[Sean]

Say Anything has a new website and you can stream a NEW SONG on their website now. Its called "Wow I Can Be Sexual Too." Its definately different (as their Max has a tendency to change), but I like it. I'm not so sure about the lyrics though. Check it out for yourself...

www.sayanythingmusic.com


Also, apperently they will be re-releasing "...Is a Real Boy" in January with an EP attached to it called "...Was a Real Boy." The new song will appear on the EP. Appperently the EP was availible in some fashion previously under the name "Say Anything Versus AIDS." I think I like both titles myself.

Lastly, they've signed some sort of record with J Records. That means Say Anything is now labelmates with Santana, Alicia Keys, Maroon 5, Wyclef Jean and Whitney Houston. These are very interesting times for the Say Anything. ...and J Records has provided Max a cool new website.

[Skeeter]

Nifty new song. I like it a lot.

I'm seeing Say Anything with The Early November, Saves the Day, and Senses Fail on Nov 18th in Seattle at El Corazon. I'm ecstatic. I'll have to buy the re-release for someone and keep the EP for myself...

[bread man]

You could buy it for me.

[Skeeter]

Dang it all. According to the news update on the site from the 3rd, Say Anything won't be playing at the show I'm going to. Which is a crying shame, as they were the main reason I was going...

[Sean]

More fun stuff......

I re-checked Say Anything's Sound Click page and they added 11 more tracks to the site for download. 5 of them are additional demos. They they added a six song acoustic set which includes acoustic versions of Woe, The Futile, Yellow Cat, and Chia Like is. Fun stuff!!!

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page...m?bandID=88358


And after a bit of searching around a found a link to another one of the tracks from the upcoming "...was a Real Boy." This one is entitled "Its a Metaphor, Fool." It can be found here. I don't like this one as much.

http://radio.lagfx.net/uploads/Say_A...phore_Fool.mp3

[Sean]

Nothing too new to add. Say Anything have added "Wow, I Can Be Sexual Too" to both their myspace and their purevolume accounts. This way you don't have to have their website open to listen to the song....but you have to have one of two other sites open instead. Ehhh.


Anyway, here is the official annoucement "..was a real boy."

Originally Posted by Say Anything

The Re-Issue of "...Is a Real Boy" will be released on February 28th and will include 2 disks. The first CD will have the original CD, and the 2nd CD will have original demos as well as re-recordings of previous songs. Stay tuned for more information and suprises!

I have no idea why they're waiting. The material is already done. The packaging is done. They've even accidentally shipped units.... why make us wait? Must be some sort of marketing thingy. I guess I'm okay with that if it will help them gather a bigger fan base.

[Danny]

...Is a Real Boy is probably the best pop-punk album I've ever heard. I'm looking forward to the new releases.

I'm liking "Wow, I Can Be Sexual Too" a lot. Very different. I'm a little unsettled by the fact that I think I can hear some pitch correction on the vocals, though.

While this thread is still alive... am I misinterpreting, or were the lyrics on ...Is a Real Boy occasionally pretty misogynistic? I'm thinking of "The Writhing South" and "Slowly, Through a Vector" mainly...the latter of which I can't even stomach listening to because of the lyrics in the bridge. But beyond that, all of them that relate to women seem to portray them literally as nothing but sex objects. (Ironic, considering the lyrics I have in my signature right now...perhaps Molly Connolly really did leave a strong, sour taste in his mouth?) The new song on their site seems to display this attitude, as well...what's the deal?

[Sean]

Originally Posted by Danny

I'm liking "Wow, I Can Be Sexual Too" a lot. Very different. I'm a little unsettled by the fact that I think I can hear some pitch correction on the vocals, though.

I don't know specifically what you're refering to, but it sounds like there is an effect on all of the vocals that make them all sound very processed. Of course, I like that sort of thing, but I don't know what Danny has in mind.

Also, I'm not really sure exactly what the new recordings are. Most of them come from a demo they recorded called "Say Anything Versus AIDS." I don't know if they actually re-recorded these songs or just had them re-mixed and mastered. If all they did was re-mix and master demos, then the major label super-mixer man probably decided that everything had to be processed and compressed to death. In which case, yeah he would through an auto-tuner on there.

