Sound the Alarm - Saves the Day

To offset the lovefest that this blog has become, I bring this mediocrity. Admittedly, it's high-end mediocrity at that.

I started off deciding against this album. I know Saves the Day well, and I'm well past the emo scene, given how it's sold out in the last 5 years. However, after a few listens to the album... I can't deny it. It might be my past affinity for the band playing tricks on my mind, but the music itself is solid for the genre and head and shoulders above contemporaries such as Fall Out Boy.

The guitar work is simple, but effective. The songwriting is whiny and overly graphic at times, but tolerable. The bass, however, is the shining star. While simple, like the guitar work, Manny Carrero gets a great growl out of his bass, especially on Shattered and Bones. The notes he's playing aren't amazing, but he knows his instrument and knows how to get just the right sound out of it. While powerful, it doesn't overpower other tracks and is used when and where it is most effective.

Chris Conley does a good job with the songwriting, as always. His lyrics are often unnecessarily gruesome in describing his whiny inner torment, but they end up at least marginally better than lyrics of other bands on the scene. The music itself is catchy emo/pop-punk. In the end, it in many ways sounds like a cross between whiny pop-emo and harder music like Green Day. So, marginally closer to punk than what you'll see playing on MTV2. Something I respect, since it shows that maybe, just maybe, their primary desire in making music isn't to sell out as quickly as possible.

Head For the Hills, the opener, sets the tone for an energetic album that doesn't pause for the first 8 tracks. With Don't Know Why, the album takes a slight turn and you see Saves the Day branching out a touch into something slower and a bit more melodic for the next 5 tracks, closing with Delusional and Hell is Here, which pick up the energy a bit before the end.

Compared to other works by Saves the Day, it doesn't compare to Through Being Cool, but beats the hell out of Stay What You Are, which I found to become annoying rather quickly. There isn't a great range in the album, but after the response to their last album, I can't blame them for sticking with what works. Overall, this is a solid album from one of the better emo bands out there. There aren't many to speak of, so finding one is nice. To see them not actively trying to whore themselves out to MTV is even better.

Rating: 2.5/5
Top Track: Shattered
Reason to Buy: You want good emo/punk minus the really poppy elements
Reasons Not to Buy this Album: You don't want to feel like an angsty high schooler all over again.