Emo
Emo
| Emo | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins: | Hardcore punk, indie rock, alternative rock |
| Cultural origins: | Mid 1980s, Washington, D.C. |
| Typical instruments: | Vocals -Lead and Rhythm Guitars - Bass - Drums |
| Mainstream popularity: | Sporadically through the 1980s and ’90s, growing in the early 2000s |
| Fusion genres | |
| Post-hardcore - Screamo | |
| Regional scenes | |
| Midwestern emo | |
| Other topics | |
| List of emo groups - Timeline of alternative rock | |
Emo (pronounced /ˈiːmoʊ/) is a style of rock music
which describes several independent variations of music with common
stylistic roots. As such, use of the term has been the subject of much
debate. In the mid-1980s, the term emo described a subgenre of hardcore punk which originated in the Washington, DC music scene. In later years, the term emocore, short for "emotional hardcore", was also used to describe the emotional performances of bands in the Washington DC scene and some of the offshoot regional scenes such as Rites of Spring, Embrace, One Last Wish, Beefeater, Gray Matter, Fire Party, and later, Moss Icon. (In more recent years, the term "emotive hardcore" entered the lexicon to describe the period.)
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Starting in the mid-1990s, the term emo began to refer to the indie scene that followed the influences of Fugazi, which itself was an offshoot of the first wave of emo. Bands including Sunny Day Real Estate and Texas Is the Reason had a more indie rock
style of emo, more melodic and less chaotic. The so-called "indie emo"
scene survived until the late 1990s, as many of the bands either
disbanded or shifted to mainstream styles. As the remaining indie emo
bands entered the mainstream, newer bands began to emulate the
mainstream style. As a result, the term "emo" became a vaguely defined
identifier rather than a specific genre of music.
History
First wave (1985-1994)
In 1985 in Washington, D.C., Ian MacKaye and Guy Picciotto,
veterans of the DC hardcore music scene, decided to shift away from
what they saw as the constraints of the basic style of hardcore and the
escalating violence within the scene. They took their music in a more
personal direction with a far greater sense of experimentation,
bringing forth MacKaye’s Embrace and Picciotto’s Rites of Spring. The style of music developed by Embrace and Rites of Spring soon became its own sound. (Hüsker Dü’s 1984 album Zen Arcade
is often cited as a major influence for the new sound.) As a result of
the renewed spirit of experimentation and musical innovation that
developed the new scene, the summer of 1985 soon came to be known in
the scene as "Revolution Summer".[1]
Where the term emo actually originated is uncertain, but members of Rites of Spring mentioned in a 1985 interview in Flipside Magazine
that some of their fans had started using the term to describe their
music. By the early 90s, it was not uncommon for the early DC scene to
be referred to as emo-core, though it’s unclear when the term shifted.
Within a short time, the D.C. emo sound began to influence other bands such as Moss Icon, Nation of Ulysses, Dag Nasty, Soulside, Shudder To Think, Fire Party, Marginal Man, and Gray Matter, many of which were released on MacKaye’s Dischord Records. The original wave of DC emo finally ended in late 1994 with the collapse of Hoover.
As the D.C. scene expanded, other scenes began to develop with a similar sound and DIY ethic. In San Diego in the early 1990s, Gravity Records released a number of records in the hardcore emo style. Bands of the period included Heroin, Indian Summer, Angel Hair, Antioch Arrow, Universal Order of Armageddon, Swing Kids, and Mohinder. Also in California, Ebullition Records released records by bands of the same vein, such as Still Life and Portraits of Past, as well as more traditional hardcore punk bands, all having various social and political themes in common.
At the same time, in the New York/New Jersey area, bands such as Native Nod, Merel, 1.6 Band, Policy of 3, Rye Coalition, Iconoclast and Quicksand[2] were feeling the same impulse. Many of these bands were involved with the ABC No Rio club scene in New York, itself a response to the violence and stagnation in the scene and with the bands that played at CBGBs,
the only other small venue for hardcore in New York at the time. Much
of this wave of emo, particularly the San Diego scene, began to shift
towards a more chaotic and aggressive form of emo, nicknamed screamo.
By and large, the more hardcore style of emo began to fade as many
of the early era groups disbanded. However, aspects of the sound
remained in bands such as Four Hundred Years and Yaphet Kotto. Also, a handful of modern bands continue to reflect emo’s hardcore origins, including Circle Takes the Square, Hot Cross, City of Caterpillar, Funeral Diner, and A Day in Black and White.
