Say Anything - Hebrews - Review

After the critical disappointment that was Anarchy, My Dear, some waited in vain for that return to the nihilistic, anthemic Queen-worship of ...Is A Real Boy, some gave up on Max Bemis altogether, and still others didn’t quite know exactly what they wanted out of Say Anything’s next album.  But after half a year since the release of Hebrews, I can safely use a variant of the tired Batman cliché: Hebrews isn’t the album Say Anything fans expected, but it’s the one they needed.

The album begins with the jaunty “John McClane”, and in addition to its references to perfect 80s films, it boasts an infectiously simple melody and the classic charmingly self-deprecating lyrics that one has come to expect of Bemis.  The lyrics are decidedly more personal on this album than the more “going through the motions” lyrics of Anarchy, with even the big crowd-ready anthems taking more of a risk than “It’s my life and I’m living without you” or “Anything for you, whoa oh oh”.

Never again will a Say Anything album reach that sublime level of perfection when it comes to connecting with its audience that songs like “The Futile” and “Admit It!!!” had, but songs on Hebrews help us to get to know Max just a little bit better.  They aren’t cloying or pretentious or trying too hard to cater to the fans that are stuck in the past, but instead opt for genuine emotions, mostly concerning the future of his family, showcased most prominently on “My Greatest Fear Is Splendid” and “Boyd”.  In a refreshing change of pace, most of the album’s tracks teeter on the side of optimism while still acknowledging the very legitimate fears that come with the subject matter.

The two biggest criticisms leveled at the album are the overabundance of guest spots (particularly his wife, Sherri) and the complete lack of guitars.  Interestingly enough, these aren’t typically thrown at the even more experimental In Defense of the Genre, which had much stranger composition choices and a myriad of guest spots as well.  The guests, at worst almost never overstay their welcome, and at best complement the song in a completely unique way that one would never expect, such as Jeremy Bolm’s harsh, throaty screams on the minimalistic ballad, “Lost My Touch”.  As for the lack of guitars... I never missed them once, as the replacement string instruments like cellos and violins function much in the same way.  Not to mention that the aforementioned “Boyd” is easily the heaviest Say Anything song ever recorded and doesn’t struggle at all with the loss of its six-string.

If Hebrews is the last album that Max Bemis makes under the name of Say Anything, then I would be satisfied with that, whereas I could not say the same thing about its predecessor.  Any album which I can envision being the band’s last and being alright with it is a good album in my book.  The pessimism of ...Is a Real Boy is all but completely gone, but cautious optimism is almost just as interesting.

****1/2