After Max Bemis’s mental collapse in 2004 and 2005, his indie-rock band Say Anything’s 2007 album titled In Defense of the Genre was not well accepted by fans. Now, fully rehabilitated and married to Eisley singer Sherri DuPree, he has released the band’s fourth full-length self-titled album.
    In 2004, Bemis dealt with dangerously high anxiety that was later diagnosed as bipolar disorder. He was also using marijuana heavily. He was put into a mental institution and even after being released, was still using and mixing drugs. Say Anything’s 2005 tour had to be canceled due to his health problems. After this, he went to live with his mother. During the time with his mother, he had a breakdown that involved harassment of children, and everyone agreed he should be sent to the Menninger clinic in Houston, Texas. This time, after being hospitalized, he did not relapse and has been reportedly clean since.
    The new album is still generally autobiographical. DuPree inspired the love song Crush’d where Bemis praises her: “You’re no witch, you’re no wench. You’re like Bjork with better fashion sense.” Bemis explains, “The music is such a reflection of who I am. I really do take it very seriously. I really take responsibility for it. But it’s like talking to a friend.” In this way, Say Anything’s music has matured along with its songwriter. There is a notable difference between the immature pop punk of their first two albums and the more stable rock of their more recent work.
    On the other hand, there is still a nod to his previous feelings with the poppy hit “Hate Everyone” with lyrics that take a stab at basically everything wrong with the world in Bemis’s eyes (“I hate actors who seem genuine… my ex-girlfriend though she’s feminine”). The band definitely seems to have expanded their sound by using a variety of instruments on the record. The upbeat tune “Do Better” features strings, “Eloise” is piano-oriented and “Less Cute” is supported by horns. Bemis explained, “Do Better” to Alternative Press by stating, “What I realized when I finally finished the lyrics is that I had overcome a lot of the things that I was making fun of about myself, and that to write a song about those things would be a novelty or sort of typical Say Anything act - to make a negative, self-deprecating song. So my goal was to write a positive, uplifting song, but still have it be very ‘Say Anything.’”
    As the album winds down, more of the average filler songs in the middle might make it seem like the better stuff is over with. However, the album ends strongly with “Ahhh… Men.” Bemis’s voice makes a big impression with the line “Can I lie with you in your grave?” This completes the album with the feeling that Say Anything has come a long way in their music and Max Bemis has come a long way in his personal life.