Say Anything Band • Page 67

Yep, exactly this. Or you take the best half of each album, and make a single album... would be great

 

God, I feel liked I'd be hung for my SA ranking. (I'd do the Saves + Say Anything rankings... but I feel like I'd have an existential crisis trying to rate them together. Love both bands a lot).

Oliver Appropriate=In Defense > Anarchy, My Dear > Hebrews > Self-Titled > ...Is a Real Boy > I Don't Think it is > Baseball

 

that sure is a ranking

 

Is A Real Boy and I Don’t Think It Is are the only two I ever go back to haha.

 

Wat

 

I was in the camp that hated IDTII when it came out, but now despite its place on my ranking, I think it's heavily underrated. There are some odd lyrical choices, but damn is it some of the weirdest music Max has ever made. I love it. It (and Saves the Day's Sound the Alarm since we were on the topic) are my two goto albums when I'm in a pissy mood.

 

I listen to "So Numb" a lot. Such a cool song. I love the lofi dirtiness of that album a lot. It kind of inspired the sound for my band Frick. actually. I love that kind of shit. Same with the latest Two Tongues album.

 

For me, it’s hard to rank both bands albums but I’ll do this:

Top Tier (both StD and SA no order)
- ST (Say Anything)
- IARB
- SWYA
- IR
- 9
- Saves Trilogy

Mid Tier:
- ST (saves)
- TBC
- CSD
- Oliver
- In Defense


Low Tier:
- IDTIS
- Hebrews
- Anarchy

 

I don't think Saves the Day has a bad album, per say, but I also don't listen to them nearly as often. If I do, it's almost always In Reverie, Stay What You Are, or Daybreak.

 

Two Tongues Two is so damn good. Also incredibly underrated. Love how on U.S you hear Chris yell at Max to wake up because he fell asleep at the mic.

 

Rank time?? Okay!

Real Boy > Defense > I Don’t Think It Is > S/T > Hebrews > Anarchy > Oliver


It would be pretty hard for me to rank STD but I know I would rank their s/t and 9 at the bottom of the list.

 

Think I listened to Hebrews twice, half of IDTII and the first song on Oliver. Just progressively stopped enjoying Max. As far as IDTII, just can't tolerate music sounding that poor intentionally. Anarchy is fine I'd say and then it's just off the proverbial cliff for me.

 

Hebrews is my second favorite SA album. I will always champion it.

 

Hebrews really is so amazing. Such a ride of an album. It’s for sure top 3 for me. The features on it might even be better than In Defense

 

I would like to revisit IDTII someday. Hopefully I’ll have a new view of it. Oliver I still think was a solid final album, while very misguided concept-wise.

 

Hebrews was both ballsy, melodic and had a lot of meaning to it that I related to. I didn't hate Oliver, I just never went back to it or related to it, I kinda wish Max never explained it so I'd come up with my own interpretation that certainly wouldn't have landed there, and I hated IDTII. I really question anyone who likes it objectively as to whether they just like it cause it's Max. I don't hear it as listenable.

I think IARB, IDOTG, Anarchy and Self-titled all were kind of natural trajectory. Anarchy had weak spots but I got plenty of play from all of them. At this point, they were far above and beyond my favorite band. Post-Hebrews, Max went from my musician-spirit-animal to someone I kind of just watch from afar and be like, man forget music I hope he's okay.

I still follow these silly conversations because they're the only band I've ever felt a personal connection to even though it's pretty damped, would just love to feel that way again.

Fun but silly to do these best of runs with a band like Say Anything. The sounds on their albums are pretty diverse and it's natural that people partial to different scenes have different favs.

And saying that, if you're not putting IARB first then head to a ENT.

 

I’ve considered visiting Max’s hospital in Texas... but that’s for unrelated reasons. I just don’t connect with IARB the same way I do later albums.

 

I was more interested in hanging out with the rapper in the Lexus. But then he put on that red hat and I was like well screw that.

 

I feel like there's always been a good bit of negativity, so, self-aware that no one will give a shit, I thought I'd list a song from each album (post-Baseball, I haven't listened to that one enough) and why it means a lot to me. There's just a lot of poor views of post-ST Say Anything, so I thought I'd give the context of each album having value, even if not for you.

