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.
Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent record labels, by the 1990s it became more widely associated with the music such bands produced.
Madchester was a musical and cultural scene that emerged in the English city of Manchester during the late 1980s, closely associated with the indie dance movement. Indie dance blended indie rock with elements of acid house, psychedelia, and 1960s pop.
Death Cab for Cutie is an American rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington, in 1997. Death Cab for Cutie's music has been classified as indie rock, indie pop, and alternative rock. The band is currently composed of Ben Gibbard, Nick Harmer (bass), Dave Depper, Zac Rae, and Jason McGerr (drums).
Cornershop are an English indie rock band formed in Leicester, in 1991. The group are best known for their single "Brimful of Asha" from their third album When I Was Born for the 7th Time, whose remixed version topped the UK singles chart in 1998. They were formed by Tjinder Singh, his brother Avtar Singh, David Chambers (drums), and Ben Ayres, the first three having previously been members of General Havoc, who released one single in 1991. The band name originated from a stereotype referring to British Asians often owning corner shops. Their music is a fusion of Indian music, indie rock, alternative and electronic dance music.
Metric is a Canadian indie rock band founded in 1998 in Toronto, Ontario. The band consists of Emily Haines, James Shaw, Joshua Winstead and Joules Scott-Key. The band started in 1998 as a duo formed by Haines and Shaw with the name "Mainstream". After releasing an EP titled Mainstream EP, they changed the band's name to Metric.
TV on the Radio (TVOTR) is an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2001. The band consists of Tunde Adebimpe, David Andrew Sitek, Kyp Malone, and Jaleel Bunton. Gerard Smith was a member of the band from 2005 until his death in 2011.
The National is an American rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio, formed in Brooklyn, New York City, in 1999. The band consists of Matt Berninger (vocals), twin brothers Aaron Dessner and Bryce Dessner, as well as brothers Scott Devendorf (bass) and Bryan Devendorf (drums). During live performances, the band is joined by longtime touring members, Ben Lanz and Kyle Resnick. Carin Besser, the wife of Berninger, is not a band member but has written lyrics for the band alongside her husband since its 2007 album Boxer.
Great Lake Swimmers is a Canadian folk rock band from Wainfleet, Ontario, and currently based in Toronto.
Malajube is a Canadian francophone indie rock band formed in Montreal, Quebec.
Beirut is an American band that was originally the solo musical project of Zach Condon. Beirut's music combines elements of indie rock and world music. The band's first performance with the full brass section was in New York, in May 2006, in support of their debut album Gulag Orkestar, though they performed their first show with Condon, Petree, and Collins at the College of Santa Fe earlier that year.
Cancer Bats are a Canadian hardcore punk band from Toronto, Ontario. To date, they have released seven studio albums and six extended plays; with their most recent LP, Psychic Jailbreak, having been released on 15 April 2022. The band is currently composed of lead vocalist Liam Cormier, drummer Mike Peters and bassist/guitarist Jaye R. Schwarzer. The band are also currently joined by touring guitarist Jackson Landry, following the departure of founding guitarist Scott Middleton in 2021. The members of Cancer Bats have also toured and recorded as a Black Sabbath tribute band under the name Bat Sabbath.
Allalom Music was an American independent record label founded in 2001. It mainly released indie pop and alternative music. Founded in Redmond, Oregon, it had its headquarters in South Texas before moving back to Portland, Oregon in the fall of 2005. On January 15, 2010, the label announced their closure.
Matt and Kim are an American indie electronic duo from Brooklyn, New York City. The group formed in 2004 and consist of Matt Johnson (vocals/keyboards) and Kim Schifino (drums). The duo is known for its upbeat dance music and energetic live shows which often incorporate samples from other artists. Although they started their career playing shows in lofts and other close-quarters venues, they have since performed at numerous festivals, including Bonnaroo, Coachella, and Firefly Music Festival.
Bon Iver is an American indie folk band founded in 2006 by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon. Vernon had originally formed Bon Iver as a solo project, but it eventually became a band consisting of Vernon, Sean Carey, Michael Lewis, Matthew McCaughan, Andrew Fitzpatrick, and Jenn Wasner
Speaking in Code is a character-based documentary directed by Amy Grill about people's obsessions with the techno electronic music lifestyle and the effects on their lives. It follows Modeselektor, the Wighnomy Brothers, Philip Sherburne, Monolake and David Day for three years as they attempt to grow in the techno community, as well as Grill's struggles to complete the film. It was shot in 11 cities and 5 countries.
The xx are an English indie rock band from Wandsworth, London, formed in 2005. The band consists of Romy Madley Croft, Oliver Sim, Jamie Smith, also known as Jamie xx, and formerly Baria Qureshi. They are known for their distinctive minimalist sound blending indie rock, indie electronic, indie pop, dream pop and electro-rock and the dual-vocalist set-up of Madley Croft and Sim. Their music employs soft echoed guitar, prominent bass, light electronic beats and ambient soundscape backgrounds.
Freelance Whales was an American indie rock band which formed in Queens, New York, United States, in 2008.
Electronicore is a fusion genre of metalcore music with elements of various electronic music genres, often including trance, electronica, and dubstep.
No Sleep Records was an American independent record label in Huntington Beach, California. They were founded by Chris Hansen in 2006 and have released records by artists including Balance and Composure, La Dispute, and The Wonder Years. They have released free sampler albums on the internet on a number of occasions and the label closely associates itself with vegan lifestyle and the revived interest in vinyl record sales. On June 25, 2024 it was announced that No Sleep Records would be shutting down.
