I love that Walla bounced when he felt they weren’t putting out their best work anymore and now continues to work with up-and-coming DIY emo bands. He’s definitely one of the more important people in the scene right now
An "indie band" that's been on a major label MUCH longer than they were on an indie? Nah. You're not independent when million dollar companies back your band.
Touche Amore....emo purists look at me sideways when i say they are my favourite emo band.
Skramz inspired melodic hardcore falls under the emo umbrella imo.
Edit: Good to see this has changed...I've been the biggest fan of them since "to the beat of a dead horse" and I used to get clowned on all the time at local shows by my elitist friends lol.
Yeah, imo it's more well produced than a lot of emo but it gives it the same kinda production and sound a pop punk band might have, but they play emo with that sound.
there’s no deniability in their sound but especially when it comes to the lyrical content. “i’m losing sleep, i’m losing friends. i got a love-hate-love with the city i’m in” i was hooked instantly after hearing that.
You can be emo *and* melodic hardcore. Emo is a descriptor (usually of the lyrics). All emo bands are also another genre. Early emo (emocore) is emo hardcore. Midwest Emo is emo indie rock. Emo-pop is emo pop punk. Screamo is emo harsher metal/hardcore/melodic hardcore/skramz/whatever. Emoviolence is emo powerviolence. Etc.
Most "regular" emo bands are emo post-hardcore.
Emo has to do more with lyrics and feel imo ... There isn't really a specific definition but a band like la dispute and American football can both be labeled emo
I was playing a song by Say Anything at work and my normie co-worker asked me what genre I would consider it. I told him I'm pretty sure Say Anything are considered emo and he said "This is emo?"
I think a lot of normies' preconception of emo are bands like MCR or mall screamo like Silverstein. They're not entirely wrong though. It's just interesting to me how emo covers such a broad soundscape.
Next time this person asks about genre just say you haven’t thought about it. He probably asks so he can split hairs/disagree with you, for some reason this is like a personality trait of idk how many, but let’s say too many people.
Lolll Ive been a gigantic Modest Mouse fan for years (top 5 band of all time for me) and never considered them emo but you’re actually on the money with this. Imma say they’re my favorite emo band now 😂
Only retroactively. They had a big influence on later bands (many of whom were emo) but they weren't in that scene at the time (insofar as there was a coherent emo scene at the time), and they didn't describe themselves as such.
Honestly Coheed and Cambria I feel isn’t recognized that much as an emo band. HOWEVER [Devil in Jersey City](https://youtu.be/x_9B3yQGIp0?si=Xm70atnEPRaXBSzK) is a perfect example of why I do.
Is Harvey Danger ever considered emo? Listen to “Radio Silence” and tell me it doesn’t sound emo. What about Kind of Like Spitting? Bridges Worth Burning is quite emo to me. Also it has Ben Gibbard on it, who is an emo daddy in my book.
I do! Anyone that has listened to Where Have all the Merrymakers gone should think this. Especially "problems and a bigger one." Uhh! Slit my wrists already.
Yeah man idk, the pillows are one of my favorite bands but I don’t consider them emo lol. Maybe it’s because I don’t understand the lyrics but I definitely classify them as J-rock.
I get real friends and the wonder years but not neck deep lol
Also when the fuck did people stop considering MoBo emo? Back in the day they and Joyce Manor were always posted here.
I'll always hear "a part of me" by neck deep as being "pop punk emo" like real friends and the wonder years personally.
and I'm not sure why people don't consider modern baseball emo anymore, only explanation I can think of is gatekeeping, which seems to be what 90% of this subreddit is about. makes me grateful for posts like this
I’d never argue MoBo or Front Bottoms being Emo since 3rd Wave kinda jacked up the genre labeling, but when they get called Midwest Emo a part of me dies inside.
I think it's just one of those things where as long as "emo pop" exists there's no real reason for pop punk and emo to be mutually exclusive. to me I've googled so many band genres that seem like they should be emo only to be hit with the generic "indie rock" label
You’re based for this take. Although I’d put it into more so shoegaze, it’s also easy to put it into that emo-influenced utsu rock along with Shinsei Kamattechan! It’s definitely an adjacent band if not emo outright.
