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In Defense of the Genre

From Wikipedia - Reading time: 12 min
In Defense of The Genre
Studio album by
Say Anything
ReleasedOctober 23, 2007
Recorded2007
StudioElectric Lady, New York; Seagrass, California
Genre
Length89:21
LabelJ
ProducerBrad Wood
Say Anything chronology
...Is a Real Boy
(2004) 		In Defense of The Genre
(2007) 		Say Anything
(2009)
Singles from In Defense of the Genre
  1. "Baby Girl, I'm a Blur"
    Released: October 2, 2007
  2. "Shiksa (Girlfriend)"
    Released: 2008
  3. "Skinny, Mean Man"
    Released: 2008
  4. "Spores"
    Released: 2008

In Defense of The Genre is the third studio album by American rock band Say Anything. The album artwork was provided by Jeff Smith, an artist primarily known for his work on the Bone comic series.

Background and production

[edit]

Writing and plans for In Defense of the Genre began in March 2006 during Say Anything's extensive touring and promotion for the reissue of their previous effort, …Is a Real Boy. In October and November 2006, they embarked on a headlining US tour, with support from MewithoutYou and Piebald, which led into a short UK tour with New Found Glory that lasted until December 2006.[1][2] Recording was held at Electric Lady Studios in New York City, and at Seagrass Studios in Valley Village, California, with producer and engineer Brad Wood, between January and March 2007.[3][4] Wood was assisted by Noah Goldstein at Electric Lady; additional recordings were made by Andy Jackson and Ross Petersen. Wood mixed the recordings, before the album was mastered by Emily Lazar at The Lodge in New York City, with assistance from Joe LaPorta, in March 2007.[3][5] Despite this, the band were still recording into June 2007, by which point they were only two thirds of the way finished.[6]

Composition

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Before the album was released, Bemis said it would deal with the "struggles with mental health offset by finding love for the first time".[7] Max Bemis described in an interview that the record is more focused on "observations of other people", unlike ...Is a Real Boy's lyrical content revolving solely on Bemis and his problems.[8] The record "picks up in my life where [...Is a Real Boy] left off because it is very autobiographical, even more so than the last record. Musically, it's different, more mature and somewhat more cohesive and poppy, but darker in a whole different way."[9]

It's the story of being alone and losing my mind and then overcoming that event by learning to trust and let go of that anger and fall in love for the first time. It's also about losing that love and the confusion that entails after, and the nature of first love; discovering what you really want whether it be to give yourself totally to someone or explore the endless abyss and risk losing your mind again and that love.

— Bemis, on the concept of In Defense of the Genre

The album features 23 individual guest vocalists and musicians, including Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance, Pete Yorn, Anna Waronker, Adam Lazzara of Taking Back Sunday, Aaron Gillespie of Underoath and The Almost, Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio, and Hayley Williams of Paramore. Additional instrumentation was handled by DJ Swamp and Casey Prestwood, who contributed on turntable and pedal steel guitar, respectively.[10] The December issue of Alternative Press reported that Jesse Lacey of Brand New chose not to collaborate. In December 2007, Absolutepunk.net made a three-part video series showing an in-depth look at the recording of In Defense of the Genre.[11][12][13]

Release

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In April and May 2007, Say Anything went on a co-headlining US tour with Saves the Day; the Almost, John Ralston, the Dear Hunter, and Manchester Orchestra supported on various dates.[14] During the trek, the band appeared at The Bamboozle festival.[15] In June, they appeared on Last Call with Carson Daly.[16] On September 11, 2007, In Defense of the Genre was announced for release the following month.[17] On September 18, 2007, the album's track listing and artwork were posted online.[18] Until the album's release, "Skinny, Mean Man", "Shiksa", "People Like You Are Why People Like Me Exist", "Spores", and "Baby Girl, I'm a Blur" were posted on the band's Myspace and PureVolume profiles.[19]

In Defense of the Genre was released on October 23 through J Records as a double disc album.[20] In October and November, the group co-headlined the Myspace Music Tour with Hellogoodbye. They were supported by Polysics[21] and Young Love.[22] "Baby Girl, I'm a Blur" was released to radio on November 6.[23] They ended the year with a tour of the United Kingdom in November and December 2007 with Hellogoodbye, Sherwood, and Go:Audio.[24][25]

