Back on the Deck: Saves The Day – ‘Through Being Cool’

By Glen Bushell

As you grow up there are certain records that stick in your mind and stay with you forever. The kind of records that make you remember where you where the first time you heard it, or that you still put on year afters its release and look back on it fondly, regardless of where your musical tastes may have ventured through life. In 1999 New Jersey punk rock band Saves The Day released an album that unequivocally sums up all of the above in ‘Through Being Cool’, a record that’s influence is still felt in today’s scene. As it turns 15 years old, this month’s ‘Back On The Deck’ feature looks back at ‘Through Being Cool’, and the legacy it has left.

saves the day 1999

1999 could be seen as the dawn of modern pop punk. Blink 182 released the multi-platinum selling ‘Enema Of State’ earlier in the year, and New Found Glory also made their Drive-Thru Records debut with ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’, both of which were pivotal to the commercial success that the genre would achieve over the years that follow. Meanwhile, over in the New Jersey hardcore scene, some of the bands there had been adding melody to their music for some time already. Turning Point and Lifetime had already started to embrace a lighter side, and Saves The Day gave their contribution to the scene with debut album ‘Cant Slow Down’ on Equal Vision Records in 1998. By the time it came to follow it up the band had undergone several line-up changes, and headed to record with legendary producer Steve Evetts (Lifetime, Kid Dynamite) at the helm once again to put together what would become one of the most influential pop punk albums of all time.

Saves The Day didn’t set out with this in mind however. Their intentions were as simple as any young band, to go and record honest songs that meant something to them, and to play shows. Chief song writer/vocalist Chris Conley managed to capture every feeling and emotion that anyone who was young and on the cusp of being an adult was goes through in his lyrics. There is no pretention, no ambiguity, and no metaphors to be found on ‘Through Being Cool’, just honest songs about growing up, falling in love, heartbreak, friendship, and the discontent that comes with all of those things. Saves The Day were a world away from some of the tough guy hardcore bands that they shared a label with such as Snapcase, Trial, and One King Down, but they carried no less passion than any of them. When first single ‘Shoulder To The Wheel’ began to receive airplay the band would instantly start to attract fans away from the sometimes rigid constraints of the hardcore scene and the world would begin to fall in love with Saves The Day.

Conley’s lyrics had a very real feel to them in a similar way to Blake Schwarzenbach of Jawbreaker, in that it you could be reading an entry to Chris Conley’s journal rather than a lyric sheet, or as if you were a fly on a wall to conversation he was having. Perhaps it’s the way he addresses his muse in ‘You Vandal’ with the line “last night I dreamt you called from Costa Rica”, or the brutally honest call of “If I could somehow make you mine” in ‘Rocks Tonic Juice Magic’. Whatever it is, the narratives of Conley’s songs do not hide behind anything other than his ribcage, because these are straight from the heart. This was what set Saves The Day apart from the likes of the chart topping pop punk that was being peddled by Blink 182. You will not find inappropriate dick jokes, or songs about relations with animals here, only relatable subject matter. One of the highest points on the album is ‘Holly Hox Forget Me Nots’ which is undoubtedly the ultimate break-up song. Think back to when you were a teenager for a moment, who hasn’t gone to their ex’s house to try and get them back, and been faced with their parent’s not letting you see them. Conley summed up these events perfectly on this track by crying out “Oh I’ve had it now, I’m walking down to your house, banging on the door’ over the bouncing guitar hooks that are a common theme through the album.

The band didn’t steer too far from their roots of being a hardcore band however, and this was probably the last time in their career that they truly embraced them. The influence of Lifetime runs deep on tracks like‘ Third Engine’, ‘The Vast Spoils Of America’ and ‘Do You Know What I Love The Most?’ which are as punk rock as it gets. What makes ‘Through Being Cool’ stand the test of time 15 years later, is that it is one of a handful of albums where every song is perfect. There are no songs you come to when you listen to it that you think you would want to skip, and as you head towards the title track near the end of the album you are fully invested in it as you begin to know exactly how Chris Conley feels, and that you yourself feel less alone. Whether you want a song about missing someone or wanting to help someone choke there is a song for you on here, which adds to the beauty of this album.

savestheday

The success that would follow for Saves The Day was somewhat unexpected, and saw the band move on to bigger labels, have a multitude of band members come and go, and shift in direction for the band as they grew up, but this album will always be the landmark album that they are remembered for. Dozens of bands such as Say Anything, The Story So Far, Man Overboard and even Fall Out Boy cite the album as an influence, employing Chris Conley’s direct way of writing and showing that ‘Through Being Cool’ will continue to influence young bands for many more years to come.

Saves The Day are currently on tour in the US playing ‘Through Being Cool’ in it’s entirety, and the 15th anniversary reissue of the album is released December 9th via Equal Vision Records.