Max Bemis - Say Anything (04/09/2014)
Smack bang in the middle of October, Say Anything return to Australian shores for a swift tour in support of their universally acclaimed 6th studio LP Hebrews. Front man/ new Dad Max Bemis’ openness in discussing life both inside and out his music is matched only by the infamously personal lyrical content of his songwriting fans have come to feverishly revere. Although a venerable explosion of raw energy on both albums and stage, Bemis is exceptionally polite and disarmingly kind throughout the course of the interview. Now a dedicated father, excitement for an impending tour expectedly comes at a price.
“I have a really hard time being away form my family, but thankfully my wife (Eisley front woman Sherri Dupree Bemis) is also a musician, so it’s not like she has a job (laughs). Our plan right now is pretty much to raise (daughter) Lucy wherever we have to go, rather then one of us leave and the other stay behind. I’ve been privileged to not have to be away form them for more than a couple of weeks at a time, which is pretty rare. But yeah, even a day or two of leaving home is painful”.
“I would love (for the whole family to come on tour). I think maybe when Lucy gets older. Right now we’d have to fly with a little baby… Twenty four hour fight is a little, little crazy! I’ve definitely thought about it, and I’m excited for her to see the world in that way, hopefully, yeah, when she gets older.”
It’s no secret that Max Bemis regularly writes poetic, sprawling songs about personal subject matter many other musicians would either never dare to share, or wrap tightly and persistently in metaphor. 2005’s seminal breakthrough …Is A Real Boy was notably written and recorded by Bemis amidst a delirium spawned by drug addiction and undiagnosed bipolar disorder. This isn’t tabloid gossip, but rather first-hand information easily gleaned from the album, and it’s achingly honest follow up In Defense Of The Genre. There’s no argument Max Bemis certainly pulls no punches when it comes time to express himself through song.
Although dabbling in self-reflexive subject matter with regard to his Jewish heritage throughout his career, Hebrews seems almost wholly dedicated to it. Max willingly conveys that, although perhaps no easy task, this may be his most personal album.
“I think the reason it’s the most personal is because it’s the most lucid I’ve ever been in my life, and together, and able to actually look in to my own heart and know what’s there more than I ever have. I would hope that it is the most personal, because (previous album) Anarchy, My Dear more had to do with my view on spirituality and, well, anarchy. This one I completely centered on myself and my life, so I think it definitely is the most personal one. The first couple ones were a little obscured by various substances and health problems.”
With such an open-book approach to his own life, it’s curious to know whether or not Bemis deems it a cathartic necessity to express himself in a such a way.
“I think it is. It’s very seldom that I don’t write like that. Even in (side projects) Perma and Two Tongues, they’re both really personal projects. A little bit less so, maybe because they’re not directly centered on me. But, y’know, Perma’s about me and my wife’s relationship, and Two Tongues is about me and (Saves The Day front man) Chris’ relationship, and to some degree relationships in general. It’s always been somewhat personal. Although I know there’s plenty of prolific artists who write about things they observe rather then the process of observing, I’ve just never been one of those people.”
Speaking of Two Tongues, Max recently made it known on Twitter that aforementioned Saves The Day leader Chris Conley would be joining Say Anything on stage for the entirety of their Australian tour. The response on social media has been metaphorically glittering with digital tears of joy ever since, as both bands share an especially dedicated fan base that greatly intersects.
“Yeah, he’s always, well not always, but In the past ten years we’ve become really close. Obviously we’ve collaborated, we’ve toured together various times, and when the band took a turn to a place where were just going to have some of our friends play live, I think Chris is the first person I called. It’s harder to line that up because Saves The Day is a very busy touring band, but I think this would actually happen again because the idea of playing shows with people I admire and are my friends instead of a set group of people perfectly applies to Chris.”
The first clip from Hebrews accompanies the album’s second track Six Six Six, a lengthy and structurally diverse song that is miles away from a radio-friendly and hook-driven single seller. The clip is also noticeably absent of any other band members beyond Bemis himself. The front man deftly explores some of the themes behind the video’s content.
“Basically the idea was to create something that where we could express the duality of my existence, because a lot of that song is about fighting yourself, and sometimes succeeding or failing. Various parts of my psychology, like my poor self image, the drinking, or a messiah complex… all these things that I have, but in a way that feels energetic and sort of jubilant about the whole thing, because there comes a point where you have to kind of own that. Even if you’re depressed about it or angry about it, you have to be able to live in that moment and rejoice all those things in the kind of blasphemous nature of humanity.”
“The narrative structure of the video is about me falling victim to my own demons, or like, the worst aspects of myself, but there’s still the live performance part that I felt balanced out the energy you feel playing music or being a person, despite that inner-battle. You can still lose yourself in the existence of being human, it’s not just a depressing video about me killing myself, I don’t think! It has this sort of energy to it.”
It’s also worth noting that Six Six Six was anything but a random track pulled from the album to shoot a clip for. Unsurprisingly, more than a little thought went in to the choice.