On January 29, 2008, the band performed on Last Call with Carson Daly.[26] In February 2008, the band supported Thrice on their headlining tour of Canada and a few Midwest US shows.[27][28] In March and April 2008, the band went on a headlining tour of the US with Manchester Orchestra, Biffy Clyro and Weatherbox as supporting acts.[29] On April 10, a music video was released for "Shiksa (Girlfriend)".[30] Between June and August, the band performed on the 2008 edition of Warped Tour.[31] In February and March 2009, the band toured Australia as part of the Soundwave festival.[32]

Reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79%
Review scores
SourceRating
AbsolutePunk.net(96%) link
Allmusic link
Alternative Press link
The A.V. Club(B+) link
Blender link
Entertainment Weekly(A-) link
Kerrang!
Spin link[permanent dead link‍]
Sputnikmusic link
Rolling Stone link

In Defense of the Genre was well received by most critics, averaging a 79% on Metacritic.[33] Entertainment Weekly gave the album an A-, noting that the album's "sonic twists almost always work". Alternative Press gave the album a 4.5/5 and stated that Max Bemis created an album musicians "more than twice his age could only hope to create." Blender, in a 4/5 review, called it a "mess" but an "exhilarating one."[34][35][36]

In more mixed reviews, PopMatters noted that the wide variety of styles was a "gift and curse at the same time". Rolling Stone said "When Bemis is on... his songs are tuneful and invigorating."[37][38][39]

It debuted at number 27 on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 25,000 copies in its first week.[40]

Track listing

[edit]

All music by Max Bemis, Jacob Linder and Alexander Kent. All lyrics by Bemis.[3]

Disc one
No.TitleGuest vocalist(s)Length
1."Skinny, Mean Man"Pete Yorn3:33
2."No Soul" (contains a portion of the composition "Juicy Fruit", originally written by James Mtume; features DJ Swamp on turntables)Anna Waronker3:36
3."That Is Why" 4:13
4."Surgically Removing the Tracking Device"Adam Lazzara, Fred Mascherino2:30
5."This Is Fucking Ecstasy"Anthony Raneri2:39
6."The Church Channel"Hayley Williams3:04
7."Shiksa (Girlfriend)"Caithlin De Marrais3:38
8."Baby Girl, I'm a Blur" 4:19
9."Retarded in Love" (features Casey Prestwood on pedal steel guitar)Chris Carrabba, Michael Auerbach3:06
10."People Like You Are Why People Like Me Exist"Trever Keith3:28
11."Died a Jew" 2:29
12."An Insult to the Dead" (Additional arrangement by Joshua Sultan) 4:09
13."Sorry, Dudes. My Bad."Chris Conley2:43
Disc two
No.TitleGuest vocalist(s)Length
1."Spay Me" 3:13
2."In Defense of the Genre"Gerard Way4:02
3."The Truth Is, You Should Lie with Me"Joshua Sultan2:31
4."The Word You Wield" 3:50
5."Vexed" 2:39
6."About Falling"Matt Skiba, Laura Kirsch4:13
7."You're the Wanker, If Anyone Is"Jordan Pundik, Chad Gilbert, Aaron Gillespie3:22
8."Spores" 2:49
9."We Killed It"Andy Jackson1:53
10."Have at Thee!" 3:03
11."Hangover Song"Anthony Green0:58
12."Goodbye Young Tutor, You've Now Outgrown Me" 4:20
13."I Used to Have a Heart" 4:17
14."Plea"Hayley Williams and Kenny Vasoli4:31

Personnel

[edit]