Following the disbanding of Embrace in 1986, MacKaye established the influential group Fugazi,
and was soon joined by Picciotto. While Fugazi itself is not typically
categorized as emo, the band’s music is cited as an influence by
popular second-wave bands such as Sunny Day Real Estate,[3] Braid,[4] and Jimmy Eat World.[5]
Early influence
In California - particularly in the Bay Area - bands such as Jawbreaker and Samiam
began to incorporate influences from the "D.C. sound" into a poppier
framework; The former’s music was described by Andy Greenwald as "a
sonic shot-gun marriage between the bristly heft of hardcore, the
song-writing sensibility of Cali pop-punk, and the tortured artistry of
D.C. emo".[6] Other bands soon reflected the same sense of rough melody, including Still Life and Long Island’s Garden Variety.
Also in the early 90s, bands like Lifetime reacted in their own way to the demise of youth crew
styled straight-edge hardcore and desired to seek out a new direction.
While their music was often classified as emo, it was also considered
to be melodic hardcore.
In response to the more metal direction their hardcore peers were
taking, Lifetime initially decided to slow down and soften their music,
adding more personal lyrics. The band later added a blend of speed,
aggression, and melody that defined their sound. Lifetime’s sound,
lyrics, and style were a virtual blueprint for later bands, including Saves the Day, Taking Back Sunday, and The Movielife.
Second wave (1994–2000)
As Fugazi and the Dischord Records scene became more and more
popular in the indie underground of the early 1990s, new bands began to
spring up. Combining Fugazi with the post-punk influences of Mission of Burma and Hüsker Dü, a new genre of emo emerged.
Perhaps the key moment was the release of the album Diary by Sunny Day Real Estate in 1994. Given Sub Pop’s then-recent success with Nirvana and Soundgarden,
the label was able to bring much wider attention to the release than
the typical indie release, including major advertisements in Rolling Stone. The heavier label support allowed the band to secure performances on TV shows, including The Jon Stewart Show. As a result, the album received widespread national attention.
As more and more people learned about the band, particularly via the fledgling World Wide Web, the band was given the tag emo.
Even where Fugazi had not been considered emo, the new generation of
fans shifted the tag from the earlier hardcore style to this more indie rock
style of emo. It was not uncommon for Sunny Day and its peers to be
labeled with the full "emo-core". However, when pressed to explain
"emo", many fans split the genre into two brands: the "hardcore emo"
practiced in the early days and the newer "indie emo".
In the years that followed, several major regions of "indie emo"
emerged. The most significant appeared in the Midwest in the mid-90s.
Many of the bands were influenced by the same sources, but with an even
more tempered sound. This brand of emo was often referred to as
"Midwestern emo" given the geographic location of the bands, with
several of the best-known bands hailing from the areas around Chicago, Kansas City, Omaha and Milwaukee. The initial bands in this category included Boy’s Life and Cap’n Jazz. In ensuing years, bands such as The Promise Ring, Braid, Elliott, Bright Eyes, Cursive, and The Get Up Kids emerged from the same scene and gained national attention.
The area around Phoenix, Arizona became another major scene for emo. Inspired by Fugazi and Sunny Day Real Estate, former punk rockers Jimmy Eat World began stirring emo influences into their music, eventually releasing the album Static Prevails in 1996. The album was arguably the first emo record released by a major label, as the band had signed with Capitol Records in 1995.
Other bands that followed the "indie emo" model included Colorado’s Christie Front Drive, New York’s Texas Is the Reason and Rainer Maria, California’s Knapsack and Sense Field, Baltimore’s Cross My Heart, Austin’s Mineral, and Boston’s Piebald and Jejune.
