In Reverie

In Reverie is the fourth studio album by the American rock band Saves the Day. In Reverie was released in mid-September through DreamWorks. Shortly after its release, DreamWorks was absorbed by Interscope Records, resulting in the band being dropped from the label.

This article is about the Saves the Day album. For the Beyond Dawn album, see Beyond Dawn. For the Lacuna Coil album, see In a Reverie.
In Reverie
Studio album by
Saves the Day
ReleasedSeptember 16, 2003
StudioLarrabee Studios East, Cello Studios
Genre
Length33:55
LabelDreamWorks
ProducerRob Schnapf
Saves the Day chronology
Stay What You Are
(2001)		 In Reverie
(2003)		 Ups & Downs: Early Recordings and B-Sides
(2004)

Background and recording

In July 2001, Saves the Day released Stay What You Are through independent label Vagrant Records. The album's first single, "At Your Funeral", became the band's breakthrough hit.[1] The album would go on to sell over 120,000 copies by early 2002.[2] Frontman Chris Conley was, according to Gigwise's David Renshaw, "hailed as a hero with his lyrics about broken hearts and relationships."[1] Line-up changes soon occurred: drummer Bryan Newman and guitarist Ted Alexander left the group. Conley, who had previously written songs on guitar, began playing it in the group. Newman was replaced by Face to Face drummer Pete Parada.[3] In February 2002, the group were rumoured to have signed with major label Interscope Records.[4]

In January 2003, the group was doing pre-production in Los Angeles. They were reportedly working on 18 songs.[5] Prior to recording, the group wished to "capture the songs" as best as they could, according to Conley.[6] Recording took place at Larrabee Studios East and Cello Studios with producer Rob Schnapf and engineer Doug Boehm. The pair were assisted by engineer Jeff Moses at Larrabee Studios East and by engineer Steven Rhodes at Cello Studios. Richard Barron played organ on "Rise", "Monkey" and "Tomorrow Too Late". Schnapf played the tambourine on "Driving in the Dark".[7]

Rhodes performed various percussion instruments on the recordings. Reed Black contributed a number of instruments to different tracks: electric piano ("Anywhere with You", "Monkey", "In My Waking Life" and "She"), grand piano ("Rise"), mellotron ("She" and "Wednesday the Third") and synth ("In Reverie"). Schnapf and Boehm mixed the album at The Sound Factory with assistance from engineer Kevin Dean. Ted Jensen mastered the album at Sterling Sound in New York City.[7] Conley later revealed that the group created "a record we're proud of".[6] Two songs that did not make it on to the album, "Shattered" and "Delusional", were re-worked for the group's next album, Sound the Alarm (2006).[8]

Composition

While working with Schnapf on Stay What You Are, Conley learned that he was writing songs out of his vocal range. He subsequently learned how to sing notes naturally as opposed to forcing them. Conley's voice subsequently changed for In Reverie.[3] Comparing the material to that of Stay What You Are, Conley described the songs as being "more harmonically intricate" as well as "more complicated melodically".[6] He said that after getting into the Beatles following Stay What You Are, he learned "a bunch of complex chords", which influenced his creativity.[8] Despite being credited to the band,[7] Conley wrote all of the songs. Though, he said he was "nowhere near [a] dictator" and often enjoyed what parts the other members came up with. He added, whenever guitarist David Soloway came up with a part "it’s exactly the right thing; it’s more than I could have imagined."[3] Musically, the album has been described as indie rock,[9][10] melodic punk,[11] pop[12][13][14][15] and power pop.[16]

One day, Conley was playing guitar and came up with the opening riff for "Anywhere with You". The remainder of the song soon followed.[17] Bassist Eben D'Amico said the track was originally titled "Cactus Stomp" before it had any lyrics.[18] Conley said it talks about "longing for something better — for a feeling of peace or completeness".[17] "What Went Wrong" was written nine to ten months before the group worked on the album. Conley did not think the track was worthy enough, until one morning when he woke up with the song in his head.[19] The song is about a kid who is being strip-searched despite having done nothing wrong.[20] "Driving in the Dark" is about searching for peace in the world and not in a person. Conley said "Rise" was about "looking around and seeing everyone else trying to buy this or that and thinking it's going to make them happy."[19] Conley mentioned that reverie refers to being in a dreamlike state, and the title-track is about that: "...floating through life and trying to figure it all out ... transcending the things you get really pissed off about".[19]

"Morning in the Moonlight" talks about joy. "Monkey" is about filling up empty space with material possessions, despite said possessions still leaving you empty.[19] Conley came up with the melody for "In My Waking Life" while at his mom's house. The track simply "appeared in my mind as if it were a cloud coming over the horizon."[8] "She" is about being both confused and in love with the various aspects of life. Around the time the band toured with Weezer, Conley was suffering from Crohn's disease, which inspired "Where Are You?". The track is about "taking everything in, the depression, confusion and anxiety, but also the incredible highs."[19] "Wednesday the Third" is about "telling ... off" The Man.[19] Conley explained he's "drawing a line in the sand and crossing over to the other side, which means I'm done with the past – onward and inward."[19] With "Tomorrow Too Late", Conley is personifying the feeling of restlessness and the need for peace.[19]