“We basically chose a song we felt was both emblematic of what the record was about, and that we felt made a really strong first impression. It definitely doesn’t have a traditional song structure, but it definitely has like, y’know… to me when I stopped worrying about whether the radio would play a single, it became more about “What are the songs on the record that kids are going to sing along to the most?” Or what’s going to capture people’s attention the most within the people that give a shit about the band. It’s why we chose that one, it’s very… lively (laughs).”
For a man who has made a career from expressing tales of unpleasant emotional or mental disparity so often, it’s interesting to see whether or not Max deems inner-turmoil necessary for the creative process.
“I think it is, but only because the human condition is full of that kind of stuff anyway. I think if you’re really honest with your music you can’t have some element of conflict be a part of it.”
Focusing on the tour with more band-oriented logistics rather than family semantics, Bemis perks at the prospect of Say Anything’s third Australian visit. Their first being a Soundwave spot in 2009, followed by a headliner for 2012’s Anarchy, My Dear.
“It is very exciting! We would love to do more festival stuff as well. (This tour) is just sort of convenient, to be honest. To make it work with everyone’s schedules is kind of a big deal. We have a Canadian guitar player we have to get out of that country! But it was still something we were discussing and very enthusiastic about doing since the start of the record. We knew how, but it was just a matter of when.”
“It’s just how it worked out, and we have plans for after the tour. We usually try to go to Australia and The UK at least once in a record cycle, because those are our international favourite places to go.”
Considering it’s more than a few drinks between visits, there’s a safe assumption that the audience is going to be collectively thirsty for every single song ever written by the band. With this in mind, Max dismisses any element of pressure a musician may feel while picking a set list.
“I wouldn’t say pressure. I think it’s really cool that we happen to be one of those bands who it’s not like we only have one song that resonated, and we’ve built up a career around that. We’re very much more of an album band, and so when I get tweets or responses from people in Australia, they’re just as dedicated as the people in the US, but you just happen to live so far away! So I can’t say there’s an immense pressure to do something really different, but I do want it to be special, and make sure to play all the songs one may expect at a Say Anything show. I’d say there’s like five songs in our entire repertoire we have to play at a show, or I would personally feel weird about it. It’s like Belt, Alive With The Glory Of Love, Hate Everyone, Wow, can I get sexual… at least need to do one or two of those!”
Hebrews out now through Equal Vision records.
Todd Gingell
“I have a really hard time being away form my family, but thankfully my wife (Eisley front woman Sherri Dupree Bemis) is also a musician, so it’s not like she has a job (laughs). Our plan right now is pretty much to raise (daughter) Lucy wherever we have to go, rather then one of us leave and the other stay behind. I’ve been privileged to not have to be away form them for more than a couple of weeks at a time, which is pretty rare. But yeah, even a day or two of leaving home is painful”.
“I would love (for the whole family to come on tour). I think maybe when Lucy gets older. Right now we’d have to fly with a little baby… Twenty four hour fight is a little, little crazy! I’ve definitely thought about it, and I’m excited for her to see the world in that way, hopefully, yeah, when she gets older.”
It’s no secret that Max Bemis regularly writes poetic, sprawling songs about personal subject matter many other musicians would either never dare to share, or wrap tightly and persistently in metaphor. 2005’s seminal breakthrough …Is A Real Boy was notably written and recorded by Bemis amidst a delirium spawned by drug addiction and undiagnosed bipolar disorder. This isn’t tabloid gossip, but rather first-hand information easily gleaned from the album, and it’s achingly honest follow up In Defense Of The Genre. There’s no argument Max Bemis certainly pulls no punches when it comes time to express himself through song.
Although dabbling in self-reflexive subject matter with regard to his Jewish heritage throughout his career, Hebrews seems almost wholly dedicated to it. Max willingly conveys that, although perhaps no easy task, this may be his most personal album.
“I think the reason it’s the most personal is because it’s the most lucid I’ve ever been in my life, and together, and able to actually look in to my own heart and know what’s there more than I ever have. I would hope that it is the most personal, because (previous album) Anarchy, My Dear more had to do with my view on spirituality and, well, anarchy. This one I completely centered on myself and my life, so I think it definitely is the most personal one. The first couple ones were a little obscured by various substances and health problems.”
With such an open-book approach to his own life, it’s curious to know whether or not Bemis deems it a cathartic necessity to express himself in a such a way.
“I think it is. It’s very seldom that I don’t write like that. Even in (side projects) Perma and Two Tongues, they’re both really personal projects. A little bit less so, maybe because they’re not directly centered on me. But, y’know, Perma’s about me and my wife’s relationship, and Two Tongues is about me and (Saves The Day front man) Chris’ relationship, and to some degree relationships in general. It’s always been somewhat personal. Although I know there’s plenty of prolific artists who write about things they observe rather then the process of observing, I’ve just never been one of those people.”
Speaking of Two Tongues, Max recently made it known on Twitter that aforementioned Saves The Day leader Chris Conley would be joining Say Anything on stage for the entirety of their Australian tour. The response on social media has been metaphorically glittering with digital tears of joy ever since, as both bands share an especially dedicated fan base that greatly intersects.