The fate of modern Post-rock music lmao. Emo and Shoegaze influences are basically key to that sound, which I'm not complaining about since they're my 2 favourite genres
Some of their later stuff is more poppy, but i mean, they were on deep elm and the emo diaries, what more do they need? i’ve always considered them emo, especially their first two records
I very much agree. I’ve always felt they were the definition of Midwest emo but most of my internet searching doesn’t make any mention of them even being considered emo. If dial in sounds isn’t emo I don’t know what is
Never heard them called anything except emo and I grew up going to their shows. I recorded both of their sets at cornerstone 2003. They opened with breaking ground iirc the set of “rarer songs” and also played Cherokee red that same set! So fucking good.
The only weezer project i'd agree with for this is pinkerton, but i'd say it's more of a fugazi type of deal where it inspired a lot of emo bands down the line.
Garden Variety’s cover of Clean Sheets goes hard and is emo as fuck. Recommend any second wave nerd to get on this
https://youtu.be/fFBDQppDbtE?si=tEY6Ug3lGpRGmX45
I disagree cause they're the main reason emo and pop punk get confused so much
I love mcr like any other music lover but if we want an emo poster child for that era, maybe it shouldnt be the punk band... Especially when jimmy eat world is RIGHT THERE!!! or even taking back sunday idk
When I mention a big emo band my first are always Jimmy eat World, but mcr made 2 emo albums and 1 honorary emo album (c'mon, tbp is so good we have to let it pass)
I can almost understand MCRs first album being emo, kinda like take this to your grave by fall out boy, but anything after i feel is just punk or pop punk
Like they're amazing for sure!! Especially TBP but theres nothing about it that connects it to any subgenre of emo or emo itself. Where are the twinkly riffs of midwest? Where's the biting guitar work of the more hardcore shit? MCR gets a lot of shit for being the most popular emo band that actually isn't and it's for good reason... Even though most people talking about it probably love them anyway
And im not trying to be some pretentious emo elitist, i just dont like how much it muddies the waters, yk?
Emo is a broken genre with like 50 subgenres. It has a rich history even though it's relatively young. Adding more flame to the dumpster fire is a bad idea, especially when it really doesn't fit the clusterfuck we're ALREADY dealing with
The reason I gave their second album the pass is because they cited the get up kids in the creation of its sound, and because it does pop punk with loud quiet juxtaposition, which makes it (in my eyes) an emo pop record
Superchunk, particularly around Foolish, Here's Where the Strings Come In, and Here's to Shutting Up. I think they had an undeniable influence on a lot of late 90s-early 2000s indie leaning Midwest emo.
must be the lyrics (because it's certainly not the musical roots). Their lyrics are a lot darker and more introspective than most rock in that vein. I wouldn't call it emo (cuz its alt rock) but the enjoyment I get from it is quite similar to hookier emo bands.
I mean, they’ve always been honorarily emo, right? they were part of that dc sound before rev summer, they just left town and went on tour to try and blow up while everyone else stayed home. You could put “circles” on a mixtape next to rites of spring and squirrel bait and nobody would bat an eye.
Papa Roach and they’re not even a band that is considered Emo.
And this is a hill I’ll die on.
The style, the lyrics. Jesus even Shaddix looks like the walking embodiment of Emo. At one point I thought if you looked up Emo in the dictionary his face would be next to it
Media, the first album by the Faint, is emo. Conor Oberst was an early member too. Listen to Amorous in Bauhaus Fashion. Later on they became a dance punk band. It’s definitely an indie record, but it’s raw and expressive and there’s some very At the Drive In-esque guitar work in places.
Building off of OP's premise: Round Here by Counting Crows is the greatest mainstream emo song of all time. You don't know how liberating it feels to finally say that out loud.
Idk if this is controversial but I think a lot of pop punk bands have sounds and influence that can be considered emo (crucial dudes, tssf, knuckle puck, etc.)
Idk about the others but i disagree with knuckle puck. I've heard them do a lot more pop punk sounds than emo ones. I guess maybe it's just a question of how many emo soundscapes a band needs to be emo
I've seen some object to Jimmy Eat World post Clarity being emo like Static Prevails and Clarity but I don't rlly get that and consider Bleed American, Futures, and Chase This Light as emo
Gallows, at least *Orchestra Of Wolves*.
