PropertyOfZack had the chance to talk with Chris Conley of Saves The Day just a week ago, and it turned out to be one of our best interviews yet. Chris and I discussed the response to the 1984 EP, the delays for Daybreak, signing to an indie label, and more. It’s a fantastic read, enjoy it!

The Dashboard solo dates for you have kicked off, but right before the New Year you went out on the Where’s The Band Tour for the third time. How were those dates for you?
The Where’s The Band tours are always so much fun. We love travelling together, just the four of us in a van. It’s sort of like a road trip and we get to share stories from our collective experiences. It’s a lot of fun. We love doing them. This year we decided to cover each other’s songs, so we added a new level of friendship to the whole thing.
POZ: Plus Matt’s kids joined you.
Chris: Yeah, that’s so much fun. It’s like four men and a baby.

I believe you played a track or two off of the 1984 EP on those dates, but definitely did on the Say Anything tour. How have fans been reacting to the new tracks and the EP in general?
They seem to really like the new stuff, which is great. We’re very proud of what we’ve accomplished with the album, and we were desperate to get it into our fan’s hands. So putting out the EP was a nice way to just show them what we were working on and fortunately they all seem to really like it.

Like I mentioned, tonight is your second date on the Dashboard Confessional anniversary tour. How was the first show last night and how excited are you for the rest of the dates?
It was a great night last night in Denver. It was such a blast to play with Chris again. We haven’t really gotten to tour together for almost ten years. It just felt so good getting to share the stage with Chris again, and watching him play has always been this mesmerizing experience and getting to be a part of the show is an honor. I’m so excited for the rest of the dates.

It really hasn’t been too long since you were announced as support. Did it come together last minute?
I think I’ve known about it since late last year. I guess it was sort of last minute. Maybe a month ago I was confirmed.

Are you doing a similar set to the Where’s The Band tour?
Yeah, I tend to just stick to the Saves The Day songs that translate best acoustically. Some of the songs are just crying out for a backbeat, but some of the songs sound really good acoustically, so I just kind of stick to the campfire songs.

Could we see more short solo runs in the future if the opportunities come up?
Yeah, I would love to. It’s a lot of fun getting to do it. I definitely prefer playing with the band because I just have fun with those guys. It’s more rocking at a rock show, so it’s a bit more of .a release, but I really enjoy the connection with the audience at these intimate acoustic shows. I’d love to do more.

Switching gears a bit, it was announced in the fall that Daybreak has finally been completed. Has the mixing and mastering process been finished as well?
The mixing is all done. We’re finalizing the deal with the label right now, and once that’s done it gets mastered and then the release date will be announced. It’s coming together.

How many tracks are we looking at?
It’s eleven songs and it runs over 40 minutes. It’s the longest Saves The Day album.

Was it an easy choice going back to a label after being on your own for a bit?
Yeah, for sure. Labels are a blessing. I really think that without labels it makes it incredibly difficult for bands to fund their operations. With a label behind you that supports your efforts, you can sort of just rely on your own skill in the realm of music as opposed to trying to think about business plans. It’s much better for me. It’s more liberating. I just get to play the guitar.

Is a late spring/early summer release date looking good?
Yeah, I would say so. Late spring.

Arun tweeted that it took just under 500 days to complete Daybreak since work on it commenced. The first two records in this set were done in two consecutive years, but it’s been four since a release. Can you discuss all the delays a bit?
Oh yeah, for sure. We were set to begin demoing and recording in 2008. David Soloway, after years of touring, just finally kind of realized that he wanted to be in one place and not have to go through the ups and downs of touring so much. So when we parted ways it threw a wrench into the operation just logistically. There was no guitar player there to play on the album and demos. That was in the summer of 2008, and then in late 2008 David finally left the band. We played our last show together. I began demoing for Daybreak with Manny and Durijah, who are our former drummer and bass players, who departed to go to Glassjaw. We had demos at the end of 2008. All but two of the songs were demoed for Daybreak, and then at the very beginning of 2009 we got Arun Bali to join on guitar and so after a spring tour with Alkaline Trio we recorded the album for real in my home studio. Three-quarters of the way through the process, Glassjaw announced a massive world tour and Manny and Durijah departed the band to go back with their original band. Of course I totally understood that. Then I just kind of had the gut feeling that I wanted the album to be performed by the people that would be representing the songs live. I just had this gut feeling that I wanted the new rhythm section to play on the album. So I made a bit of a crazy decision to scrap the entire recording and wait till we had a rhythm section again. I’m really glad we did that because I think the album has more of a spark behind it because there’s this new energy being breathed into the band with the new guys. The reason it took so long was just logistics. This guy left, then these guys left, and then we had to find a new bass player and a new drummer. It just took a while.

Saves The Day is always switching band members, but is this the first time that it has ever really hindered plans?
Yeah, for sure. We’re usually at the end of a touring cycle when things start falling apart between different members in the band, and then we decide to part ways. And then you’re only beginning to write for the next album. This one was different because I was already done writing the album and ready to record it, but people started leaving because of other obligations so it was definitely the first time that the personnel changes have affected the schedule of our music being released.