“Yeah, he’s always, well not always, but In the past ten years we’ve become really close. Obviously we’ve collaborated, we’ve toured together various times, and when the band took a turn to a place where were just going to have some of our friends play live, I think Chris is the first person I called. It’s harder to line that up because Saves The Day is a very busy touring band, but I think this would actually happen again because the idea of playing shows with people I admire and are my friends instead of a set group of people perfectly applies to Chris.”
The first clip from Hebrews accompanies the album’s second track Six Six Six, a lengthy and structurally diverse song that is miles away from a radio-friendly and hook-driven single seller. The clip is also noticeably absent of any other band members beyond Bemis himself. The front man deftly explores some of the themes behind the video’s content.
“Basically the idea was to create something that where we could express the duality of my existence, because a lot of that song is about fighting yourself, and sometimes succeeding or failing. Various parts of my psychology, like my poor self image, the drinking, or a messiah complex… all these things that I have, but in a way that feels energetic and sort of jubilant about the whole thing, because there comes a point where you have to kind of own that. Even if you’re depressed about it or angry about it, you have to be able to live in that moment and rejoice all those things in the kind of blasphemous nature of humanity.”
“The narrative structure of the video is about me falling victim to my own demons, or like, the worst aspects of myself, but there’s still the live performance part that I felt balanced out the energy you feel playing music or being a person, despite that inner-battle. You can still lose yourself in the existence of being human, it’s not just a depressing video about me killing myself, I don’t think! It has this sort of energy to it.”
It’s also worth noting that Six Six Six was anything but a random track pulled from the album to shoot a clip for. Unsurprisingly, more than a little thought went in to the choice.
“We basically chose a song we felt was both emblematic of what the record was about, and that we felt made a really strong first impression. It definitely doesn’t have a traditional song structure, but it definitely has like, y’know… to me when I stopped worrying about whether the radio would play a single, it became more about “What are the songs on the record that kids are going to sing along to the most?” Or what’s going to capture people’s attention the most within the people that give a shit about the band. It’s why we chose that one, it’s very… lively (laughs).”
For a man who has made a career from expressing tales of unpleasant emotional or mental disparity so often, it’s interesting to see whether or not Max deems inner-turmoil necessary for the creative process.
“I think it is, but only because the human condition is full of that kind of stuff anyway. I think if you’re really honest with your music you can’t have some element of conflict be a part of it.”
Focusing on the tour with more band-oriented logistics rather than family semantics, Bemis perks at the prospect of Say Anything’s third Australian visit. Their first being a Soundwave spot in 2009, followed by a headliner for 2012’s Anarchy, My Dear.
“It is very exciting! We would love to do more festival stuff as well. (This tour) is just sort of convenient, to be honest. To make it work with everyone’s schedules is kind of a big deal. We have a Canadian guitar player we have to get out of that country! But it was still something we were discussing and very enthusiastic about doing since the start of the record. We knew how, but it was just a matter of when.”
“It’s just how it worked out, and we have plans for after the tour. We usually try to go to Australia and The UK at least once in a record cycle, because those are our international favourite places to go.”
Considering it’s more than a few drinks between visits, there’s a safe assumption that the audience is going to be collectively thirsty for every single song ever written by the band. With this in mind, Max dismisses any element of pressure a musician may feel while picking a set list.
“I wouldn’t say pressure. I think it’s really cool that we happen to be one of those bands who it’s not like we only have one song that resonated, and we’ve built up a career around that. We’re very much more of an album band, and so when I get tweets or responses from people in Australia, they’re just as dedicated as the people in the US, but you just happen to live so far away! So I can’t say there’s an immense pressure to do something really different, but I do want it to be special, and make sure to play all the songs one may expect at a Say Anything show. I’d say there’s like five songs in our entire repertoire we have to play at a show, or I would personally feel weird about it. It’s like Belt, Alive With The Glory Of Love, Hate Everyone, Wow, can I get sexual… at least need to do one or two of those!”
Hebrews out now through Equal Vision records.
Todd Gingell
TICKETS ON SALE NOW
WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 15TH –AMPLIFIER BAR, PERTH 18+
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au
THURSDAY OCTOBER 16TH –FOWLERS LIVE, ADELAIDE LIC/AA
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au | www.moshtix.com.au | www.venuetix.com.au
FRIDAY OCTOBER 17TH –THE CORNER HOTEL , MELBOURNE – 18+
Tickets available www.cornerhotel.com | www.oztix.com.au
SATURDAY OCTOBER 18TH –MANNING BAR, SYDNEY – 18+
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au
SUNDAY OCTOBER 19th –THE HI FI, BRISBANE 18+
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au
WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 15TH –AMPLIFIER BAR, PERTH 18+
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au
THURSDAY OCTOBER 16TH –FOWLERS LIVE, ADELAIDE LIC/AA
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au | www.moshtix.com.au | www.venuetix.com.au
FRIDAY OCTOBER 17TH –THE CORNER HOTEL , MELBOURNE – 18+
Tickets available www.cornerhotel.com | www.oztix.com.au
SATURDAY OCTOBER 18TH –MANNING BAR, SYDNEY – 18+
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au
SUNDAY OCTOBER 19th –THE HI FI, BRISBANE 18+
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au