2008 Woodie Awards
Ups and Downs is not Outstanding
Liz Harris
Issue date: 11/10/04 Section: Arts & Entertainment
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Saves the Day, a New Jersey punk/emo band, released Ups and Downs: Early Recordings and B-Sides in August 2004. The record is a 19-track compilation of songs released on label samplers, a demo tape, an acoustic EP, and unreleased songs. The tracks are mostly sub-par and range from Jessie & My Whitestone, a live recording from a tour, to 1959-a song that was not even included on their demo tape.
The record begins with the title track, Ups and Downs" The song should have been featured on Stay What You Are-the band's 2001 release, but it was not completed until after the album was recorded. The second song, Sell My Old Clothes, I'm Off To Heaven is solid. The vocals and music compliment each other. It would have been a decent album track, but it was released after the band's second album, Through Being Cool, and it did not fit on Stay What You Are.
After the third track, A Drag in D Flat, the album strays from its quick tone and launches into a block of songs from the band's 1999 acoustic release. Tracks 4 through 8-I'm Sorry I'm Leaving, Hold" Jessie and My Whetstone, Take Our Cars Now!, and The Way His Collar Falls are some of the disc's high points, but they should not have been included because the acoustic release is still available in record stores.
The album slips back into a quick tempo at track 9-The Art of Misplacing Firearms. Tracks 10-14 are forgettable songs from Saves the Day's demo tape. East Coast was recorded in April 1997 during vocalist Chris Conley's junior year of high school. It is the first song on the demo and the first song the band ever wrote and recorded together. Other demo songs on the record are 1:19, An Afternoon Laughing, When It Isn't Like it Should Be, and Dave Feels Right. These songs were left on the demo tapes for a reason. Although they are aggressive, they sound repetitive and are not strong enough to make a great album. 1959-a thirty-second song that did not even make it to the demo tape-is also included on the CD.
The record begins with the title track, Ups and Downs" The song should have been featured on Stay What You Are-the band's 2001 release, but it was not completed until after the album was recorded. The second song, Sell My Old Clothes, I'm Off To Heaven is solid. The vocals and music compliment each other. It would have been a decent album track, but it was released after the band's second album, Through Being Cool, and it did not fit on Stay What You Are.
After the third track, A Drag in D Flat, the album strays from its quick tone and launches into a block of songs from the band's 1999 acoustic release. Tracks 4 through 8-I'm Sorry I'm Leaving, Hold" Jessie and My Whetstone, Take Our Cars Now!, and The Way His Collar Falls are some of the disc's high points, but they should not have been included because the acoustic release is still available in record stores.
The album slips back into a quick tempo at track 9-The Art of Misplacing Firearms. Tracks 10-14 are forgettable songs from Saves the Day's demo tape. East Coast was recorded in April 1997 during vocalist Chris Conley's junior year of high school. It is the first song on the demo and the first song the band ever wrote and recorded together. Other demo songs on the record are 1:19, An Afternoon Laughing, When It Isn't Like it Should Be, and Dave Feels Right. These songs were left on the demo tapes for a reason. Although they are aggressive, they sound repetitive and are not strong enough to make a great album. 1959-a thirty-second song that did not even make it to the demo tape-is also included on the CD.