Saves the Day

The identities of emo's forefathers are often debated, but Saves the Day's signature is categorically found on the post-punk Constitution. Put it this way: If Rites of Spring are George Washington and Sunny Day Real Estate is Thomas Jefferson, then Saves the Day is undeniably the genre's Samuel Adams — not the most influential, perhaps, but certainly the one that goes down the smoothest. Chris Conley's scrambled lyrics and pitch-perfect nasality are the New Jersey band's signature, while their typical tempo mirrors their debut CD's title, Can't Slow Down. Though STD sonically strayed on their Dreamworks release, In Reverie (a disc with Sgt. Pepper-style experimentation), they've returned to their roots with the new Sound the Alarm. As Samuel Adams once said, "They cannot be subdued."