The wind whipping against your face, the chilling numb making you blissfully unaware of how much your nose is actually running. Snow like 6 inches and only growing, roads covered in black ice, the weatherman says there's gonna be a blizzard. The cuffs of your jeans soaked through from snow, your socks wet and your toes numb. You regret not wearing another flannel to go out and get the mail. The sky has been grey and cloudy all month, and so have you. Every day makes you tired- you're still recovering from a cold, and you're tired of waking up earlier every day to give your car time to warm up. Walking through snow is exhausting, stepping in a deep puddle of ice water is exhausting, going through your whole day feeling the bitter, apathetic chill of Midwestern winter, is exhausting. But the snow looks so beautiful. And the wind whistles a sad, lonely sound. The Midwest reminds you that even in the everlasting darkness of a winter that starts and ends at least a month before and after it should (respectively), even when you haven't seen the sun in seven days, even when you give up on cleaning up the mud and melted slush by the door, even then, life is beautiful. The Midwest empathizes. The Midwest *is* Midwestern Emo. You're right, it is beautiful
It’s not even ten minutes long, and lightly grazes the surface of the topic. I think you’re just excited to see a video about Midwest Emo, as was I. Stay in school
midwest emo is the only genre that survived the post MCR world. I've always listened to the genre a little bit in high school, but never go too into it. I was more into traditional punk/hardcore, and never felt like I was "soft" enough to relate to the nerdy easy catharsis of the aforementioned bands, I still don't really relate, but I have a lot of respect for the genre as its one of the rare true musical continuations of the 90's. Everyone says pop punk is back rn, and I think that's bull, the mainstream appeal may be back, but this scene is one of the few that holds true to the actual musicality
No one's even gonna MENTION Cap'n Jazz, the predecessor to American Football both spiritually and literally. Mike was literally IN the band, alongside his brother Tim who's unique vocals have an obvious influence of some of the 4th wave midwest revival bands such as Algernon, or The Brave Little Abacus. Not to mention their guitar player greatly inspired much of the neck pickup Tele/tappy riffage that midwest emo and American Football are so well known for.
fr fr dude i was waiting for him to mention them but it never came. cap’n jazz was literally the big bang for midwest emo, pretty sure their guitarist and drummer even formed the promised ring.
I think what I love about midwest emo as opposed to the mainstream pop punk emo is that it's a lot softer, less chaotic, and arguably more beautiful. It's not in your face with eyeliner and weird hair telling you they're depressed, it's a bittersweet declaration of emotion bathed in open guitar tunings and the descending vi-V-IV bassline
Midwest Emo fills me up with childhood. It reminds me of the times I'd run outside in the morning to catch the bus or hanging out with friends and doing stupid shit in the woods. Never had a girlfriend that young, so I can't relate to the heartbreak that much. But when I hear midwest emo rock, I still get a picture. I imagine sleek, scratchy animation. Almost like anime but also American. Like Scott Pilgrim. A humble, relatable protagonist going through life, trying his best, and defeating his enemies with everything he has. Dunno why that comes to mind, but that's what goes through my head when I hear midwest emo. A very honest, kickass, heartfelt genre.
The very recent "fifth wave" of emo, sometimes referred to as post-emo, is something truly special to me as a gen z young adult. It incorporates many influences and styles (including midwest emo) and features a lot of new blood. Come In by Weatherday is a good album to get in to the wave with.
i love weatherday as much as the next guy but i feel like we are very much still in the 4th wave, the sound hasn’t evolved or separated enough from the “4-wave” sound
Would recommend listening to Idyll Opus - Adjy. It's Folk Midwest Emo but is phenomenal musically, lyrically and contextually. Throughout the album you get introduced to tons of mysteries and puzzles. It's an intricate, masterful and emotional album.
@@katfoode3222I’d disagree, I’d say the difference between “5th wave” like Weatherday, Asian Glow, glass beach vs emo revival like Algernon, Snowing, Glocca Morra is pretty significant. I think the main point of conflict is identifying when 5th wave even really began
@@frogdeity my personal favourites are: Featuring Mark Hoppus, BCKYRD, Digging In, and MakeDamnSure (off their 2nd acoustic EP which is so good). I personally love every song they have but those are some of my favourites!