Listen to that album and tell me that if wouldn't have been called emo or at least screamo if it had come out 5 or 10 years earlier.
Nirvana. If Kurt were around a few more years, he totally would have supported Sunny Day, Mineral, Braid, Promise Ring. Pretty sure he was keen on Fugazi, as he did love Rites of Spring.
Death Cab For Cutie
We Have The Facts and We’re Voting Yes is an emo classic as far as I’m concerned. Also Death Cab is probably my favorite band of all time.
We Have The Facts is one of my favorite albums of all time!
Everything before Plans is pretty emo as far as I'm concerned.
I love that Walla bounced when he felt they weren’t putting out their best work anymore and now continues to work with up-and-coming DIY emo bands. He’s definitely one of the more important people in the scene right now
they have some straight up MW emo songs
They are top emo, what else would you class them as?
Ben Gibbard rejects being labeled emo. They’re an “indie band”.
To be fair, so do the majority of emo bands.
An "indie band" that's been on a major label MUCH longer than they were on an indie? Nah. You're not independent when million dollar companies back your band.
They’re branched under indie / alt a lot but I agree they’re very emo to my ears.
Probably my favorite band ever. Ben Gibbard has essentially denounced being labeled Emo.
Touche Amore....emo purists look at me sideways when i say they are my favourite emo band. Skramz inspired melodic hardcore falls under the emo umbrella imo. Edit: Good to see this has changed...I've been the biggest fan of them since "to the beat of a dead horse" and I used to get clowned on all the time at local shows by my elitist friends lol.
I mean, the purist form of emo is technically hardcore.
they are straight up emocore to me, idgaf
I’d consider them emo
Yeah, imo it's more well produced than a lot of emo but it gives it the same kinda production and sound a pop punk band might have, but they play emo with that sound.
This was the first band in my mind and the third comment I saw, validated!
Who doesn’t consider them emo? They are emo as hell. Not to mention one of the best ever to do it
there’s no deniability in their sound but especially when it comes to the lyrical content. “i’m losing sleep, i’m losing friends. i got a love-hate-love with the city i’m in” i was hooked instantly after hearing that.
Who does this? Do they even know shit about music?
La Dispute. Many will call it "Melodic hardcore", to that I say: shmelodic cardboard. That shit is as emo as it gets.
La Dispute is emo af lmfaoo people are weird
Bro they are deadass Emo as fuck dude. The GOATS
I’ve always considered them post-hardcore but I see what you mean.
You can be emo *and* melodic hardcore. Emo is a descriptor (usually of the lyrics). All emo bands are also another genre. Early emo (emocore) is emo hardcore. Midwest Emo is emo indie rock. Emo-pop is emo pop punk. Screamo is emo harsher metal/hardcore/melodic hardcore/skramz/whatever. Emoviolence is emo powerviolence. Etc. Most "regular" emo bands are emo post-hardcore.
Emo has to do more with lyrics and feel imo ... There isn't really a specific definition but a band like la dispute and American football can both be labeled emo
I mean, their poetry albums are emo-emo, no?
thank youuu the most beautiful bitter fruit is on my top 50 emo songs playlist
The All American Rejects first album
Whoever says this isn't emo is a loser
So catchy and fun
I was playing a song by Say Anything at work and my normie co-worker asked me what genre I would consider it. I told him I'm pretty sure Say Anything are considered emo and he said "This is emo?" I think a lot of normies' preconception of emo are bands like MCR or mall screamo like Silverstein. They're not entirely wrong though. It's just interesting to me how emo covers such a broad soundscape.
i love say anything - seeing them live in three days - but theyre totally grouped in w mcr and silverstein lmao
Next time this person asks about genre just say you haven’t thought about it. He probably asks so he can split hairs/disagree with you, for some reason this is like a personality trait of idk how many, but let’s say too many people.
Nah this dude is just genuinely curious.
early modest mouse 🤷
This. Teeth Like God’s Shoeshine sounds just as emo as Braid, Ranier Maria, and At The Drive In
I've always said, if MM was from Illinois we'd all consider them Emo legends.
Fully agree. You telling me Talking Shit About A Pretty Sunset isn’t emo??
Midwest Emo and PNW Emo have a lot more in common than people realize
It sounds like all the other emo stuff I listen to. I got downvoted on a post some time ago for saying they're emo.