Release

The forthcoming album was planned to be Saves the Day's final one for Vagrant; they brought in some staff members from major label DreamWorks Records to hear the new songs. The staff enjoyed the songs so much that they proceeded to buy the record from Vagrant.[15] Sometime afterwards, they signed to DreamWorks.[3] Conley reasoned they were under the impression that as the label had no shareholders that interfered in business choices, they were driven by artistic decisions.[21] On June 10, 2003, In Reverie was announced for release.[20] "Anywhere with You" was released to radio on August 12.[22] Around this time, a music video was filmed for the song in Los Angeles. It features the group performing the song in a recording studio.[18] On August 16, the group released an e-card, which included four new songs: "Anywhere with You", "Driving in the Dark", "What Went Wrong" and "Where Are You?".[23] In Reverie was released through DreamWorks Records on September 16.[24] The album's artwork was done by Brazilian artist Stephan Doitschinoff, who the group met while in the UK in 2002.[8] A few days later, In Honor: A Compilation to Beat Cancer, a tribute to the band's former bassist Sean McGrath, was released featuring an In Reverie outtake "Don't Go Outside".[25] From mid-September to late November, the group went on a co-headlining US tour with Taking Back Sunday. They were supported by Moneen.[26]

Following the band's biggest headlining show at Ashbury Park to 4,000 people, Conley received a call from the band's A&R person at DreamWorks: "[H]e said, 'None of the programmers at radio are biting at the single, and MTV doesn't want to play the video, so we're going have to start thinking about the next record.' I had a total breakdown. I was like, 'How is this possible? The album just came out!'"[27] A few weeks after In Reverie's release, the label was absorbed by Interscope Records.[27] The staff at Interscope didn't care for the album, refusing to take the group's calls. They subsequently paid the band severance to leave the label.[21] In March and April 2004, the band went on a co-headlining US tour with Grandaddy, with support from The Fire Theft.[28] Dios opened the first half of the tour, while Hey Mercedes opened the second half.[29] Halfway through it, The Fire Theft dropped off the tour due to their vocalist falling ill.[30] In April 2009, the band was tentatively planning to re-release the album with up to 12 additional tracks.[31] According to Conley, the reissue would've included demos and "whatnot. 'Zeebs' and 'Sister Sophs' and all that shit, 'Blossom' and what have you. All that. Then more."[32]

Reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic77/100[33]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[12]
Blender[34]
Drowned in Sound8/10[13]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[35]
Exclaim!Favorable [36]
The PhoenixFavorable [37]
PopMattersFavorable[14]
Punknews.org[38]
Rolling Stone[39]
SpinC+[40]

In Reverie sold 34,000 copies in its first week, reaching number 27 on the Billboard 200.[41] Despite no video or radio play, it went on to sell 150,000 copies by mid-2006.[21]

Track listing

All music by Saves the Day and all lyrics by Christopher Conley.[7]

  1. "Anywhere with You" – 2:32
  2. "What Went Wrong" – 2:49
  3. "Driving in the Dark" – 3:14
  4. "Rise" – 3:12
  5. "In Reverie" – 2:27
  6. "Morning in the Moonlight" – 1:55
  7. "Monkey" – 3:23
  8. "In My Waking Life" – 2:49
  9. "She" – 2:34
  10. "Where Are You?" – 1:47
  11. "Wednesday the Third" – 3:39
  12. "Tomorrow Too Late" – 3:33
Special edition bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
13."Don't Go Outside"1:55
14."Coconut"3:10

Other songs from the In Reverie era
  • "Coconut": available on the special edition of the album and as a download for those who owned the In Reverie CD
  • "Blossom": available as a b-side on vinyl copies of the "Anywhere With You" single and as a download for those who owned the In Reverie CD
  • "Don't Go Outside": available on the special edition of the album and also on the compilation In Honor: A Compilation to Beat Cancer. It was available as a download for those who owned the In Reverie CD
  • "Zebra": played live on early 2004 tour
  • "Sister Sophia"

Personnel

Personnel per booklet.[7]

gollark: Scientific American is lying to you, bees have existed before time itself.
gollark: The "bee" thing emerged in around late April, and apioforms began to exist around July.
gollark: Which is not what people appear to want.
gollark: That was the extreme end (okay, upper high end) of the scale I was positing.
gollark: Seriously? My fonts don't have Unicode 13 support yet?!

