First Listen - Say Anything - In Defense Of The Genre

Driving up to work today I threw in Disc 1 of the new Say Anything album, In Defense Of The Genre. Before I put it on, part of me was looking forward to hearing it, and the other part of me almost had no desire. I feel like I'm just noth "there" anymore. When ...Is A Real Boy came out, i wasnt really "there" either, but I fell in love with the album. Now a little older, and even farther away from the young rock MTV scene, i wonder if Say Anything is even for me.

After hearing the entire album once all the way through, I am ready to offer an opinion. The songs are good. They're tight. Polished. But they're not cohesive. Its just a bunch of songs on 2 cds. 27 songs to be exact. I got lost in it all. I think both discs play like an individul album, but there was so much music to absorb that the disc kept playing and before I knew it, I was on track 8. Is it possible that nothing between 1 and 8 caught my attention?

The guest appearances frustrate me. What is this, Santana? Seriously. I want to hear the band. I like the sound the band makes. I don't recognize 99% of the people anyway, because there is really nothing distinct about their voices. And shouldnt that be the point of a guest vocalist? To hear the song and say "hey, thats _____" and be excited about it. Every 10 minutes on the album there is a nobody emo rocker singing the verse of a song. Why? Whats the point?

There were some positive notes. A few songs did stand out and were a good growth in the sound of the band. I think if the 27 songs had been cut down to 12, there would probably be a well crafted piece of work here. The lyrics meet up to the expectations that Max has created for himself, though some of it is pretty unusual. Screaming obsenities just for the sake of it. And at the same time, there are more religious lyrics on the album then most religious bands even care to sing.

I dont like the artwork, or the album title. The liner notes are packed with all the lyrics, but nothing more. I love getting the lyrics, but I like some interesting artwork too.

So, thats my first impression. I may prove to be wrong. I think I will probably end up picking the best songs out of the 27 and just making one highly enjoyable disc.

But if you want to re-live Alive With The Glory of Love or Admit It, i would just forget it.