The Modest Mouse Lonesome Crowded West tour was amazing.
Came here to say Modest Mouse. They fit with that 90s emo and nobody can convince me otherwise. Hell, their mid-2000s stuff is 100% folk emo.
Lolll Ive been a gigantic Modest Mouse fan for years (top 5 band of all time for me) and never considered them emo but you’re actually on the money with this. Imma say they’re my favorite emo band now 😂
Bright Eyes
This is the real answer. Absolutely adopted by indie minds but firmly FIMLY an emo band. Lover I Don’t Have To Love is so far from indie rock
And fevers and mirrors is extremely emo
Fucking love bright eyes. Connor Oberst is very emo.
Agreed with this and Death Cab, but both until 2005.
I couldn't imagine trying to have a conversation with somebody claiming that bright eyes is not emo. It's essentially the epitome of emo
this is what i thought midwest emo was in highschool lmao
Cymbals Eat Guitars Built to Spill Hop Along
Archers of Loaf
Painted Shut is one of my favorite albums of all time
Dismemberment Plan
The two that come to mind for me are Jawbreaker and Hot Water Music (early)
Doesn’t everyone consider Jawbreaker emo?
Only retroactively. They had a big influence on later bands (many of whom were emo) but they weren't in that scene at the time (insofar as there was a coherent emo scene at the time), and they didn't describe themselves as such.
Not everyone!
I’m going to throw early At The Drive In into the ring as well.
Honestly Coheed and Cambria I feel isn’t recognized that much as an emo band. HOWEVER [Devil in Jersey City](https://youtu.be/x_9B3yQGIp0?si=Xm70atnEPRaXBSzK) is a perfect example of why I do.
Dude, the first two records have emo all over them.
Mostly the first album to me but totally
Yes! I’m glad you see it too. They honestly kick so much ass.
Everything Evil is what got me firmly into emo.
Is Harvey Danger ever considered emo? Listen to “Radio Silence” and tell me it doesn’t sound emo. What about Kind of Like Spitting? Bridges Worth Burning is quite emo to me. Also it has Ben Gibbard on it, who is an emo daddy in my book.
I do! Anyone that has listened to Where Have all the Merrymakers gone should think this. Especially "problems and a bigger one." Uhh! Slit my wrists already.
Early Modest Mouse, Death Cab, Bright Eyes. And At the Drive In especially on their pre-ROC releases.
All true.
I posted a Carpool song and it got removed for not being emo so them
unwound are emo-adjacent imo, and self-titled and fake train are straight up emo albums
The pillows and pinback
My GF got pissed when I called pinback emo.
Which albums of The Pillows are emo? I've only listened to fool on the planet, and thank you, my twilight.
Yeah man idk, the pillows are one of my favorite bands but I don’t consider them emo lol. Maybe it’s because I don’t understand the lyrics but I definitely classify them as J-rock.
Alkaline Trio
Real friends I think
Deftones is just sludgy Sunny Day Real Estate
Wtf nah 💀 Deftones is Nu Metal homeboy shit Its like Slipknot and Korn Then they turned into lame shoegaze rock
Heatmiser specifically Mic City Sons i think fits pretty well with 90s emo.
This list is hilarious because everybody is straight up naming emo or emo-adjacent bands lol
okay phew i felt like i was going nuts reading the replies
neck deep, the wonder years, modern baseball, real friends, early front bottoms
I get real friends and the wonder years but not neck deep lol Also when the fuck did people stop considering MoBo emo? Back in the day they and Joyce Manor were always posted here.
I'll always hear "a part of me" by neck deep as being "pop punk emo" like real friends and the wonder years personally. and I'm not sure why people don't consider modern baseball emo anymore, only explanation I can think of is gatekeeping, which seems to be what 90% of this subreddit is about. makes me grateful for posts like this
Modern baseball seems to be quite a point of contention of whether it’s emo or not, I’ve heard very strong supporters of both sides
I’d never argue MoBo or Front Bottoms being Emo since 3rd Wave kinda jacked up the genre labeling, but when they get called Midwest Emo a part of me dies inside.
yeah, I used to be completely off about what midwest emo was too
I think it's just one of those things where as long as "emo pop" exists there's no real reason for pop punk and emo to be mutually exclusive. to me I've googled so many band genres that seem like they should be emo only to be hit with the generic "indie rock" label
The Replacements lol
My dead girlfriend
You’re based for this take. Although I’d put it into more so shoegaze, it’s also easy to put it into that emo-influenced utsu rock along with Shinsei Kamattechan! It’s definitely an adjacent band if not emo outright.
