 2008, Say Anything announced the Max Bemis Song Shop, through which users could pay $150 for Max Bemis to write a song based on a short writing by the customer. However, by the end of the night, the item was no longer available with the following text displayed on the item listing: "We're sorry but Max can't write songs as fast as you are requesting them. As soon as he catches up we will start again. Thank you so much for believing in our crazy idea." The Song Shop has reopened a few times since its initial launch, and taken down after about a week each time. This aforementioned message has been displayed each time the Song Shop was discontinued.
Say Anything (2009)
In an online chat with fans on March 14, 2008, Max Bemis stated that the band has plans to record a new record called This Is Forever. He said it will be "about God and how we relate to Him." AbsolutePunk.net reported on August 1, 2008, that J Records "picked up the option for Say Anything's next release." On November 10, Bemis announced that the focus of the fourth album changed and the new record will be self-titled. He noted that the album, which will be released in 2009, will ask "what the point of all of it was."
Though Max has explained that he was very proud of In Defense of the Genre, he described it as being more of an "homage to sort of a lot of the bands that we liked and, like, a style that we respected." He then explained that the new album would be "more concise and would be a bit more original, I want to say, and sort of pop out like Is a Real Boy did." He also explained that this CD has both the catchiest and most mature songs they've ever recorded and called it a "step forward."
During a concert at the College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York on April 25, 2009, Max Bemis proclaimed to the crowd that the newest album titled "Say Anything" is complete, and will be released "early summer," after stating that he was married three weeks prior to the event on April 4, 2009.
According to Say Anything's In Studio website, on May 21, 2009, Max posted a blog stating "I just wanted to let you guys know we’re done recording our new record, entitled "Say Anything", and we’re moving into the mixing phase. It should be out this fall. This record is kind of a new start, or at least a new phase in the Say Anything story."
Max posted a blog on Myspace.com saying that the new album will be released October 13, 2009, and will be titled Say Anything. The self-titled album will be released by RCA Recordsand will have 13 tracks, including "Hate Everyone" , the album's first single. "Hate Everyone" was officially released on August 25, 2009, after WBRU FM in Providence, RI became the first radio station to debut the single on the 17th. Lead singer Max Bemis also premiered the song "Crush'd," performing the song acoustic in WBRU's studio. The corresponding video for Hate Everyone was released on MySpace Music on September 1, 2009. The new album's release date had been delayed by three weeks and was officially released on November 3, 2009, after being posted to the band's myspace page on October 28th.
Max also posted on twitter on 2/14/10 that the band plans to release "Do Better" as the next single off of the album.
Side projects (2008–present)
After recording In Defense of the Genre, Say Anything band members Max Bemis and Coby Linder worked with Saves the Day's Chris Conley and David Soloway on a side project namedTwo Tongues. The group features Bemis and Conley sharing lead vocals and guitar duties with Soloway on bass guitar and Linder on drums. Thirteen songs were recorded in Electric Ladybug Studio, Conley's home studio in Chico, California. Bemis, Conley, and Linder previously collaborated on a cover song of Bob Dylan's "The Man In Me" for the compilation album Paupers, Peasants, Princes & Kings: The Songs of Bob Dylan released by Doghouse Records in 2006. The group's self-titled debut was released on February 3, 2009.
Say Anything band members Jake and Jeff Turner self-released their six-track EP Some Day in May 2008 under the name XO. They recorded it with Matt Malpass in Atlanta in January 2008 at Monsters and Marigolds Studio. The album features both brothers on vocals, guitar, bass, and keyboard, with Jeff also playing drums. Around the same time, Parker Case embarked on a solo project named I and the Universe, while Alex Kent started a record label, Gnome Records and began work on his own solo effort under the name Alexander T. Kent.Alex also has a side project with members of Japandi and Witt called Qwermicide.
In 2008, Say Anything featured on the Punk Goes Crunk album covering Ol' Dirty Bastard's "Got Your Money".
In 2009, Max and his wife, Sherri DuPree (From the band Eisley) formed a small side project named "Perma" and were selling the demo during the 2009 tour.
Members :
Current Members :
Max Bemis : Lead Vocals, Guitar (2000-present)
Alex Kent : Bass (2004-present)
Jacob Turner : Guitar, Backing Vocals (2005-present)
Parker Case : Keyboards, Guitar, Backing Vocals (2005-present)
Jeff Turner : Guitar , Backing Vocals (2005-present)
Coby Linder : Drums, Backing Vocals (2000-present)
Maxwell Stewart : Light and Fog (2009-present)
Former Members :
Evan Span : Guitar (2000-2001)
Michael Levin : Bass (2000-2002)
Josh Eichestein (2000)
Austin Vines : Bass (2003-2004)
Kevin Seaton : Bass (2004-2005)
Casper Adam : Guitar (2004-2005)
