Interview by Alana Rome
Tagged 2008 dreamworks records emo indie rock new jersey bands saves the day vagrant records
Sound the Alarm showcases Conley's candid discontent with himself and the world around him, and Under the Boards builds off the former by reflecting on feelings of insecurity and cynicism. The upcoming Daybreak, as the title suggests, reveals the silver lining of Conley's former world of darkness.
Over the past eleven years, over a dozen band members have joined and left Saves the Day, with vocalist/guitarist Chris Conley surviving through it all as the sole original member. These days, however, Conley seems to be at peace with his band's past, and finally, his own.
"We have no ambition to conquer the world; we just want to keep making music for as long as we can," says Conley, with regards to himself and the rest of the current lineup, which also consists of guitarist David Soloway, bassist Manuel Carrero, and drummer Durijah Lang.
The fact that Saves the Day has lasted more than a decade in the music business proves to be quite a feat, especially since the inception of websites like MySpace. But interestingly enough, the technological age has not slowed down Saves the Day, who have dropped a total of six LPs since 1998. Their most recent album,
Under the Boards, came out in October 2007. Still, the band already has plans to release their next album,
Daybreak, by Christmas 2008.
Daybreak signifies the last of a trilogy that began with 2006's
Sound the Alarm.
Sound the Alarm showcases Conley's candid discontent with himself and the world around him, and
Under the Boards builds off the former by reflecting on feelings of insecurity and cynicism. The upcoming
Daybreak, as the title suggests, reveals the silver lining of Conley's former world of darkness.
"[
Daybreak] is going to be pretty different," Conley reveals. "The first two albums are dealing with such painful subject matter -- the darkest hours just before the dawn."
Conley, not a stranger to opening up to fans and the press, bears his soul and explains his source of inspiration for the albums.
"Living in this world can be really confusing and painful, and nobody really teaches you how to meet the challenges in life. I wound up having a tremendous amount of self-loathing and self-esteem problems. I was convinced I wasn't all that worthy of this gift of life," he recalls. "When I went to therapy and started to learn about my internal turmoil and where it came from, it [became] really clear to me that this is a direct result of living in this conceited world. I wound up nearly destroying a lot of relationships by being unaware of myself and my actions. Once I could see clearly why I was what I was, the acceptance was just there for me. The next record is just about putting the pieces back together after getting my head out of the sand."
While content with the knowledge he has now, Conley's self-destructive behavior did almost break up the band. "They didn't want to deal with the psychodrama that was going on in my head," Conley explains. "They just said, ‘We don't want to do this anymore, unless you get some help or at least seek help.'"
Another close call came in 2003 when the band, then on Dreamworks Records, dropped
In Reverie. Although highly anticipated,
In Reverie disappointed not only fans, but record executives at Interscope, which had just recently purchased Dreamworks.
"It lacked the sort of tension that
Stay What You Are had.
In Reverie was beautiful and dreamy, so I can see why people didn't like it. But still, I think it's one of the best records we've ever done; after
Under the Boards, I think it's our best record."
Sporting a more positive attitude, the band has bounced back from Conley's mental battles and their severed Interscope contract, which was due to
In Reverie's poor sales performance. "[To have a little bit of a career setback] was the best that ever could've happened to us... By surviving it, we know a little more that this is a temporary situation."
Since
In Reverie, the band has found a new appreciation for what Conley calls "phase two" of the band's musical run -- Conley & Co. just wrapped up the Bamboozle Roadshow, as well as Bamboozle's weekend at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in New Jersey. For the Roadshow, the band compiled a 70-song playlist to make each show of the tour different from the last.
"I had to relearn a bunch of stuff," Conley admits. In fact, he had to find some of his own songs on iTunes because he didn't have a copy. "Relearning [those songs] was really funny. Sometimes I would go, ‘Why did I say that?' When listening to the whole body of work, it all made perfect sense to me how we got from one album to the next. I wound up being really proud of the music."
Along with
Daybreak, Conley and Soloway teamed up in January to record an album with Say Anything's vocalist/guitarist Max Bemis and drummer Coby Linder. The album doesn't have a name yet, but fans of both bands should expect the album to be released some time this year.
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