@@frogdeity also try How do you Know it’s not Armadillo shells? It’s the song that made me fall in love with them and talks about anxiety and being overwhelmed and struggling to cope. If you like more subdued, Please Don’t Cry you Have Swag is also hella powerful with a huge ending.
This really amazes me- I'm 46 years old and grew up in the suburbs of Chicago. While different in sound, my best buds were in a band so we always hung out with the Cap'n Jazz guys. I must have seen them perform in at least 100 basements in the early early 90s before migrating to the Fireside Bowl (where all the bands in the scene played). Another band we hung out with, Sidekick Kato, was nearly as influential yet doesn't get namechecked as much. I'm literally just learning about Midwest Emo being a thing and while I was long out of the scene by the time American Football formed, this brings back incredible memories of my teens and makes me proud to have been "in the room where it happened."
The big stuff here in Illinois at the time that people were listening to were Cap’n Jazz, later Promise Ring, and Joan of Arc, Braid, Sidekick Kato, Cursive, Jawbreaker and later Jets to Brazil, Sunny Day Real Estate, Tuesday, Rainer Maria, Karate, Texas is the Reason, Get Up Kids, Christie Front Drive, Hum, lots of other stuff. American Football was rather late in the scene, but Mike had been in Cap’n Jazz and Joan of Arc previously. It was not a big record at the time. There was also the more slow core scene with stuff like June of 44, Slint, Codeine, Don Caballero, Polvo, Shellac, etc. Most of those 2nd wave emo bands were taking lots of cues from the older slow core scene as well as older indie bands like Built to Spill, Archers of Loaf, Modest Mouse, Dinosaur Jr, and older post hardcore like Fugazi and Drive Like Jehu but making it more poppy / punk. It was an interesting time and place to be, having grown up around the Champaign and Chicago scenes in the 90s. Things seemed so fresh and new at the time, but maybe part of it was my age as well. Not all of the “Midwest Emo” sound has aged well IMO but definitely some of the albums continue to be classics. We just called it emo back then, the Midwest label came way after the fact.. :)
I'm really happy that Memo never did get that big back in the day. It gives it that extra oomph because it was never supposed to be big. It's ment for lost people who find it. It doesn't find you, you find it
Here are the best bands from my time: Marietta, Midwest pen pals, street smart cyclist, Algernon cadwallader, cap'n jazz, merchant ships, oh my God elephant, snowing, I kill giants, William bonney, old gray, camping in alaska
I'm 17 and I recently discovered midwest emo, so far Title Flight is my favorite band. It's nice living in an age where I can find three hour long playlists of this kind of music for free. Im grateful to youtubers and the weird algorithm for introducing me to so many genres and subcultures. If anyone has any artists recommendations let me know : )
There are a few mostly unknown bands there are still making really good Midwest emo like Good Sleepy, Padfoot, Flight Patterns, Frat Mouse, and Worst Party Ever
If you like Title Fight you'll like Touche Amore. Also listen to "the classics:" Texas is the Reason, Mineral, Sunny Day Real Estate, Indian Summer, Jejune, Jimmy Eat World, early Death Cab for Cutie, etc., Also check out Hum. It's not an emo band, but they were big in the Urbana-Champaign music scene at the same time American Football was.
I'm into it deeply since 2018 and it made me fall in love even with the new wave of sad/chillrap heavy inspired by midwest emo. I shift from one genre to the other, and it's been my true friend since the discovery. Music for lost souls and broken bodies, this is this kind of music for me
i love daniel johnston more than anything, i had a dream is such a great song to verbalize feeling decidedly below others, i love absurdity and i love that dude
For me I got into Midwest emo from listening to emo rap. Rappers such as lil peep, Suicideboys, bones, yung lean, and all of those underground rappers (too many to name). As someone who grew up listening to bands like greenday and punk rock and hardcore music I see why I love it. Not to mention I was an emotional teenager growing up in northwestern Pennsylvania. I got into it through modern baseball and the rest followed. I love how real the lyrics are and the guitar. Best genre ever.