While this thread is still alive... am I misinterpreting, or were the lyrics on ...Is a Real Boy occasionally pretty misogynistic? I'm thinking of "The Writhing South" and "Slowly, Through a Vector" mainly...the latter of which I can't even stomach listening to because of the lyrics in the bridge. But beyond that, all of them that relate to women seem to portray them literally as nothing but sex objects. (Ironic, considering the lyrics I have in my signature right now...perhaps Molly Connolly really did leave a strong, sour taste in his mouth?) The new song on their site seems to display this attitude, as well...what's the deal?

Whats wrong with merely treating women like sex objects? ......WAIT!!! ....I mean, if you go to the official Say Anything message board on their website they can probably give you much better interpretations of the lyrics than anyone here. Some of those people are pretty nutty for the Max Bemis.

[Jeffrey]

Originally Posted by Danny

While this thread is still alive... am I misinterpreting, or were the lyrics on ...Is a Real Boy occasionally pretty misogynistic? I'm thinking of "The Writhing South" and "Slowly, Through a Vector" mainly...the latter of which I can't even stomach listening to because of the lyrics in the bridge. But beyond that, all of them that relate to women seem to portray them literally as nothing but sex objects. (Ironic, considering the lyrics I have in my signature right now...perhaps Molly Connolly really did leave a strong, sour taste in his mouth?) The new song on their site seems to display this attitude, as well...what's the deal?

I think you're reading too deeply. Does talking about girls having sex make one misogynistic? I'm not seeing the misogynistic slant in "The Writhing South." But I'll get to that.

I would say "risqué" instead of misogynistic. "Slowly, Through a Vector" is now one of my top ten favorite songs of all time, and I think there's more to the lyrics there than misogynism.

The lyrics to "Slowly, Through a Vector" are deliciously elusive. While most post-punk lyricists are writing like Palahniuk, Bemis is clearly Thomas Pynchon. Most post-punk lyricists are self-satisfied with appearing counter-cultural and deep. Bemis is more interesting in painting ****ed-up scenarios where he is a lone man of sanity jealous of the insanity around him.

First off, there's nothing in the lyrics of "Slowly, Through a Vector" that implies the protagonist's abused darling is a female. That must be your naturally- or culturally-ingrained heterosexual wiring (wink), or perhaps you're just looking at the context of the rest of the album. I like Bemis to be ruggedly heterosexual (as am I), but I'd be interested to see him do what Stephen Merritt does and switch genders in his narration. But anyway...

The opening of the song (that I misheard as "to form her business sector," instead of "former business sector") seems to portray a protagonist seemingly on a field of battle or just before a battle - with terms like "vector" or "lives that blink" it seems either like military imagery or Halo (I don't play video games, pardon me if I don't understand Halo). The setting seems to be a ruined city.

So the first verse is the protagonist thinking about his immediate setting. The second verse deals with his emotions, using his warrior-like prowling of the city to voice his complaints over a relationship. He bellows a challenge or a cry of vindication out to him/her across the ruined landscape. But s/he is beyond his control and amidst problems of his/her own.

At last he arrives at his beloved's apartment, to find him/her victimized. He is unable to save him/her, and can only satisfy himself in cleaning up the mess. But since the second verse seems to testify that they had a strong disagreement and clash, perhaps the bridge is a metaphor for the protagonist leaving his beloved to his/her devices until his/her bad choices tear him/her apart?

He does watch - which in the context of the album seems to me to be more self-satisfaction (whoop! bad word choice) that someone who didn't follow his ways fell apart.

That being said, "Slowly, Through a Vector" seems to have no definite meaning. That makes it a breath of fresh air next to more blunt tracks (yet also good) such as "Woe" or "Admit It!!!" that heap on Bemis' thoughts directly. Who knows what in Asgard is conclusively going on in "Slowly, Through a Vector?"

Now, "The Writhing South" seems to chronicle the protagonist's urges as he makes his way across a Southern town, paranoid and low on energy. He sees a girl writhing, and it's like she begging him to have his way with her ("Come pollinate me," which paints a sort of passive bee/flower image - she's putting on her best to attract him, but he'll be the aggressor). He'll spend his last bit of dough to get her in his grasp so they can indulge themselves. Like this situation, the music is frantic and dark.