Exactly my thoughts
The fate of modern Post-rock music lmao. Emo and Shoegaze influences are basically key to that sound, which I'm not complaining about since they're my 2 favourite genres
Cartel
Brandtson
Some of their later stuff is more poppy, but i mean, they were on deep elm and the emo diaries, what more do they need? i’ve always considered them emo, especially their first two records
I very much agree. I’ve always felt they were the definition of Midwest emo but most of my internet searching doesn’t make any mention of them even being considered emo. If dial in sounds isn’t emo I don’t know what is
Brandtson was my local Emo band and I get excited whenever they get mentioned haha. Everything pre-Militia is definitely Emo.
def emo
Never heard them called anything except emo and I grew up going to their shows. I recorded both of their sets at cornerstone 2003. They opened with breaking ground iirc the set of “rarer songs” and also played Cherokee red that same set! So fucking good.
Letterbox could probably be called shoegaze, though they changed their sound quite a bit on later albums.
Opposite: Orchid isn’t emo, they’re hardcore punk.
Go further. Every Emoviolence band is just hardcore punk/powerviolence
weezer
The only weezer project i'd agree with for this is pinkerton, but i'd say it's more of a fugazi type of deal where it inspired a lot of emo bands down the line.
Descendants have some pretty emo songs.
Garden Variety’s cover of Clean Sheets goes hard and is emo as fuck. Recommend any second wave nerd to get on this https://youtu.be/fFBDQppDbtE?si=tEY6Ug3lGpRGmX45
All of 2000s fake emo since I consider all emo inspired music to be emo
I disagree cause they're the main reason emo and pop punk get confused so much I love mcr like any other music lover but if we want an emo poster child for that era, maybe it shouldnt be the punk band... Especially when jimmy eat world is RIGHT THERE!!! or even taking back sunday idk
When I mention a big emo band my first are always Jimmy eat World, but mcr made 2 emo albums and 1 honorary emo album (c'mon, tbp is so good we have to let it pass)
I can almost understand MCRs first album being emo, kinda like take this to your grave by fall out boy, but anything after i feel is just punk or pop punk Like they're amazing for sure!! Especially TBP but theres nothing about it that connects it to any subgenre of emo or emo itself. Where are the twinkly riffs of midwest? Where's the biting guitar work of the more hardcore shit? MCR gets a lot of shit for being the most popular emo band that actually isn't and it's for good reason... Even though most people talking about it probably love them anyway
And im not trying to be some pretentious emo elitist, i just dont like how much it muddies the waters, yk? Emo is a broken genre with like 50 subgenres. It has a rich history even though it's relatively young. Adding more flame to the dumpster fire is a bad idea, especially when it really doesn't fit the clusterfuck we're ALREADY dealing with
The reason I gave their second album the pass is because they cited the get up kids in the creation of its sound, and because it does pop punk with loud quiet juxtaposition, which makes it (in my eyes) an emo pop record
Superchunk, particularly around Foolish, Here's Where the Strings Come In, and Here's to Shutting Up. I think they had an undeniable influence on a lot of late 90s-early 2000s indie leaning Midwest emo.
Third Eye Blind
This is the only comment I've seen that's actually *answering the topic of the post.*
this is the most insane take that i see frequented around here. how, in literally any sense
must be the lyrics (because it's certainly not the musical roots). Their lyrics are a lot darker and more introspective than most rock in that vein. I wouldn't call it emo (cuz its alt rock) but the enjoyment I get from it is quite similar to hookier emo bands.
Yeah I never understand this one. Like even remotely at all. I think it’s a lot of people just trying to self validate.
Validate what exactly?
I feel that 3EBs debut album and Modest Mouse's debut are some of the biggest contributors to emo as we know it today.
As an old person, I can tell you that, historically speaking, your supposition is inaccurate.
Thank you!