Admit It!! - When I was in high school I was bullied and excluded a lot. I was a weird undiagnosed bipolar kid with shakey beliefs in a church group. The verses felt almost like digs at the behaviors of those people (in spirit, not exact action), and the self-deprecating verse felt like something I was heading for. But the chorus "I'm proud of my life, and the things that I have done" helped me put my life in a perspective that wasn't totally apocalyptic.

The Church Channel: This one just connected with my poor mental health. I felt I belonged in a mental hospital, and that I was making a lot of bad decisions that were making health worse, but the part with Hayley Williams ending with "trust me those days won't be mourned" made me feel hopeful that things wouldn't stay the way there were and that I would improve.

Death for my Birthday: This is probably a weird pick, but I've been suicidal most of my life and this song just reminds me that I shouldn't waste my life away wanting to die only to one day realize I did nothing I wanted to. Makes me feel like it's worth fighting to not want to die until the day it actually happens (that sentence is weird, I hope people can actually translate what I mean. haha).

Sheep: I see this song get a lot of hate, but it has been there through every breakup I've had in my life. Romantic, platonic, religious. Singing "it's my life and I'll live it without you, it's my song it was never about you at all" feels really cathartic after spending a period of time defining my life by these relationships. Helps me push towards rewriting the narrative I've been convincing myself was my life for years.

Six Six Six: This song really plays into my personal insecurities of being a bad person, like I am unlovable and that it should be that way. But it also provides catharsis. Reminds me I'm not alone in these feelings and (maybe weirdly) provides me with a drive to improve.

Rum: This song genuinely just makes me feel good. The chorus "I feel alive so if you don't die" gives me a feeling that life isn't so shit and the verse or bridge or whatever that starts with "I'm going to sing songs because I want to sing songs" reminds me that it shouldn't matter what other people think, I should just do what I love whether I'm supported or not. Namely, in making music.

Pink Snot: Okay, so I am a (recovering) alcoholic, but earlier this year I developed an issue with abusing prescription pills. It's weird to pick this song because I don't think it ever really says anything about like... it being bad or whatever. But it reminds me that I fucked up bad and I never want to do something like that again. I really connect to Oliver Appropriate due to the themes of addiction and abuse (which is why I rated it as tied with IDOTG as my favorite SA record.)

Anyways, this is a lot, I feel like few to none will actually read all of it. But there ya go. Every album has been important to me in some way, so I am personally happy Max never stopped making albums even when people started getting really negative about each release.

 

We like a lot of the same songs; Admit It, Rum and Pink Snot are some of his best songs period, along with Woe and Eloise

 

That's a real good post.

 

I liked the post Ben, and it's nice to actually just flat out talk the music. Yours was way more introspective but I'll dive in on the take.

Woe - "I can't get laid in this town without these pointy fucking shoes." I was smart enough to know how to get what I wanted but doing what everyone else wanted me to do yet I just had absolutely no interest in it. Looking back, I almost wish I was just a bit more conformist but that's who I was at the time. I knew I was weird. And I was preferred it.

The Church Channel: "I wake up in a room and realize I'm insane again..." This hasn't happened in awhile. But, way too many times in my life. Then the mania began.

Do Better: Just obsessive persistence. I've fucked up big, then I rise bigger. Both a need and a flaw in my life.

Overbiter: Something about this song made me believe love was going to be possible for me.

My greatest fear is a splendid thing - The concept of being old, and the problems of yours people use to think were interesting now are meaningless while at first disturbing is kind of comforting in the end.

 

Thank you! I figured no one would give a shit. The tl;dr thing and all. I Want to Know Your Plans and Overbiter both gave me that same feeling. We seem to have a similar take away from the Church Channel... Mania is a dick. I'm only 24, so I don't know if I'm allowed to connect with My Greatest Fear like that... yet. It'll catch up to me. Thank you for joining in. Makes me feel less like a dummy for my original post. Insecurity is also a dick.

 

I really liked reading them. I'd do my own if I didn't hate writing. I still really love so much of this band's music. Really hope he eventually makes another Say Anything record.

 

Today, like every 3 months or so, I return to Oliver Appropriate and I’m reminded how great it is. I contend it has some of Max’s best melodies. Part of me does wish it was electric with a full band though.