Stay What You Are

Through Being Cool, Saves the Day’s second album, perfected the New Jersey band’s hardcore-infused melodic punk, helping to introduce emotions other than contempt or juvenile humor to the Warped Tour set. This follow-up almost functions as a road not taken for emo. The guitars ring and breathe instead of chug like most pop-punk bands from the ‘90s onward. Chris Conley, whose keening voice is in some ways archetypal of emo, incorporates some creative distance into his singing. The songs even swing and groove their way around classic pop music bridges while Stay What You Are thrives on looking outside a window that the impending mainstream success of emo would mostly slam shut.