References

Citations

  1. Renshaw, David (May 8, 2006). "Saves The Day - 'Sound The Alarm' (Vagrant) 01/05/06". Gigwise. Archived from the original on August 19, 2016. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  2. Sheffield, Rob (March 28, 2002). "Punk From the Heart". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 5, 2004. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  3. Richardson, Sean (November 2003). "Saves the Day and Something Corporate". Boston Phoenix. Stephen M. Mindich. Archived from the original on May 20, 2017. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  4. White, Adam (February 22, 2002). "Saves the Day / Interscope connection?". Punknews.org. Aubin Paul. Archived from the original on April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  5. White, Adam (January 31, 2003). "Saves The Day In Pre-Production". Punknews.org. Aubin Paul. Archived from the original on April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  6. Acid Rain Entertainment (October 30, 2003). "Saves the Day". Acid Rain Entertainment. Archived from the original on April 17, 2004. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  7. In Reverie (Booklet). Saves the Day. DreamWorks Records. 2003. 4505049.CS1 maint: others (link)
  8. "Questions and Answers | The Official Saves The Day Website". Saves the Day. Archived from the original on February 20, 2010. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
  9. Apar, Corey. "Sound the Alarm - Saves the Day : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on August 28, 2015. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  10. Griffin 2006, p. D18
  11. Raper, Dan (May 31, 2006). "Saves the Day: Sound the Alarm". PopMatters. Archived from the original on December 11, 2015. Retrieved December 3, 2015.
  12. Sendra, Tim. "In Reverie - Saves the Day | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 3, 2016. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  13. Edwards, Tom (December 21, 2004). "Album Review: Saves the Day - In Reverie". DrownedInSound. Archived from the original on May 29, 2008. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  14. "Saves the Day: In Reverie". PopMatters. Archived from the original on February 7, 2004. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  15. Eberhardt, Thomas (March–May 2004). "Saves the Day The Art And Leisure Club". Ox-Fanzine (in German). Archived from the original on August 13, 2020. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  16. Cohen, Ian (May 18, 2017). "Tigers Jaw: Spin | Album Reviews". Pitchfork. Condé Nast. Archived from the original on September 24, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
  17. Wiederhorn, Jon (August 18, 2003). "Saves The Day Attempt To Save Themselves, The World With Reverie". MTV. Viacom. Archived from the original on March 18, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  18. Santangelo 2003, p. 26
  19. "Saves the Day". MusicEmissions. Archived from the original on April 27, 2017. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  20. Miller, Kirk (June 10, 2003). "Saves the Day Dream On". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 11, 2003. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  21. Renz, Thomas (June–July 2006). "Saves the Day Dream vs. Alarm clock". Ox-Fanzine (in German). Archived from the original on August 13, 2020. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  22. "FMQB Airplay Archive: Modern Rock". Friday Morning Quarterback Album Report, Incorporated. Archived from the original on March 22, 2013. Retrieved October 30, 2016.
  23. Heisel, Scott (August 16, 2003). "Saves The Day E-Card". Punknews.org. Aubin Paul. Archived from the original on April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  24. Sciarretto 2003, p. 5
  25. Wiederhorn, Jon (July 21, 2004). "Saves The Day Cancer-Benefit LP Brings Together Punk, Emo's Finest". MTV. Archived from the original on August 9, 2016. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  26. Goldstein, Jeremy P. (September 14, 2003). "Saves The Day Is Taking Back Sunday (Out On The Road)". The Fader. Andy Cohn. Archived from the original on September 15, 2016. Retrieved July 9, 2016.
  27. Smith, Dane (April 11, 2006). "Saves the Day Rock Their Paranoia". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 21, 2007. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  28. Depalma, Amanda (January 22, 2004). "Grandaddy/Saves The Day To Co-Headline Spring Tour". The Fader. Andy Cohn. Archived from the original on May 4, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  29. White, Adam (February 26, 2004). "The Fire Theft / Saves The Day / Grandaddy on the road". Punknews.org. Aubin Paul. Archived from the original on April 13, 2018. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  30. Heisel, Scott (April 2, 2004). "The Fire Theft drops off Saves The Day/Grandaddy tour". Punknews.org. Aubin Paul. Archived from the original on May 4, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  31. Djamoos, Anton (April 22, 2009). "Saves the Day Plan to Re-Release In Reverie". AbsolutePunk. SpinMedia. Archived from the original on July 21, 2012. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  32. Paul, Aubin (April 23, 2009). "Saves The Day to reissue "In Reverie"". Punknews.org. Aubin Paul. Archived from the original on April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  33. "In Reverie Reviews - Metacritic". Archived from the original on 2016-03-06. Retrieved 2013-01-10.
  34. Blender review
  35. Brunner, Rob (September 19, 2003). "In Reverie". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on June 6, 2012. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  36. Green, Stuart (November 1, 2003). "Saves the Day In Reverie". Exclaim!. Ian Danzig. Archived from the original on May 4, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  37. Richardson, Sean (November 14–20, 2003). "Rock metaphysics . . . and laughs". The Phoenix. Phoenix Media/Communications Group. Archived from the original on October 9, 2015. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  38. Greg (September 16, 2003). "Saves The Day - In Reverie". Punknews.org. Archived from the original on December 13, 2015. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  39. "RollingStone.com: Recordings: Saves The Day, In Reverie, 3 Stars". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 1, 2004. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  40. Spin review
  41. "DMX Proves 'Grand Champ' On Album Chart". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. September 24, 2003. Archived from the original on February 17, 2017. Retrieved February 4, 2018.

Sources

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