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Say Anything - In Defense Of The Genre
Album Details
- Artist: Say Anything
- Album: In Defense Of The Genre
- Label: RCA
- Year of Release: 2007
- ME Rating:
- Reviewed by: Daniel Thompson on 2007-10-28
- Viewed: 3119 times
Call me biased but Say Anything’s newest album, In Defense of The Genre, is the best album of 2007 so far. I must admit that there were mixed feelings, wondering if Say Anything would be able to make an album as great as their debut album, …Is A Real Boy. Twenty-Seven tracks of glorious Say Anything beauty. In Defense of The Genre was expected by many to be good, but no one could really predict how good the album would be. Needless to say, there was a huge commotion over the upcoming album. Just to tease everyone, Say Anything started to post songs on their purevolume and myspace pages. Each song that became available to the public showed the world that Say Anything might have taken their music in maybe a faster paced more modern type of rock. But if you’ve bought the album, then you know that there is nothing quite modern about it. There is a cornucopia of guest artists throughout the album. Famous names such as Anthony Green(Circa Survive), Haylie Williams(Paramore), Adam Lazarra(Taking Back Sunday), Gerard Way(My Chemical Romance), and Aaron Gillespie(Underoath, The Almost).
In Defense of The Genre: Disc 1
Skinny, Mean Men is a good opener to the album. In the beginning, the song sounds more of a darker style, and everything flows together so well. As soon as the song reaches the chorus, the tempo immediately picks up. It’s always been something that I have admired from Say Anything, the ability to change the tempo of their songs right while they are in the middle of playing. No Soul has probably the one of the best sounding hooks I have heard in a long time. They utilize the keyboard perfectly while Max Bemis sings “This song belongs to you, and all your crew.” While it might not sound like anything right now, once you hear the music behind it and how well Max Bemis sings it… You’ll understand perfectly.
That Is Why has a particularly catchy upbeat sort of tempo to it which you could snap your fingers to. Yes, snapping your fingers to a Say Anything song. Max Bemis sings with the style like a crooner, which is surprisingly good. He has the perfect balance of when to heighten his voice, and when to keep the volume on a steady level. I love the way that Surgically Removing The Tracking Device sounds. The screaming is properly placed, right before the introduction to the chorus. Adam Lazarra and Max Bemis can harmonize together quite well.
Church Channel is another one of the songs which changes tempo so quickly that you’re not quite sure what has just happened. Haylie William’s guest vocals in this song are surprising. They aren’t amazing as they normally would be, but she sings very low which is the surprising part. Now, onto the song that has been stuck in my head since the day I have heard it, Shiksa (Girlfriend). The song is just so damn catchy. The chorus is something I could imagine singing out if I were to attend a Say Anything concert. “Girl friend now. I have a girlfriend now. No way no how. How’d I get a girlfriend now!?” Shiksa is probably on the more beautiful and catchy side of the songs from this album.
Baby Girl, I’m A Blur would make for a great first single from Say Anything. The song is one that people would be able to dance to and it has a lot of electronic beats backing it which make it easier to move to. It’s a good song overall, and contains great lyrics. I wouldn’t say that Retarded In Love is one of my favorite songs on this album, but then again, I don’t have anything against it. It is a beautiful song and it well put together, but the slow verses bore me just a bit.
People Like You Are Why People Like Me Exist, my favorite part of this song is during the breakdown. I honestly believe that Max Bemis has the voice of a God and could do anything that he wanted to pursue. Even though the song is on the short side, Died A Jew is a good song as well. It discusses Jesus dying a Jew, along with piercings and calling them punk rock. But really, it talks about a lot of different things; it’s just a matter of reading between the lines.
In Defense of The Genre: Disc 2
It’s so funny, because the opening track for the second disc is the complete opposite than the opening track for the first disc. In Defense of The Genre, the song not the album, is a good song with a great chorus to it. Next to Shiksa (Girfriend), The Truth Is You Should Lie With Me is one of the catchier songs on disc two. The lyrics can easily get stuck in your head, which will pester you later on, trust me.
The Word You Wield is an awkward sounding sound. It just has an strange tone to it, and it doesn’t get normal anywhere in the song. Vexed is a little slower, but it sounds okay. No, it sounds better than just okay, it sounds perfect. The type of slow song you would expect to hear from a band like Say Anything. It fits them so well, and it’s addicting to listen to.
So far, when you hit about the mid-section of the album, you realize that a lot of the songs from the second disc could be songs you would hear on the radio. And contrary to belief, these ones seem to have been toned down a bit to fit modern day standards. We Killed It is definitely a song that sticks out to me not only because of its fast pace, but because it has a very hard sound after the chorus. I loved listening to it because it actually went along with the music.