Did that definitely give you more of a time to perfect it and be more happy with the end product?
Yeah, it wound up being a blessing in disguise being able to record the album completely and then start again. It was almost like we just did a first draft, and then we got to listen to it, sit with it, think about it, feel out different transitions and dynamics, and we really got to flesh out the songs when we went back into the studio for a second time. We definitely had much more of an idea of what we wanted the songs to be. It would up being great. I think I’d like to do that in the demo process in the future, to make a complete version of the album and then actually start the recording in earnest. It was great to actually be able to look at those first drafts and improve on them.

Was there any concern from you regarding fans and the wait that they have had to endure?
I feel bad that it’s taken so long. Of course, I’m excited about the songs so I just want to get them out there. That’s partly why we did the 1984 EP. We were excited about our new music and we were aware of the anticipation. We just wanted to get something out there so people could hear it. I do have an awareness of how long it’s been and I wish there were things that could have been done along the way to speed it up, but I think it just happened that way sort of organically and without anyone being able to predict the twists and turns. It’s down now and it’s definitely a really solid album. I’m really proud of it.

Daybreak, which has been said to be the “acceptance” part of the trilogy, ends the three-part concept series. Are you glad to almost be putting the concept behind you?
I’m excited to wrap up the trilogy because it was an enormous undertaking for me. I really just wanted to drag the depths of my soul and pull myself out of the ditch. I was just sort of existentially beaten down by the bleak reality of the world. I think my heart was just shattered, so I had to start from square one and pick myself up bit by bit. The trilogy is my way of venting the mental and emotional process as I’m sort of putting myself back together. I was really low down and kind of jaded and bitter and judgmental. I just didn’t want to be that way. I have a family and I just want to be the best role model, I can be, I want to be the best Chris I can be, I want to be the best husband and father I want to be, and I didn’t want to be some bitter, depressed guy that’s mad at the world. I just wanted to get to the bottom of it. I feel so proud of the trilogy and of just the honesty that I was able to release all these feelings. There’s a lot of dark stuff on the first two albums, but Daybreak turns all of that into growth. It’s as if the first two albums were sort of the fertilizing of the flower.

Is it kind of the most gratifying of feelings to not only be able to put out music that your fans love, but at the same time do a little something for yourself as well?
Yeah, it’s nice. I feel like Saves The Day has always been lucky to do what we want. While over the years it’s definitely created ups and downs in the success of the band, but I am very proud that we’ve always been able to do what we want. It’s a nice thing to feel. Because we are able to do that, all the albums have sort of been my own little pet projects where I get excited about certain new chords or certain new phrases or sounds or musical patterns. I feel really lucky that I’ve always been able to just sort of entertain myself doing it and I hope people will listen. Even though it hasn’t consistently been successful, I’ve always been happy that I’ve been able to do it my way.

Spencer Peterson tracked the drums for the record, but Claudio Rivera replaced him touring wise; will he remain the drummer for Saves The Day for the time being?
Yeah, Claudio is definitely the official drummer. Spencer got whisked away to play with Pete Wentz’s Black Cards. That was unfortunate, but we’re happy for Spencer to get an opportunity like that. We’re definitely thrilled to play with Claudio. He really fits the group dynamic.

A date in Belgium for the Groezrock Festival and another date in London have been revealed. Can we expect a good amount of UK and European dates surrounding those two?
I think there’s only one London show booked. If there’s demand there might be more shows. We haven’t been in so long, it’s hard to gauge.

Is there a chance for any US dates to be announced before then, or will you guys be doing national touring post-Europe?
I think we’ll come back to the US after that and will hold off until after the album is released.

Is there a plan to do a lot of touring throughout the summer?
Yeah, we’d like to be out there during good touring seasons and get to be on a few tours of the United States for Daybreak.

Considering it has been over 500 days since Daybreak started now, has there been a lot more material written that won’t be seen on the release?
Oh yeah, for sure. I’m always toying around with the guitar and coming up with little ideas. It’s fun for me. I do it like as a hobby. I really like to work on tunes. I’m always doing that and am always singing melodies into my phone so I don’t forget them. The next album will not take so long because now that we have the band put together andDaybreak is finished and is coming out and we’ll have a label behind us, we can get back on a normal schedule with releases.

Is the label an indie or a major?
It’s indie.

Are you hoping that this era of the band will stick around a little longer than the past ones?
If I could keep these guys around for the rest of the life of the band I would be very pleased. They are great guys and they are great musicians.

And regarding Two Tongues, have you and Max set any time to get working again?
Yeah, we have an idea for the next Two Tongues album. We’re going to start sending each other little Garageband demos this year. That’ll be on the horizon as well.

There is supposed to be a tour for that as well, right?
Yeah, once there is another album it would be a perfect time to get the tour out because we’ll have a good body of work.