As "indie emo" became more widespread, a number of acts who
otherwise would not have been considered part of the "indie emo" scene
began to be referred to as emo because of their similarity to the sound. The hallmark example was Weezer’s 1996 album Pinkerton, which, years later, was considered one of the defining "emo" records of the 90s.[7]
As the wide range of emo bands began to attract notoriety on a
national scale, a number of indie labels attempted to document the
scene. Many emo bands of the late 90s signed to indie labels including Jade Tree Records, Saddle Creek, and Big Wheel Recreation. In 1997, California’s Crank! Records released a compilation titled (Don’t Forget to) Breathe, which featured tracks by notable indie emo bands such as The Promise Ring, Christie Front Drive, Mineral, Knapsack, and Arizona’s Seven Storey Mountain. In 1998, Deep Elm Records released the first installment in a series of compilations called Emo Diaries, featuring tracks from Jimmy Eat World, Samiam, and Jejune. In 1999, famed 70s compilation label K-tel released an emo compilation titled Nowcore: The Punk Rock Evolution, which included tracks by Texas Is the Reason, Mineral, The Promise Ring, Knapsack, Braid and At the Drive-In among others.
With the late-90s emo scene being more national than regional, major
labels began to turn their attention toward signing emo bands with the
hopes of capitalizing on the genre’s popularity. Many bands resisted
the lure, citing their loyalty to the independent mentality of the
scene. Several bands cited what they saw as mistreatment of bands such
as Jawbox and Jawbreaker while they were signed to majors as a reason
to stay away. The conflict felt within many of the courted emo bands
resulted in their break-ups, including Texas Is the Reason and Mineral.
By the end of the decade, the word emo cropped up in mainstream circles. In the summer of 1998, Teen People
magazine ran an article declaring "emo" the newest "hip" style of
music, with The Promise Ring a band worth watching. The independent
nature of the emo scene recoiled at mainstream attention, and many emo
bands shifted their sound in an attempt to isolate themselves from the
genre. In the years that followed, Sunny Day Real Estate opted to shift
to a more prog-rock direction, Jejune aimed for happy pop-rock, and The
Get Up Kids and The Promise Ring released lite-rock albums.
While "indie emo" almost completely ceased to exist by the end of
the decade, many bands still subscribe to the Fugazi / Hüsker Dü model,
including Thursday, The Juliana Theory, and Sparta.
Third wave (2000-present)
At the end of the 1990s, the underground emo scene had almost entirely disappeared. However, the term emo was still being bandied about in mainstream media, almost always attached to the few remaining 90s emo acts, including Jimmy Eat World.
However, towards the end of the 1990s, Jimmy Eat World
had begun to shift in a more mainstream direction. Where Jimmy Eat
World had played emocore-style music early in their career, by the time
of the release of their 2001 album Bleed American, the band had downplayed its emo influences, releasing more pop-oriented singles such as "The Middle" and "Sweetness". As the public had become aware of the word emo
and knew that Jimmy Eat World was associated with it, the band
continued to be referred to as an "emo" band, despite their objections.
Newer bands that sounded like Jimmy Eat World (and, in some cases, like
the more melodic emo bands of the late 90s) were soon included in the
genre.[8]
2003 saw the success of Chris Carrabba, the former singer of emo band Further Seems Forever, and his project Dashboard Confessional.
Despite musically being more aligned to the singer songwriter school,
Carraba found himself part of the emerging "popular" emo scene.
Carrabba’s music featured lyrics founded in deep diary-like outpourings
of emotion. While certainly emotional, the new "emo" had a far greater
appeal amongst adolescents than its earlier incarnations. [9]
With Dashboard Confessional and Jimmy Eat World’s success, major
labels began seeking out similar sounding bands. Just as many bands of
the early-to-mid 1990s were unwillingly lumped under the umbrella of "grunge", some record labels wanted to be able to market a new sound under the word emo.
At the same time, use of the term "emo" expanded beyond the musical
genre, which added to the confusion surrounding the term. The word
"emo" became associated with open displays of strong emotion. Common
fashion styles and attitudes that were becoming idiomatic of fans of
similar "emo" bands also began to be referred to as "emo". As a result,
bands that were loosely associated with "emo" trends or simply
demonstrated emotion began to be referred to as emo.[10]
In an even more expanded way than in the 90s, emo has come to
encompass an extremely wide variety of bands, many of whom have very
little in common. The term has become so broad that it has become
nearly impossible to describe what exactly qualifies as "emo".
Appropriately or not, emo has been used to describe such bands as AFI, Alexisonfire, Brand New, Coheed and Cambria, Fall Out Boy, From First to Last, Funeral for a Friend, Hawthorne Heights, My Chemical Romance, Panic! at the Disco, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Senses Fail, Something Corporate, The Starting Line, Story of the Year, Taking Back Sunday, Thursday, The Used, and Underoath.[11]
The classification of bands as "emo" is often controversial. Fans of
several of the listed bands have recoiled at the use of the "emo" tag,
and have gone to great lengths to explain why they don’t qualify as
"emo". In many cases, the term has simply been attached to them because
of musical similarities, a common fashion sense, or because of the
band’s popularity within the "emo" scene, not because the band adheres
to emo as a music genre.
