Say Anything: Biography

• Overview
• Discography
• Biography
• Related Artists

• Fall Out Boy
• Brand New
• Armor for Sleep
• Punchline
• Manchester Orchestra
• Taking Back Sunday
• Matchbook Romance

• Saves the Day
• Jimmy Eat World
• Jawbreaker
• Sunny Day Real Estate

• Southcott
• Blacktop Mourning

• Two Tongues

Genres:

Rock Music, Punk and Hardcore Rock Music, Emo

Decades Active:

2000's

Say Anything is the poppunk brainchild of singer/songwriter Max Bemis. The band first started up while its members were still in high school and has had a rotating cast of characters throughout its existence, with the most recent lineup featuring Bemis (guitar/vocals), Coby Linder (drums), and Alex Kent (bass). The group first appeared with two selfreleased and selfproduced EPs, Junior Varsity and Menora/Mejorah, the latter being released online, and a fulllength album, Baseball. These releases saw the band leaning more toward the emo rock/poppunk formula made popular by bands like blink182 and Saves the Day.

Unsatisfied with these now out of print releases, Bemis refuses to rerelease the albums or play their songs live. Thus, it is fitting to assume that the Say Anything of today did not really appear until 2004 with their multifaceted and highly personal debut on Doghouse Records, Is a Real Boy. The album, a selfdescribed punk rock musical, was produced by Tim O'Heir (Dinosaur Jr., the AllAmerican Rejects) and Stephen Trask (Hedwig and the Angry Inch). Both during and after the album's recording, Bemis struggled with stress and psychological problems, eventually causing Say Anything to drop off two tours in 2005, including an opening slot with their idols, Saves the Day.

Despite the setback, the guys signed with J Records that same year, and reissued their album in February 2006, renamed Was a Real Boy. The rerelease boasted two discs the original record along with an EP, Say Anything vs. AIDS. The EP contained songs from the recording sessions of a neverreleased AIDS benefit record, alongside original demos and rerecordings of previous songs.

- Corey Apar, All Music Guide