The Saps

T he Saps take whatever they want, and baby, they want you. In a world overflowing with bands begging for that next level of success, The Saps have sidestepped the groveling stage and proceeded directly to the main stage. With the release of their second full-length album C’mon Already, Start A Fire, one of Chicago’s best live acts prepares to take the rest of the world by storm. You can call The Saps ambitious; you can call The Saps audacious; and you can call The Saps the 6th best rock n roll band in the world.
On the heels of The Saps’ decidedly country-punk first album Finally, A Band You Can Trust, The Saps have taken a new direction with C’mon Already Start A Fire. With ten songs clocking in at a combined thirty minutes, C’mon Already, Start A Fire is a pop rock masterpiece overflowing with clever lyrics, bittersweet melodies, and unforgettable hooks. Upon first listen, you will fall in love with The Saps and great songs like Coup de Grace, Making Connections, and Broke My Spine. Released on March 27, 2007 through Carrot Top Distribution (physical) and The Orchard (digital), C’mon Already, Start A Fire is becoming one of the best albums of 2007.
As early as 2000, The Saps established themselves as heavyweights of the Chicago live scene with reckless performances, inspiring endless thrashing, breakneck-pace drinking, and roaring laugher all at the same time. Lead singer and songwriter Dan Lastick is the ringleader of this sauced debauchery, adopting foot-on-monitor rock regality just as gracefully as he makes up gibberish when he forgets the bridge. Dan Menoni adds a roaring fire and brimstone of guitars to the mix, while bassist Dan Padgett and drummer Ryan Whitacre anchor The Saps to the stage.
With the release of Finally, A Band You Can Trust in 2003, The Saps fortified their position as one of the best bands in the Midwest, playing great shows with the likes of Jet, Th’ Legendary Shackshakers, and The Tossers. All the while, The Saps have been expanding their regular touring radius to include most of the Midwest, including St. Louis, Indianapolis, Kalamazoo, and Cincinnati. With a loyal Midwestern following in tact, The Saps have begun to place a more national emphasis on touring, making their first appearance at the CMJ Music Marathon in New York City in 2006.
C’mon Already, Start A Fire also caught the attention of CMJ online. Coup de Grace is currently featured in the Download This section of CMJ.com. Coup de Grace isn’t the only Saps song getting attention though. Cicero, You Bought It Now, Hospital, and Coup de Grace were all selected to appear on MTV’s Reunited: Real World Las Vegas series. With all this great attention combined with numerous glowing reviews, The Saps are positioned with knees bent at the edge of the nation’s diving board, ready to cannonball their way into the hearts of fans across the country. As they enter the recording studio this summer and prepare for more national touring in the fall, The Saps are ready to take what they want..
Press For C'mon Already - Start A Fire
Spin Magazine:
"The Saps' forthcoming LP has roots in alt-country of the energetic sort, as if Wilco recorded A.M. on a sugar high and proceeded to invite Stephen Malkmus over for a havoc-wreaking play-date."
USA Today:
"Clever pop. Very impressive."
Three Imaginary Girls:
"Chicago’s The Saps have made one heck of a record with 'C’mon Already, Start A Fire.' The band hits a home run lyrically as well as musically. Hope The Saps have their suitcases packed, because they’ve made a thoroughly enjoyable album that deserves national attention."
Amplifier Magazine:
"This is what all your favorite bands sounded like before they got too old to care."
New Haven Register:
"Beginning with the fractured and sugar-coated 'Coup De Grace,' the 10-track record never lets up, providing hook after hook after hook. 'C'mon Already' can now take its rightful place as the album of the summer. Combining more popdriven alt country with the streamlined sound of The Cars, The Saps start out strong, and for 30 minutes the quartet has the listener in the palm of its hand."
The Daily Tarheel:
"'C'mon Already - Start a Fire' is a successful attempt at rock and irony without crossing the line into overemotional jams. It's simply fun to listen to."
Chicago Reader:
You'll just have to read this one. Plenty of backhanded compliments and flattering insults!
St. Louis Riverfront Times:
C'Mon Already — Start a Fire tempers the snark with some convincing Beach Boy confections, Nuggets-style psych-garage, and a little country picking — even if it's on a song about copping a feel at an art-porn flick. They make romantic metaphors out of hospital phobia and fish slipping off hooks, but they mostly make pop-punk for the right reason: for fun.
Asheville Disclaimer:
"Is it too early to start naming my favorite albums of the year? Probably. All the same, I honestly can't imagine that there'll be ten albums in the next nine months that'll grab me more intensely than this one does. Each of the ten tracks on "C'mon..." possesses a keen distinction from the rest without sounding incongruous. The album just jells perfectly as few do. There are no two songs that sound anything alike and there's not a stinker in the bunch."
Erasing Clouds:
"The album starts snappy and eventually slows into a tone more associated with introspection, but without losing any of the most charming elements: the edgy guitars, the singalong melodies, the expression of life's essential f'd-up nature which lingers throughout, summed up in 'Making Connections' all-purpose line 'it's sad but true / but it's what we do.'"
UR Chicago Magazine:
"The album features a set of 10 songs that alternate between alt-country (“Hospital” and “Cicero”) and grungy indie rock (“Dead Friends” and “Ohio”) with a bit of pop mixed in (“The Way You Want Me To” and “You Bought It Now”)...a unique, somewhat screwball sound."
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CONTACT:
Mark Zelasko
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