Column: Emo-tastic

Hey alright, so I've decided to tackle a subject that I've had a bit of a love-hate relationship with over the years. It's with a "xmostxbleedingheartx" that I tackle the ever tempestuous subject of (deep breath) emo. I've checked my cred at the door, and I look forward to the dirty looks this should inspire.

If the word "emo" sounds like the dumbest word you've ever heard, don't worry, it is. But despite sounding like a word used by toddlers and the mentally incapable, emo is actually a vibrant and lucrative form of music with its own subculture and rules. When I was really into this genre, it meant listening to bands with funny names like The Promise Ring, Braid, Cap'n Jazz, and Boy's Life. Now, it means listening to bands with even funnier names like Fall Out Boy, Panic! At the Disco, Dashboard Confessional, and My Chemical Romance and keeping up with the virtual Jonses on Myspace. Regardless of what I think about these bands, the fact is that they're considered emo, whether my tortured 15-year-old self likes it or not. Even so, I have a column and you don't. So what follows is a list of "emo" records that are good despite being emo.

Cap'n Jazz - Analphabetapolothology (1998)

Cap'n Jazz had barely graduated high school when the band called it quits in 1995, and despite containing a roster that would go on to form such bands as Joan of Arc, American Football, Owen, and most prominently, The Promise Ring, the members would never really be able to live down the reputation that this release gave them. On its sole and perpetually out of print LP Shmap'n Shmazz (included on this 1998 Jade Tree reissue), the band would lay the template for what was soon to be called Midwest emo. Childlike wordplay and reckless enthusiasm and instrumentation aside, Cap'n Jazz was messy, young, and full of life.

Native Nod - Today Puberty, Tomorrow the World (1996)

A little known curiosity for folks who want to dig a little deeper, Native Nod was a band from New Jersey whose members (most prominently Chris Leo, brother of mod-rock journeyman Ted) would go on to form the Van Pelt and the Sin Eaters. While the music here is a touch amateurish, it's nonetheless required listening for those of us searching out something a bit more artsy. Leo's unhinged wail is what holds things together here, while the rest of the band bash and propel the songs ahead.

The Promise Ring - Nothing Feels Good (1997)

For a heck of a lot of people, emo begins and ends with the Promise Ring. What the Promise Ring did, essentially, was smooth the rough edges out of hardcore and distill the sound of pop down to one chord repeating ad nauseam. Some people loved it, others hated it. Add to this Davey von Bohlen's lisp-ridden croon and you can imagine why this stuff attracted as many as it repelled.

Rites of Spring - End on End (1985)

Someone would kill me if I didn't include this, so here it is. Right around the time hardcore shows became vicious slugfests and the forefathers of the genre (Black Flag) had abandoned it for sludge metal, Rites of Spring came along and, utilizing a page from the Husker Du playbook, broke hardcore out of its limited range into something much more panoramic. The guitars rush and tumble, but it's Guy Picciotto's voice, a hoarse and throaty moan, which would go on to influence a thousand singers in a thousand different bands.

Boy's Life - Departures and Landfalls (1996)

Ragged and out of tune, Boy's Life seemed like a desolate Midwestern wind that left the fields dry. The songs here meander and search, occasionally hitting pockets of intensity but also falling into passages of quiet tranquility. The lyrics are half-formed and seemingly sung from another room, adding to the feverish dream quality of the record. Though it's now out of print, those who are looking to know what emo was all about in 1996 would be well advised to search this one out. Or you could just ask me for a copy.

The Get Up Kids Four Minute Mile (1997)

I hate the Get Up Kids. Matt Pryor clearly had a sizable chunk of his frontal lobe removed shortly after forming the group. But regardless, the band's first and only worthwhile release remains a pretty dramatic stylistic shift away from the self-consciously arty post-hardcore inspired sound that emo largely was, into the super-fast, sugary rush it was to become. The record sounds like a bunch of Midwestern boys trying to be Superchunk, but not being cool enough. Still, if you want to know where we get New Found Glory from, this might be a decent starting point.