The orgasmic cries Bemis emits during the breakdown seems to point to this.

In "Yellow Cat/Red Cat," we hear that the sad old writer in the cafe may seem like a lech, but he's ultimately looking for a companion to satisfy both his sexual urges and his need for protection.

"Every Man Has a Molly" is to me the least interesting (musically and lyrically) song on the album. But to call it misogynistic would mean calling every Weezer album the same - it's just a heartbreak/break-up song, albeit with R-rated language.

Unbridled sexuality seems to channel itself both into Bemis' lyrics and music. Keep in mind these songs were based on a rock opera in which the star (Bemis himself, I believe) was unable to control a epic score of post-punk that would erupt from his mouth to describe his situations and feelings. This odd miracles sends him to stardom, but he eventually burns out.

The miracle of his sudden ability to weave operas out of thin air is very much like an orgasm - a pent-up desire that erupts with a loss of control to the one experiencing it. An orgasm is an involuntary response, and Bemis seems to equate this with art and emotion - both come out whether they're accepted by their audience or not.

Additionally, Bemis paints a picture of a protagonist who is at fault for much of his suffering but blames external sources - ultimately he'll admit (in the song "The Futile") that nothing has meaning. So he forces the evil he wants to perceive onto others, and the women who jilt his love and sex and the audiences who don't understand his involuntary need to create art become villains at times, and loved ones at other times (he wants to save them, as in "Belt" when he gathers a crowd or "Slowly, Through a Vector" when he paints himself as a mercenary who arrives just too late to save someone).

Bemix is very vulgar at times, I'll concede that. But I think misogynistic is an incorrect term. He seems to have less of a problem with women themselves as he does the realization of his desires.

By the way, almost every song on the album seems to rise to a frantic or dramatic close, with often a soft or disconnected opening. Whether this was intentionally meant to mirror sex, I can only conjecture. I think Bemis subconsciously channels a lot of his rage and libido into his structure without knowing it until afterwards.

[Danny]

I think I wasn't reading deeply enough.

It's not that the album is sexual that made me view it as misogynistic. I guess it's mainly that when he talks about women in sexual context on this album, he never portrays them really as objects of any sort of affection or care, but just items to be used for his own self-gratification. Though your explanation does cause me to view it in a largely different light.

I think the only thing that bugged me about "The Writhing South" was the term "using you." Kind of silly to single out two words in an entire song to feel uneasy about, but I also didn't really see how the context changed anything there. But again, your explanation does make sense to me.

I never saw "Red Cat/Yellow Cat" or "Every Man Has a Molly" as misogynistic in the least. Just sad and funny, respectively.

[Jeffrey]

Originally Posted by Danny

It's not that the album is sexual that made me view it as misogynistic. I guess it's mainly that when he talks about women in sexual context on this album, he never portrays them really as objects of any sort of affection or care

What about "I Want To Know Your Plans?" I think that song is contextually about a girl, and it's about care and nurturing. I think Bemis as lyrical protagonist does make a habit of "using" women (can't argue with your interpretation there) but is looking for someone to lend meaning to his life (re: "The Futile").

I do think "A Walk Through Hell" is an amazing song that's less cruel and would have fit well on the album near the end. It would've lightened the tone a bit.

Somewhere either here on CGR or on one of my journals I think I go into how his song "I Am a Transylvanian" is about Anne Rice's Interview with a Vampire, and I think Rice's theme of mortality and dissatisfaction play into Bemis' worldview.

[Sean]

The re-release is out. You can download the seven new tracks off of iTunes if you don't want to buy a second copy of the CD.

[Skeeter]

Rachael bought the re-release. ...Was a Real Boy is, for the most part, excellent. It's not as strong as ...is a Real Boy, but I didn't expect it to be.

[Pre-Ex-Girlfriend]

Originally Posted by Skeeter

Rachael bought the re-release. ...Was a Real Boy is, for the most part, excellent. It's not as strong as ...is a Real Boy, but I didn't expect it to be.

I disagree. I think ...Was a Real Boy is just as excellent. But then again, I expected it to be. Little Girls is my new favourite song, even though you tell me I'm a bad person for liking it.

[Skeeter]

Rachael and I, along with our good friend Sammy, shall be seeing Say Anything on April 14! We are very excited...