As a result of the continuing shift of "emo" over the years, a
serious schism has emerged between those who relate to particular eras
of "emo". Those who were closely attached to the hardcore origins
recoil when another type of music is called "emo". Many involved in the
independent nature of both 80s and 90s emo are upset at the perceived
hijacking of the word emo to sell a new generation of major
label music. Regardless, popular culture appears to have embraced the
terms of "emo" far beyond its original intentions.
In a strange twist, screamo, a sub-genre of the new emo, has found greater popularity in recent years through bands such as Thrice and Glassjaw.[12] The term screamo,
however, was used to describe an entirely different genre in the early
1990s, and the new screamo bands more resemble the emo of the early
1990s. Complicating matters further is that several small scenes
devoted to original screamo still exist in the underground. However,
the new use of "screamo" demonstrates how the shift in terms connected
to "emo" has made the varying genres difficult to categorize.
The difficulty in defining "emo" as a genre may have started at the very beginning. In a 2003 interview by Mark Prindle,[13] Guy Picciotto of Fugazi and Rites of Spring
was asked how he felt about "being the creator of the emo genre". He
responded: "I don’t recognize that attribution. I’ve never recognized
‘emo’ as a genre of music. I always thought it was the most retarded
term ever. I know there is this generic commonplace that every band
that gets labeled with that term hates it. They feel scandalized by it.
But honestly, I just thought that all the bands I played in were punk
rock bands. The reason I think it’s so stupid is that - what, like the Bad Brains weren’t emotional? What - they were robots or something? It just doesn’t make any sense to me."
Fashion and stereotype
Emo caricature
Long fringe (bangs) brushed to one side
Emo is also sometimes associated with a certain fashion. The term "emo" is sometimes stereotyped with tight jeans on males and females alike, long fringe (bangs) brushed to one side of the face or over one or both eyes, dyed black, straight hair, tight t-shirts which often bear the names of rock bands (or other designed shirts), studded belts, belt buckles, canvas sneakers or skate shoes or other black shoes (often old and beaten up) and thick, black horn-rimmed glasses.[14][15][16] Emo fashion has changed with time. Early trends included straight, unparted hair (similar to that of Romulans and Vulcans in Star Trek), tightly fitting sweaters, button-down shirts, and work jackets.[citation needed] This fashion has at times been characterized as a fad.[17]
Another example of hair characteristic of emo
In recent years, emo, in the popular media, has been associated with
a stereotype that includes being emotional, sensitive, shy,
introverted, or angsty.[18][19][20] It is also associated with depression, self-injury, and suicide.[21][22]
Criticism
As certain fashion trends and attitudes began to be associated with
"emo", stereotypes emerged that created a specific target for
criticism. In the early years of the "third wave", the criticism was
relatively light-hearted and self-effacing. In ensuing years, the
derision increased dramatically. Male fans of emo found themselves hit
with homosexual slurs, largely a reflection of the style of dress
popular within the "emo scene" and the purported displays of emotion
common in the scene. Complaints pointed to the histrionic manner in which the emotions were expressed.[23]
In October of 2003, Punk Planet contributor Jessica Hopper
leveled the charge that the "third wave" era of emo was sexist. Hopper
argued that where bands such as Jawbox, Jawbreaker and Sunny Day Real
Estate had characterized women in such a way that they were not
"exclusively defined by their absence or lensed through
romantic-specter",[24]
contemporary bands approached relationship issues by "damning the girl
on the other side … its woman-induced misery has gone from being
descriptive to being prescriptive". Regarding the position of women
listening to emo, Hopper went on to note that the music had become
"just another forum where women were locked in a stasis of outside
observation, observing ourselves through the eyes of others".
Critics of modern emo have argued that there is a tendency toward increasingly generic and homogenized style.[25] Many popular bands have attempted to disassociate themselves with the "emo" tag; some have adopted the genre designation post-hardcore.
Despite the criticism, the modern version of emo has maintained
mainstream popularity. However, given the disfavor of the term "emo",
the future of the genre remains unclear.
