"Under the Boards," Saves the Day's sixth album and the second in a three-album trilogy about the band's self-discovery, is an example of an ambitious group reaching beyond its limits. Focused on "reflection and remorse," the album begins with the title track, a little-boy-lost pop-punk ditty featuring bad emo poetry lines like, "I want to lie below the weight of the sky." "Radio" is a Piebald-meets-Weezer cut that delivers a satisfyingly poppy sound. The straightforward "Get F#**ed Up" connects the simplicity of getting drunk with the complexity of falling in love. On "Because You Are No Other" and "When I'm Not There," the band shows off intricate guitar-bass interplay, distinguishing them from more successful contemporaries like Fall Out Boy and My Chemical Romance. But throughout "Under the Boards," Chris Conley's juvenile lyrics and whiney vocal tone submerge the band's music. His limited ability and total self-involvement prevent "Under the Boards" from developing into a cohesive album. [Matt Landry]
ESSENTIAL "Radio"