Personnel per booklet.[3]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Reinecker, Meg (June 28, 2006). "New Found Glory / Say Anything". Punknews.org. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  2. ^ Paul, Aubin (July 28, 2006). "Say Anything / mewithoutYou / Piebald". Punknews.org. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d In Defense of the Genre (booklet). Say Anything. Hassle/J/Doghouse Records. 2007. HOFF047CD.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  4. ^ Reinecker, Meg (January 5, 2007). "Say Anything head into the studio this month". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  5. ^ Tate, Jason (March 9, 2007). "Say Anything Finish new Album". AbsolutePunk. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  6. ^ Reinecker, Meg (June 15, 2007). "Say Anything post recording update". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
  7. ^ Reinecker, Meg (January 17, 2007). "Say Anything discuss next single, future tour, new album". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  8. ^ "Say Anything Eyes Early 2007 For New CD". Billboard.
  9. ^ "Interview: Say Anything (Max Bemis) - 06.19.07". AbsolutePunk.net.
  10. ^ "Rock Veterans Guest On New Say Anything Album". Billboard.
  11. ^ "ABSOLUTExclusive: Say Anything Video Series (Part 1 Of 3)". AbsolutePunk.net.
  12. ^ "ABSOLUTExclusive: Say Anything Video Series (Part 2 Of 3)". AbsolutePunk.net.
  13. ^ "ABSOLUTExclusive: Say Anything Video Series (Part 3 Of 3)". AbsolutePunk.net.
  14. ^ Reinecker, Meg (February 1, 2007). "Saves the Day / Say Anything". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
  15. ^ Paul, Aubin (February 2, 2007). "More additions to Bamboozle". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
  16. ^ Reinecker, Meg (June 4, 2007). "Bands on TV: Week of 06/04/07". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
  17. ^ Paul, Aubin (September 11, 2007). "Say Anything announce album details". Punknews.org. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  18. ^ Paul, Aubin (September 18, 2007). "Say Anything's 'In Defense' to include My Chemical Romance, Alkaline Trio, Saves The Day guests". Punknews.org. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  19. ^ Song streams:
  20. ^ "Say Anything to Release Full-Length this October". AbsolutePunk.net.
  21. ^ "Hellogoodbye and Say Anything to co-headline MySpace tour". Alternative Press. Alternative Press Magazine, Inc. August 29, 2007. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  22. ^ "Young Love added to MySpace tour; date-by-date breakdown". Alternative Press. Alternative Press Magazine, Inc. September 11, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2017.
  23. ^ "AllAccess.com Alternative eWeekly". AllAccess. October 30, 2007. Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  24. ^ Paul, Aubin (October 9, 2007). "Say Anything (USA, UK)". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  25. ^ Paul, Aubin (October 24, 2007). "Say Anything / Hellogoodbye / Sherwood / Go Audio (UK)". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
  26. ^ Reinecker, Meg (January 28, 2008). "Bands on TV: Week of 01 / 28 / 08". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  27. ^ Paul, Aubin (December 12, 2007). "Thrice / Say Anything / Attack In Black (Canada)". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  28. ^ Paul, Aubin (January 28, 2008). "Thrice / Say Anything / Attack in Black". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  29. ^ Paul, Aubin (January 14, 2008). "Say Anything / Manchester Orchestra / Weatherbox". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  30. ^ Paul, Aubin (April 10, 2008). "Say Anything: 'Shiksa'". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 14, 2022.
  31. ^ "Venues for Warped Tour 2008 revealed". Alternative Press. Alternative Press Magazine, Inc. March 12, 2008. Archived from the original on July 28, 2017. Retrieved July 9, 2017.
  32. ^ Hutton, Sarah (September 23, 2008). "Soundwave Line-up 2009". FasterLouder. Junkee Media. Archived from the original on July 30, 2017. Retrieved July 13, 2017.
  33. ^ Say Anything: In Defense Of The Genre (2007): Reviews
  34. ^ "Music Review: In Defense of the Genre, by Say Anything". Entertainment Weekly. October 19, 2007. Archived from the original on October 21, 2007. Retrieved October 19, 2007.
  35. ^ [Dec 2007 p. 189 Say Anything: In Defense Of The Genre (2007): Reviews]
  36. ^ Say Anything: In Defense Of The Genre (2007): Reviews Archived 2009-03-12 at the Wayback Machine
  37. ^ Say Anything: In Defense Of The Genre (2007): Reviews
  38. ^ Say Anything: In Defense Of The Genre (2007): Reviews
  39. ^ Say Anything: In Defense Of The Genre (2007): Reviews
  40. ^ "Underwood Leads Three Country Debuts Onto Chart". Katie Hasty.
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