Chris Conley | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Christopher Lane Conley |
Born | February 29, 1980 |
Origin | Princeton, New Jersey, U.S. |
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Instrument(s) |
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Years active | 1994–present |
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Christopher Lane Conley (born February 29, 1980) is an American musician who is the lead-singer/rhythm guitarist of the rock band Saves the Day. He was the only remaining original member as well as major artistic contributor throughout their career.
In May 2021, Conley was faced with abuse and grooming allegations. In a statement posted on Equal Vision Records' social media accounts, Conley took responsibility for some of his actions named in the allegations. [1]
Conley formed a band with a group of classmates at Princeton Day School. [2] The band was originally titled Indifference, but later renamed Sefler. Conley has cited some of his early influences as the Smiths, Led Zeppelin, Billy Joel, Superchunk, the Smashing Pumpkins, Sunny Day Real Estate, Archers of Loaf, Screeching Weasel, Jawbreaker, Gorilla Biscuits and Lifetime. [3]
Sefler was originally composed of Conley, Bryan Newman, Chris Zampella and Justin Gaylord. They recorded a 3-track 7" entitled "13 Hours of Everything" one afternoon in a friend's basement. They then recorded a nine-track demo at Trax East Studio in New Jersey. While recording, a friend of the band (and later bassist), Sean McGrath, suggested that they change their name to Saves the Day, which they did.[ citation needed ]
Saves the Day signed to Equal Vision Records and recorded their first album Can't Slow Down, which was released in 1998 during their first US tour alongside bands Bane and Countervail. Lyrically the album included idealistic dreams, feeling inadequate, honesty and unhappiness, which reflected Conley's life at the time. The style of music is often considered very similar to that of the band Lifetime. [4]
In 1999, the band released their second album Through Being Cool . With this album, Conley's lyrics started becoming morbid and corporeal, and the style of music changed into a more pop punk sound. Aged 19 and 20, he started listening to the Beatles and has cited them as the main influence for In Reverie . [3]
During the writing of Sound the Alarm, Conley was heavily influenced by Bad Brains, The Damned, The Misfits and The Stooges. Conley, with Saves the Day, has released four other albums. Lyrically, all are considered similar except for In Reverie, which is a more positive album. Conley cites a lack of turmoil in his life at the time as the cause of the change in tone. [5] He commented in Rolling Stone magazine that Saves the Day's release Sound the Alarm , is "about the black clouds inside my mind; It was these intense fears and paranoia and diluted thoughts that were eating me alive. It was utter insanity." in regards to the failure of In Reverie and subsequent release from DreamWorks. [6]
While there are no plans for any solo recordings, Conley and David Soloway have toured throughout the USA, playing acoustic versions of Saves the Day songs. [7] [8] Conley, and an army of committed fans recently have posted performances via the band's website, the band's official YouTube account and elsewhere on the YouTube site. Conley also finished up a solo three week acoustic tour with Matt Pryor of The Get Up Kids. Beginning in 2009, Conley joined fellow front men Dustin Kensrue of Thrice, Matt Pryor and Anthony Raneri from the band Bayside to form the Where's The Band? tour, where each play acoustic renditions of fan favorites. On December 1, 2010, Conley announced he would be opening as a solo act for Dashboard Confessional, on the West Coast end of the "swiss army romance tour" In January. This is Following his East Coast touring on the "Where's the band? Tour" in December.[ citation needed ]
In 2008, Conley lent his voice to Forgive Durden's musical project Razia's Shadow: A Musical as the character "Toba The Tura".[ citation needed ]
Two Tongues is a collaborative project between Conley, former Saves the Day guitarist David Soloway, Max Bemis and Coby Linder of Say Anything. Their debut album hit shelves February 3, 2009.
In Fall of 2010, Two Tongues made their first performances as a surprise in the middle of Say Anything's set each night of the Motion City Soundtrack, Say Anything, and Saves the Day tour. They performed the song "Crawl". Arun bali (current guitarist of Saves the Day) played guitar, Kenny Vasoli (of The Starting Line, and Person L) played bass, Jake Turner (of Say Anything) played guitar as well, Coby Linder played drums, while Chris Conley, and Max Bemis sang.[ citation needed ]
Conley worked with The Promise Hero to record a demo at his home studio "The Electric Ladybug". Conley has also co-produced albums such as Dr Manhattan's album Jam Dreams.
In May 2021, Conley was accused of sexual misconduct and child grooming by fan of his. Among the allegations included claims that Conley sent unsolicited nude photographs and lured him into a relationship. [9] Conley admitted to "making an unacceptable number of inappropriate missteps causing irreversible harm" and said "I am truly ashamed and embarrassed by my abhorrent behavior." Equal Vision Records, which released Saves the Day and 9, stated "We are working diligently to uncover the truth behind what happened and our actions moving forward will reflect what we are able to find." [10]
Saves the Day is an American rock band formed in Princeton, New Jersey, formed in 1997. The band currently consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Chris Conley, guitarist Arun Bali, bassist Rodrigo Palma, and drummer Claudio Rivera.
