Emo is a music genre characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of hardcore punk and post-hardcore from the mid-1980s Washington, D.C. hardcore scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore. The bands Rites of Spring and Embrace, among others, pioneered the genre. In the early-to-mid 1990s, emo was adopted and reinvented by alternative rock, indie rock, punk rock, and pop-punk bands, including Sunny Day Real Estate, Jawbreaker, Cap'n Jazz, and Jimmy Eat World. By the mid-1990s, Braid, the Promise Ring, and the Get Up Kids emerged from Midwest emo, and several independent record labels began to specialize in the genre. Meanwhile, screamo, a more aggressive style of emo using screamed vocals, also emerged, pioneered by the San Diego bands Heroin and Antioch Arrow. Screamo achieved mainstream success in the 2000s with bands like Hawthorne Heights, Silverstein, Story of the Year, Thursday, the Used, and Underoath.
Triple Fast Action was an indie rock/alternative rock band started by Wes Kidd and Brian St. Clair, both previous members of Chicago band Rights of the Accused, in 1995. Kidd went on to manage such bands as Cheap Trick, The Damnwells and bandmate Kevin Tihista while working for New York–based Silent Partner Management. St. Clair joined the band Local H after stints as tour manager for Chicago's Liz Phair and served as drum tech for Bun E. Carlos of Cheap Trick. Triple Fast Action member Kevin Tihista released several of his own solo albums after the band's breakup.
Planes Mistaken for Stars was an American rock band formed in Peoria, Illinois in 1997. Working with several different labels, they released three studio albums and four EPs before breaking up in 2008. While rooted in the post-hardcore and emo scenes of the turn of the century, Planes Mistaken for Stars developed a distinctive musical style strongly influenced by heavy metal and rock and roll. Reuniting for live performances in 2010, they went on to release their fourth album Prey in 2016.
The Appleseed Cast is an American rock band from Lawrence, Kansas. The band was founded in the early days of emo by singer-guitarist Christopher Crisci and drummer Louie Ruiz. The Appleseed Cast has steadily evolved over the release of eight full-length albums with Crisci serving as the main songwriter. The band has a frequently rotating lineup, with Crisci being the only consistent member since their conception. Currently the band's lineup includes Christopher Crisci, Ben Kimball, Nick Fredrickson and Sean Bergman.
Mare Vitalis is the second full-length album by Lawrence, Kansas-based emo group the Appleseed Cast. It was released on Deep Elm Records in 2000.
The White Octave was a rock band from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The group was founded shortly after Steve Pederson left Cursive, and was initially a trio with Lincoln Hancock and Robert Biggers before Finn Cohen was added on guitar. They released two full-length albums and appeared on several compilations before finally breaking up. The founding member, Steve Pedersen, went back to his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska to form the band Criteria. Robert Biggers and Finn Cohen went on to form The Nein. The group reunited to play in North Carolina in 2014.
What's Mine Is Yours is the first installment in The Emo Diaries series of compilation albums, released September 16, 1997 by Deep Elm Records. The series title was originally going to be The Indie Rock Diaries, but this was ruled out when Jimmy Eat World and Samiam, who were both signed to major record labels, were selected for the album. The Emo Diaries was chosen because The Emotional Diaries was too long to fit on the album cover. As with future installments, the label had an open submissions policy for bands to submit material for the compilation, and as a result the music does not all fit within the emo style. As with the rest of the series, What's Mine Is Yours features mostly unsigned bands contributing songs that were previously unreleased.
Seven Storey Mountain is an American rock group from Phoenix, Arizona. The group's music is heavily influenced by the early Washington, D.C. post-hardcore scene.
Camber was an American emo/post-hardcore band from New York City, recognized for being one of the pioneers of the second-wave Eastern indie emo sound. They were often compared to likes of Texas Is the Reason, Sunny Day Real Estate and Mineral. Roger Coletti replaced original drummer Chris Chin in 2001, before their final release.
