Say Anything's music falls into the indie rock, emo and pop punk genres. They can most easily be identified by their sardonic, literary sense of humor balanced out with a sense of intense catharsis. The band, as well as certain artists within the indie/punk scene such as Cursive, MewithoutYou, Brand New, Bright Eyes and Manchester Orchestra tend to straddle the line between older fans and a youth oriented audience. Their style incorporates pieces of hardcore, bombastic arena rock and post-punk. Bemis, the primary songwriter of Say Anything, stated, "I believe that an artist should let his art be appreciated by anyone who's interested and not 'play favourites'." He also said that lyrics are "based on experience." However, due to Bemis' bipolar disorder and his resulting mentality, the themes of the songs are often surreal, bleak, irreverent, personal, and autobiographical. Other themes include distaste with snobbery and hypocrisy. Drugs and mankind's relationship with drugs are also a popular subject in Say Anything's songs, especially on "In Defense of the Genre", which was written and recorded after Bemis' several drug-fueled breakdowns. Specifically, "Admit It!!!", "Yellow Cat (Slash) Red Cat", "Try To Remember, Forget", "The Writhing South", and "Sorry, Dudes, My Bad" include references to Bemis' drug usage. In general, Say Anything tends to draw inspiration from alienation from a flawed society but confers a sense of hope.