In
the summer of 2005, I was talking to a friend about the state of music. Of
course, the subject of Emo came up. This was a friend who actually knew what
Emo was, and we eventually got pissed off beyond all reason. So, I said those
fateful words: "I'm going to make a website about this."
Unfortunately, I was 14 at the time, so, of course, I wasn't exactly mature.
Regardless, what was written worked well. I think the semi-retarded approach to
the subject kept people coming in. However, that bullshit isn't going to cut it
anymore. So, we (Brian, Marissa, and I [Holly]) decided it was about time to
re-write everything. After all, if we're going to be getting this shit out to a
larger audience, it would be better to present as mature.
Contrary
to popular belief, Emo is not short for Emotional, at least not really. It is
not a style, either. It has nothing to do with cutting yourself, or boys with
swooping haircuts taking pictures of themselves. Emo is not about whining about
your problems. It's got nothing to do with your girlfriend breaking up with
you. If you believe that, you're exercising your right to do so. This does not,
however, make you correct.
Emo
is short for Emotional, sort of. It's short for Emotional Hardcore. Say it with
me, folks. And repeat it several times to yourself. The thing I've never gotten
is how people can even begin to believe that it�s short for "Emotional",
because, well, the theme song for Fraggle Rock is emotional, for christ's
sakes.
One
response I usually get, when I say that it's short for Emotional Hardcore, is "Well,
if all music is emotional, wouldn't it just be Hardcore?" I respond with
telling them what the word "Emotional" means, when talking about Emo. The
emotional aspect of Emo comes from the lyrics. They are, of course, emotionally
driven, but usually actually about one emotion or another. It's usually about
anger towards something, or whatever you want. Its instrumentals are brutal and
loud, and seemingly random. They are the instrumental equivalent of screaming
your lungs out.
Another
question I get a lot is, "What if an Emo band got popular? Would it stop being
Emo?" The answer is: No, it wouldn't. In the recent months, Circle Takes The
Square has gotten somewhat popular, thank god.
However,
people need to understand that Emo is essentially DIY punk. It cannot be
mainstream. It can be as popular as it can possibly get. But it's still not
mainstream. When we say DIY, we mean it gets where it gets without corporate
promotion, and it's produced independently. What happens if you happen to see a Yage album at Wal-Mart? You stop taking drugs. This wouldn't
happen. You're probably only going to find their album at, say, an independent
record store. Even those don't always carry what you want. It's usually best to
go with a distribution (or 'distro') website. You'll notice that those sites
rarely charge very much for music, and they usually carry vinyl as well. They're
always worth a look, and I have yet to find a distro that I wouldn't use again.
When
I think about the songs I've heard, only one song comes to mind that's Emo and
about a break-up: Venus & Bacchus by Saetia. But, take note: It isn't a "boo
hoo, my girlfriend broke up with me, I'm gonna whine about it" song. It's about
how much the guy hates what the girl did.
Emo started in the 80s, with a little band by the name of Rites Of Spring. While this is arguable, as the Husker Du album Zen Arcade, which is said to have started the style, came out before Rites Of Spring's End On End album. But I digress. Rites Of Spring were only together from the spring of 1984 through the winter of 1986, but in that span of time, they set the stage for the shape of punk to come. The term Emo started when people at Rites Of Spring concerts started yelling "You're emo!" at them. This is part of why people say Rites Of Spring started Emo. I tend to go with this, partially because I don't like the thought that an album started the genre. It makes more sense that the band themselves did.
Emo
sparked and faded a bit, until the legendary band Moss Icon came along. In my
personal opinion, while Rites Of Spring started the genre, Moss Icon perfected
it. Their album Lyburnum is widely considered one of the best Emo albums
around, as it's the ideal album. In my experience, the music on the album is
perfect for beginners, as it's not too loud, but it's not quiet, either.
Other
bands like Embrace (the US version), Faith, Void, and so on ruled the scene,
blazing the trail for the new subgenre of hardcore.
