Saves the Day has always been one of those bands that had a few good albums in their beginning, but eventually dwindled off the musical spectrum as the years went on. Whether it be due to change of sound, change of band members, or change of record label, Saves the Day is not the same band they originally set out to be in 1994. I'm sure that the group was never meant to be held together by guitarist and vocalist Chris Conley alone, and it's unfortunate that it happened. By each different change in their collective career, the band has been forced to rely on Conley's musical ability to propel them forward and remain relevant. While Conley clearly has a lyrical writing ability, there comes a point where the well runs dry. Eventually, the music becomes diluted and starts to blend in with every other piece of music of that genre. This can be said about Saves the Day's past five albums including their newest record 9. This album sounds no different than Sound the Alarm (2006), Under the Boards (2007), Daybreak (2011), or Saves the Day (2013) and I can't say I'm surprised. Since their first big lineup change after their hit album Stay What You Are in 2001, the band hasn't been able to pull in the crowds that they used to. There are multiple reasons why Saves the Day should probably stop releasing music, however, I'm hopeful that they eventually create something that grabs the listeners attention again as they had in 1999 with their album Through Being Cool.
9 starts out with the track "Saves the Day" and Conley has tweeted that this is one of his favorite songs off this new project. This two-minute-long track has an upbeat rhythm and is relatively pop sounding. There isn't a lot about this song that sticks out to the listener, and it is a good example of the direction the album heads towards.
Following in the upbeat footsteps of the previous song, the next track "Suzuki" is the shortest song on the album. Its lyrics reflect Conley thinking about prior times he wrote music in previous Saves the Day albums. The song ends about as fast as it begins.
The next tracks "Side By Side", "Kerouac & Cassady", and "It's Such A Beautiful World" are all about plugging in your guitar and playing music with your friends. Other ideas of being on tour and recording music also make an appearance. These tracks show that Conley knows that the band has long since peaked and is reflecting on the good times they had together. "Side by side, April the 17th in 1997 we're rolling tape together tracking East Coast at Trax East." Each time I listened to this album I would usually skip "Side By Side" because I cringed each time Conley pronounced the words as "shide by shide."
The songs "Rose", "1997", and "Rendezvous" all share similar ideas and concepts with the last three tracks on the album. By using these repetitive themes and patterns, Conley further shows that he is dry of ideas and can only try to keep his head low and barrel through the rest of the album.
The final song "29" is 21 minutes long and is split into several different parts which are a relatively new step for Saves the Day to take. This track's different segments "Heartbeat", "So in Love", "432", "Tangerine", "Victorian & 21st", "Angel", and "New Jersey" recount heart-break and attempting to put yourself back together. I enjoy the different transitions of this song and how the listener can tell each segment apart, however, I wish the band had just made each part into its own track. By doing this, the album wouldn't appear as lackluster.
Overall this album feels like the only real song is "29" and even then it's a 21-minute long song. I can't imagine anyone wanting to sit through the entire track or ever making it their favorite Saves the Day song. If anything. this album feels like its solely the track "29" and a bunch of other B-sides and rarities. My favorite song ended up being "Rendezvous" because I felt that the instruments were hard hitting and it was a nice contrast to Conley's high-pitched voice. With the reminiscence of better days littered throughout this album, it can be predicted that this is one of the last pieces of music Saves the Day will create. This is a bittersweet prediction because although the band isn't impactful anymore, there was a time where their music inspired musicians to further their own musical careers. An example of this is how after seeing Saves the Day live, Max Bemis would eventually go on to create the emo band Say Anything and change the shape of emo culture. 9 received a 2 out of 10 and I would not buy this album on vinyl.