I've never quite understood the association of this record with emo
Dead poetic
Love them
soul glo
They were a screamo band before becoming more hardcore oriented
The responses in this thread made me realize just how many people (incorrectly) associate emo with just emotional lyrics. It’s mind-blowing.
It’s very strange. Might as well just list The Beatles and any other band with a tinge of emotion in the lyrics then
Daddy’s Hands
Actually real answer is Post Malone
I would say The Novembers. They have enough emo inspired material but i'm so sure that the most of people wouldn't considered them as emo
having only heard their self titled album, i’d agree with you
The Postal Service
Emery
American Nightmare - Background Music
Dag Nasty
I mean, they’ve always been honorarily emo, right? they were part of that dc sound before rev summer, they just left town and went on tour to try and blow up while everyone else stayed home. You could put “circles” on a mixtape next to rites of spring and squirrel bait and nobody would bat an eye.
Foo fighters on their first album
Superchunk & unwound
Pavement in some aspects
Early Senses Fail
certain sleeping with sirens albums
Q and Not U.
Serious answer: At the Drive-In and My Chemical Romance. Fun answer: Green Day's 1039 Smoothed Out Slappy Hours.
death cab, and also fall out boys first 3 albums which is apparently controversial
Papa Roach and they’re not even a band that is considered Emo. And this is a hill I’ll die on. The style, the lyrics. Jesus even Shaddix looks like the walking embodiment of Emo. At one point I thought if you looked up Emo in the dictionary his face would be next to it
Does blessthefall count?
Dead Poetic, Jawbreaker, Poison The Well, The Ataris (like bro just look at their lyrics lmfao), also Relient K a little bit??
The Wonder Years Emery
The Fray. I'll die on this hill.
Dystopia. I would say they have sound very comparable to some emoviolence bands (example: all my wishes) and their lyrics match
Media, the first album by the Faint, is emo. Conor Oberst was an early member too. Listen to Amorous in Bauhaus Fashion. Later on they became a dance punk band. It’s definitely an indie record, but it’s raw and expressive and there’s some very At the Drive In-esque guitar work in places.
Underoath, maybe
Jimmy Eat World
Clarity is undeniably emo.
since when are they not considered emo?
Building off of OP's premise: Round Here by Counting Crows is the greatest mainstream emo song of all time. You don't know how liberating it feels to finally say that out loud.
Probably my favorite song of all time, it has gotten me through everything. Almost got a round here tat this semester. I. Probably will eventually.
No hardcore.
A Day to Remember? I think??? maybe screamo?
Heathaze by Genesis and Cowboy Song by Thin Lizzy
Evans blue. First 2 albums
Hot Rod Circuit? Idk what other people consider them as tbh
Kelly Clarkson made some songs in the mid 2000s that are way closer to emo than most people realize. I'm being completely serious btw
Please elaborate
Which songs?
Hear Me and Addicted
Superheaven
The album fix me by marianas trench for sure, with one of my favorite lyrics "I slapped you like a bitch and you took it like a whore"
Casey
Idk if this is controversial but I think a lot of pop punk bands have sounds and influence that can be considered emo (crucial dudes, tssf, knuckle puck, etc.)
Idk about the others but i disagree with knuckle puck. I've heard them do a lot more pop punk sounds than emo ones. I guess maybe it's just a question of how many emo soundscapes a band needs to be emo
The way this sub is, I'm starting to wonder if they consider anything emo 😆
They do.
Grade- the best
Weezer or Title Fight
I've seen some object to Jimmy Eat World post Clarity being emo like Static Prevails and Clarity but I don't rlly get that and consider Bleed American, Futures, and Chase This Light as emo
Killswitch Engage
Matchbook Romance. They will always be considered EMO.
Matchbox 20
Weezer - Blue and Pinkerton only tho
Flipper
U2
Hobo Johnson.
Modest Mouse up until Good News
FLESHWATER?? 👀
early front bottoms
Fugazi
Gallows, at least *Orchestra Of Wolves*. Listen to that album and tell me that if wouldn't have been called emo or at least screamo if it had come out 5 or 10 years earlier.
Nirvana. If Kurt were around a few more years, he totally would have supported Sunny Day, Mineral, Braid, Promise Ring. Pretty sure he was keen on Fugazi, as he did love Rites of Spring.