After
awhile, the sub-movement of Screamo began. Bands like Palatka and Swing Kids
were the new norm. It was loud, fast, and it could easily kill you, if you
weren't careful. This kind of music has become the new norm for Emo bands, but
the unfortunate thing is that, nine times our of ten, it sounds like random
syllables being screamed.
One thing that I don't like is that people talk about "the
waves of emo" This doesn't work, because it usually includes what's considered
Emo today. Yes, genres do change as the years go by. Rock has stopped being
about sex and drugs, and started being more about that and more about
relationships. Rockers have started talking about "making love". But genres do
not become the polar opposite. Does it really make sense that a bunch of guys
screaming could really evolve into one guy with an acoustic guitar? I don't
think so. Sure, Pg. 99 is a vastly different band than, say, Moss Icon, but the
two are in the same genre because of their sound and their content. Sure, Pg.
99 was a band with songs that make your vocal chords bleed just listen to them.
Sure, Moss Icon sounds more like one of today's louder Indie bands, at times.
But the two are, inherently, the same, because of their sound and their
content. Go read the Mall Emo section for more on the subject.
ON THE SUBJECT OF SCREAMO:
The phrase "Post-Emo" (which has been kicking around for awhile) seems to imply that, not only is Emo a dead
genre, but it shares a lot of the traits that Emo has. Now, compare a
band like, say, A Fine Boat, That Coffin! and, say, Taking Back Sunday.
Do they sound anything alike, besides the fact that Taking Back Sunday
can be a bit loud at times? Not really. Or, how about Moss Icon and
Dashboard Confessional? Do they share any major traits? I'm excluding
style and such, I mean lyrics and such. Do they share anything? Not
really. So how can Dashboard be Post-Emo Indie, whey aren't
Post-anything?
In
addition, Emo is a sub-genre. Punk, then hardcore, then Emo. So, then,
Post-Emo Indie would be a sub-genre of Emo. So, how can those bands be
Post-Emo Indie, when they don't truly share any traits with Punk,
Hardcore, or Emo?
It's a pickle.
Dischord
Records was born in 1980. The first of their many almost unknown but brilliant albums was Teen Idles' Minor Disturbance 7".
They went on to release albums by Minor Threat, (the afore mentioned)
Rites of Spring, The Untouchables, and Government Issue. While Discord
is not an Emo label, they don't need to be, as they released the first
Emo band's music.
In the
nervous morning light of 1990, Ebullition Records rose from the ground, in
Goleta, California. Starting with Downcast's 7" , they started their
legacy. Today, they are one of the most important labels, with bands such as
Yage, Yaphet Kotto, Ampere, and Orchid.
1996
brought forth Magic Bullet Records, with the release of Boy Sets Fire's This
Crying, This Screaming, My Voice is Being Born, and while Boy Sets Fire may not
be Emo, Magic Bullet has produced some great Emo, such as Kodan Armada,
Majority Rule, and To Dream of Autumn.
1997
marks the release of Saetias first record (a 7"), and the debut of Level-Plane
Records,
which is probably the most prominent Emo label out there, with bands
such as Hot Cross (though they have moved to Equal Vision Records)
Amanda Woodward, Gospel, Envy, City of Caterpillar, and Pg.99, and is
still going strong today. It has released many
influential albums, and is a huge part of todays Emo scene.
In 1998,
Happy Couples Never Last began it's legacy. According to Clark of Happy
Couples Never Last (who was kind enough to respond promptly to my email), their
first release was the Majhas self-titled (featuring members of the
proto-Nineties power violence band Ice Nine and later on, the guitarist of Fax
Arcana), with their first vinyl release being the Usurp Synapse/Emotion Zero
split 7".
While Happy Couples Never Last may be a label that does more
than Emo (as most do), it has released albums by Usurp Synapse, Pageninetynine,
and Breather Resist.
A NOTE TO READERS:
This is but a short label history. It is by no means complete, as there
are far too many labels to mention by name, and let's face it: I'm not
creative enough to give interesting information on all of the labels
with Emo bands on them. I have, however, covered several fairly
important labels that have released albums by fairly prominent Emo
bands, as a way to give you a taste of the forces behind the release of
key records of the scene.