The Emo Diaries is a series of twelve compilation albums released by Deep Elm Records between 1997 and 2011. The series had an open submissions policy and featured mostly acts that were unsigned at the time of the albums' releases. Deep Elm founder John Szuch claims that the original name for the series was intended to be The Indie Rock Diaries, but this was ruled out by the fact that the first volume included Jimmy Eat World and Samiam, who were both signed to major record labels. The Emo Diaries was chosen because The Emotional Diaries was too long to fit on the album cover. Despite the title, the bands featured in the series have a diversity of sounds that do not all necessarily fit into the emo style of rock music. Andy Greenwald, in his book Nothing Feels Good: Punk Rock, Teenagers, and Emo, claims that the series "stake[s] a claim for emo as more a shared aesthetic than a genre":
[T]he bands included hail from all over the world, and the musical styles range from racing punk to droopy, noodley electro. Still, the prevalence of the series—coupled with its maudlin subtitles and manic-depressive tattoo cover art—did much to codify the word "emo" and spread it to all corners of the underground.
A Million Miles Away is the second installment in The Emo Diaries series of compilation albums, released April 14, 1998, by Deep Elm Records. As with all installments in the series, the label had an open submissions policy for bands to submit material for the compilation, and as a result the music does not all fit within the emo style. As with the rest of the series, A Million Miles Away features mostly unsigned bands contributing songs that were previously unreleased.
The Moment of Truth is the third installment in The Emo Diaries series of compilation albums, released February 23, 1999 by Deep Elm Records. As with all installments in the series, the label had an open submissions policy for bands to submit material for the compilation, and as a result the music does not all fit within the emo style. As with the rest of the series, The Moment of Truth features mostly unsigned bands contributing songs that were previously unreleased.
An Ocean of Doubt is the fourth installment in The Emo Diaries series of compilation albums, released September 28, 1999, by Deep Elm Records. As with all installments in the series, the label had an open submissions policy for bands to submit material for the compilation, and as a result the music does not all fit within the emo style. As with the rest of the series, An Ocean of Doubt features mostly unsigned bands contributing songs that were previously unreleased. Notably, it features the first song released by Further Seems Forever.
I Guess This Is Goodbye is the fifth installment in The Emo Diaries series of compilation albums, released October 24, 2000 by Deep Elm Records. As with all installments in the series, the label had an open submissions policy for bands to submit material for the compilation, and as a result the music does not all fit within the emo style. As with the rest of the series, I Guess This Is Goodbye features mostly unsigned bands contributing songs that were previously unreleased.
The Silence in My Heart is the sixth installment in The Emo Diaries series of compilation albums, released July 24, 2001 by Deep Elm Records. As with all installments in the series, the label had an open submissions policy for bands to submit material for the compilation, and as a result, the music does not all fit within the emo style. As with the rest of the series, The Silence in My Heart features mostly unsigned bands contributing songs that were previously unreleased.
Me Against the World is the seventh installment in The Emo Diaries series of compilation albums, released March 5, 2002 by Deep Elm Records. As with all installments in the series, the label had an open submissions policy for bands to submit material for the compilation, and as a result the music does not all fit within the emo style. As with the rest of the series, Me Against the World features mostly unsigned bands contributing songs that were previously unreleased.
My Very Last Breath is the eighth installment in The Emo Diaries series of compilation albums, released July 23, 2002 by Deep Elm Records. As with all installments in the series, the label had an open submissions policy for bands to submit material for the compilation, and as a result the music does not all fit within the emo style. As with the rest of the series, My Very Last Breath features mostly unsigned bands contributing songs that were previously unreleased.
Sad Songs Remind Me is the ninth installment in The Emo Diaries series of compilation albums, released June 24, 2003 by Deep Elm Records. As with all installments in the series, the label had an open submissions policy for bands to submit material for the compilation, and as a result the music does not all fit within the emo style. As with the rest of the series, Sad Songs Remind Me features mostly unsigned bands contributing songs that were previously unreleased.
The Hope I Hide Inside is the tenth installment in The Emo Diaries series of compilation albums, released April 27, 2004 by Deep Elm Records. As with all installments in the series, the label had an open submissions policy for bands to submit material for the compilation, and as a result the music does not all fit within the emo style. As with the rest of the series, The Hope I Hide Inside features mostly unsigned bands contributing songs that were previously unreleased.
Brandtson was an American rock band from Cleveland, Ohio.
