Angels and Airwaves / Say Anything

Say Anything has grown on me considerably over the years, despite an initial distaste I had for the band. Something about frontman Max Bemis being slightly unsettling, which is still slightly the case, but I’ve since found a greater appreciation for the band’s skillful musicianship over Bemis’ squeaky persona. With intelligently written music, sometimes humorously snarky and often bitingly pointed in its delivery, the L.A. natives’ brand of emo is darkly relatable. I certainly never thought I’d see the day I would consider using a Say Anything lyric for the title of my future memoirs, but here is Bemis, crooning, “I hate everyone upon the cursed earth,” on the band’s last album. You practically took the words out of my mouth, dude. Now if Bemis and I, of all people, can come to this kind of understanding, there’s absolutely no reason the U.S. can’t do the same with the rest of the world. - Brien Overly