Through Being Cool is the second studio album by American rock band Saves the Day, released on November 2, 1999, by Equal Vision. The songs on Through Being Cool were written while the band members attended New York University. The album was recorded in 11 days and represented the band's transition from a melodic hardcore sound to a more pop punk style. It was produced by Steve Evetts at Trax East Recording Studio in South River, New Jersey. The band's members dropped out of college to tour alongside Snapcase, New Found Glory, Hot Water Music, and Face to Face, among others. A music video was filmed for the song "Shoulder to the Wheel."
Maxim Adam Bemis is an American musician, best known as the lead singer and primary songwriter of the rock band Say Anything. He sang alongside Chris Conley in the supergroup Two Tongues. He plays alongside his wife Sherri Dupree-Bemis under the name Perma, and is a comic book writer, chiefly for Marvel Comics.
Stay What You Are is the third studio album from American rock band Saves the Day, released in 2001. The album received positive reviews from critics at the time of its release and remains an influential album in the emo and pop punk genres. It has been described as "channel[ling] the thrill of the pop punk, the intellect of indie rock, and the raw emotion of emo all at once." Lead single "At Your Funeral" charted in the United Kingdom and Scotland.
Equal Vision Records is an independent record label based in Albany, New York. It was founded in the early 1990s by Ray Cappo, singer for the punk bands Youth of Today, Shelter, and Better Than a Thousand.
Bane is an American hardcore punk band that began in 1995 as a side project between Aaron Dalbec and Damon Bellorado. Dalbec approached Matt Firestone to sing and they played under the moniker of Gateway for a few shows, before Firestone parted ways to focus on other projects. Dalbec then approached Aaron Bedard about singing for Bane. They went into the studio in December 1995 with a few friends and released a five-song demo. The next year saw the release of their first EP, and many shows throughout central Massachusetts. In early 1997, Bane released Free to Think, Free to Be EP, and in 1998 the band released the Holding This Moment 7" and CD collection, and embarked upon their first US tour. Like many other hardcore bands, Bane are known for their promotion of tolerance and unity within the scene.
Can't Slow Down is the debut album by American rock band Saves the Day, released on August 11, 1998, by Equal Vision Records. The band formed in late 1997.
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.
Ups & Downs: Early Recordings and B-Sides is a B-Side compilation album by Saves the Day, released on Vagrant Records on August 24, 2004.
Sound the Alarm is the fifth studio album by American rock band Saves the Day. After signing to major label DreamWorks Records, the band released In Reverie in late 2003. Shortly afterwards DreamWorks Records was absorbed by Interscope Records, resulting in the band being dropped from label. After completing some songs in early 2005, the band was aiming to record in May, hoping to release the album in the fall. Pre-production took place in early August with recording being done at the band's own studio, Electric Ladybug Studios with Steve Evetts as the producer. After recording wrapped up in October, the band immediately undertook a 47-date US tour. Sound the Alarm, along with the later records Under the Boards (2007) and Daybreak (2011) form a trilogy whose theme is self-discovery.
Say Anything is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. The band was formed in 2000 by Max Bemis and his friends, and within two years, they had self-released two EPs and a full-length album.
Under the Boards is the sixth studio album by the American rock band Saves the Day.
The discography of Say Anything, an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Say Anything is composed of Max Bemis, Coby Linder (drums), Jake Turner, Jeff Turner, and Parker Case. They have released eight studio albums, four EPs, and seven singles. In addition, they have appeared on numerous compilation albums and have recorded many tracks that were never officially released.
Two Tongues is an American indie rock side project/supergroup, consisting of members of Say Anything and Saves the Day, along with David Soloway, a former guitarist with Saves the Day.
Say Anything is the fourth full-length studio album by American rock band Say Anything.
Daybreak is the seventh studio album by the American rock band Saves the Day. This album is the band's first without long-time guitarist David Soloway since 1998, and their first with guitarist Arun Bali and bass guitarist Rodrigo Palma. The album also features Spencer Peterson on drums for the first time, before leaving the band prior to the album's release.
...Is a Real Boy is the second studio album by American rock band Say Anything, released on August 3, 2004.
Saves the Day is the eighth studio album released by rock band Saves the Day. It was released September 17, 2013 on Rory Records, an imprint of Equal Vision Records, created by Say Anything frontman Max Bemis. The album was well received from music critics, praising the energy, diversity, and change in tone, although opinion was more divided than previous releases from fans.
Hebrews is the sixth full-length studio album by American rock band Say Anything. On March 25, the band announced via their label, Equal Vision Records' blog that their new record entitled Hebrews, titled after front-man Max Bemis's Jewish lineage, would be released on June 10, 2014. Early on in the recording process, it was announced that the album would be self-produced by Bemis, and engineered by Garron DuPree. On April 24, the first single from the album was released, titled "Six Six Six" via billboard.com, along with more details concerning the ambitious production and release of the upcoming record. Most notably, front-man Max Bemis confessed that the forthcoming album features production that had been unprecedented to the band - the album features no guitars, and instead replaces traditional guitar-based riffs with orchestral string arrangements while maintaining the punk-influenced drive that has been attributed to the band in the past.
I the Mighty is an American rock band based out of San Francisco, California, formed in 2007. As of 2019, the band has released two singles, four EPs, and four studio albums. Their debut wide-release album, Satori, peaked at #10 on the Billboard Heatseekers Charts. As of July 2020, the band is taking an indefinite hiatus.