Plea is the last song on the album, and I think people will be pleasantly surprised when they get to hear this album closer. It pulls everything together for just one last song, and leaves you with a happy feeling. Say Anything did a great job making this album, and the wait was definitely worth it. They cleared many of people of their expectations and more. I suggest anyone and everyone pick up this album
In Defense of The Genre: Disc 1
Skinny, Mean Men is a good opener to the album. In the beginning, the song sounds more of a darker style, and everything flows together so well. As soon as the song reaches the chorus, the tempo immediately picks up. It’s always been something that I have admired from Say Anything, the ability to change the tempo of their songs right while they are in the middle of playing. No Soul has probably the one of the best sounding hooks I have heard in a long time. They utilize the keyboard perfectly while Max Bemis sings “This song belongs to you, and all your crew.” While it might not sound like anything right now, once you hear the music behind it and how well Max Bemis sings it… You’ll understand perfectly.
That Is Why has a particularly catchy upbeat sort of tempo to it which you could snap your fingers to. Yes, snapping your fingers to a Say Anything song. Max Bemis sings with the style like a crooner, which is surprisingly good. He has the perfect balance of when to heighten his voice, and when to keep the volume on a steady level. I love the way that Surgically Removing The Tracking Device sounds. The screaming is properly placed, right before the introduction to the chorus. Adam Lazarra and Max Bemis can harmonize together quite well.
Church Channel is another one of the songs which changes tempo so quickly that you’re not quite sure what has just happened. Haylie William’s guest vocals in this song are surprising. They aren’t amazing as they normally would be, but she sings very low which is the surprising part. Now, onto the song that has been stuck in my head since the day I have heard it, Shiksa (Girlfriend). The song is just so damn catchy. The chorus is something I could imagine singing out if I were to attend a Say Anything concert. “Girl friend now. I have a girlfriend now. No way no how. How’d I get a girlfriend now!?” Shiksa is probably on the more beautiful and catchy side of the songs from this album.
Baby Girl, I’m A Blur would make for a great first single from Say Anything. The song is one that people would be able to dance to and it has a lot of electronic beats backing it which make it easier to move to. It’s a good song overall, and contains great lyrics. I wouldn’t say that Retarded In Love is one of my favorite songs on this album, but then again, I don’t have anything against it. It is a beautiful song and it well put together, but the slow verses bore me just a bit.
People Like You Are Why People Like Me Exist, my favorite part of this song is during the breakdown. I honestly believe that Max Bemis has the voice of a God and could do anything that he wanted to pursue. Even though the song is on the short side, Died A Jew is a good song as well. It discusses Jesus dying a Jew, along with piercings and calling them punk rock. But really, it talks about a lot of different things; it’s just a matter of reading between the lines.
In Defense of The Genre: Disc 2
It’s so funny, because the opening track for the second disc is the complete opposite than the opening track for the first disc. In Defense of The Genre, the song not the album, is a good song with a great chorus to it. Next to Shiksa (Girfriend), The Truth Is You Should Lie With Me is one of the catchier songs on disc two. The lyrics can easily get stuck in your head, which will pester you later on, trust me.
The Word You Wield is an awkward sounding sound. It just has an strange tone to it, and it doesn’t get normal anywhere in the song. Vexed is a little slower, but it sounds okay. No, it sounds better than just okay, it sounds perfect. The type of slow song you would expect to hear from a band like Say Anything. It fits them so well, and it’s addicting to listen to.
So far, when you hit about the mid-section of the album, you realize that a lot of the songs from the second disc could be songs you would hear on the radio. And contrary to belief, these ones seem to have been toned down a bit to fit modern day standards. We Killed It is definitely a song that sticks out to me not only because of its fast pace, but because it has a very hard sound after the chorus. I loved listening to it because it actually went along with the music.
Plea is the last song on the album, and I think people will be pleasantly surprised when they get to hear this album closer. It pulls everything together for just one last song, and leaves you with a happy feeling. Say Anything did a great job making this album, and the wait was definitely worth it. They cleared many of people of their expectations and more. I suggest anyone and everyone pick up this album
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on 2008-02-22 dscanland Said:
That's my point exactly! In today's ADD generation does anyone have the patience to get through all of In Defense Of The Genre in one go?
Rating: 7/10
on 2008-02-21 digitalbath Said:
Honestly, I don't know if I like any songs other than Skinny Mean Man because I've never had the patience to give the album a full, devoted listen.
Not Rated
Review:
on 2008-02-21 dscanland Said:
Here's my comments/review of the album. I thought In Defense Of The Genre was great. I honestly do. The pop sensibilities that they portray on all of the songs is clever. The lyrics are great and different than most other pop/rock/emo stuff out there. It very listenable. My complaint: It's just too damn long. There are reasons for this. First off I got tired of the pop by the time I get through 1 and half hours of In Defense of the Genre. I guess if you took it one disc at a time you might be alright but who listens to "discs" anymore. Second, I think if Say Anything edited this down to under an hour they would have rocketed into stardom. They were poised to do so after the brilliant Is A Real Boy and I think that might have backfired with the lengthy follow-up. Overall though, there is some great material here and if you take it in 20-30 minute doses then it goes down just great. I couldn't even pick a favorite because they all kind of blend together in the end.
Rating: 7/10