I’m an emotional 20 year old now so not much has changed lol. But I think that rawness and emotion is what makes it great. The instrumentals portray emotions and the singing. Music is an art and art is an outlet to show our emotions and let them out and I think that’s what’s really beautiful about Midwest emo, it’s a poetic, chaotic, peaceful, and all around great portrayal of emotion and commentary on life. Emo anything is great, it’s such a broad term because basically anytime someone is honest in their songs it’s branded as emo, very great though.
Same. I also started of listening to emo rap, like yung lean, xxxtentacion, juice wrld. I wonder if this is how most teenagers get into the genre nowadays.
@@hdrbros2435 I would say so, it’s kind of a pattern I’ve seen with a lot of people around me. I think also a lot of these rappers were influenced by such genres, you can see that in the music they sample and play in between sets at their shows. I think the lyrical content and general themes of the two genres overlap a lot too
@@hdrbros2435 also kinda funny but you probably know who WiccaPhase is? He started GothBoiClique the emo rap group lil peep and others were apart of and he was actually the singer in a band called Tigers Jaw before he started doing emo rap. So definitely an overlap
@@aidannorthup5326 that’s pretty interesting. I don’t know him, but that’s cool. Peep has that vibe to his music though, especially on his acoustic songs
Having been born in 1994, I grew up mainly with the third wave of emo. It wasn't until my last two years in high school that I discovered American Football, man LP 1 was the first time I've cried to music. While Blink 182 numbed me and got me through my bad days, AF got me through the bad thoughts, as cliche as it sounds. Later I discovered Mike Kinsella's Owen which felt like finding someone's old diary and just built upon what AF had placed in me; as a musician it did wonders for my playing and style horizons. Very well done video essay. Maybe you can do one on the Cap'n Jazz/American Football family tree
I still remember hearing Mineral's "Endserenading" in the record store player in San Luis Obispo CA in 1997. Just the intro alone blew me away immediately. I came back and bought it as soon as I had money along w "30 Degrees Everywhere" and "Forever and Counting".
Incredible quality for your size, I totally expected to see at least 100k subs when I finished the video, you have a very cool and calm delivery and talk with lots of confidence, loved the video.
Ive been listening to midwest emo and math rock since i was about 13-14 in my first years in high school, it has stuck with me since then due to the fact that I grew up in a broken home filled with hate and addiction and midwest emo's relatability was the first and only embrace of familiarity my 14 year old self felt, it was amazing, and by god as much as i hated everything, it is the only thing I miss.
Great video! The only thing that I won't to criticise is how much you emphasised heartbreak as the main theme of midwest emo. It's definitely a big part of the genre, but imo friendship and good ol' times spent with the bois seems to be just as important. Pop music is filled with songs about heartbreak and love. That's why I love midwest emo. It makes me think about my friends and good times we had.
I definitely agree with the last part of the video. The reason why I like midwest emo is how it makes me acknowledge the heartbreak and the shitty feelings I went thru. Listening to other genres do give off a good feeling by having upbeat and optimistic lyrics, but it only suppresses the sad feelings I have for a short while before they resurface. Midwest emo makes me face them upfront, and gives me a sense that the lyrics empathizes with my feelings that counterintuitively, soothes the feels more. I'm forever grateful to be able to find this beautiful precious genre of music. 🙏🏈⚽
Remo Drive is the only band that I can consistently like songs for in the whole mid west emo genre. If you haven’t look up their early stuff, kol rd is a channel that has all of it. Songs like “twelve” just bring such a feeling that no others can
This video popped up on my recommended. Clicked without thinking. I didn't realize it was produced by a channel with under 200 subs. Amazing essay. You deserve so much more recognition, can't wait to see what you put out in the future!
I lived the first few years of my life in Urbana, in the neighborhood where the American Football house was located. I never liked midwest emo at all, but I'm glad it had shed some light on my region. Whenever I do go down to the Champagne-Urbana area, I always make sure I stop by the American Football house.
It’s insane how I stumbled across this genre essentially on a white, by pure happenstance. It’s the only genre I’ve felt to capture the, “essence”, of melancholy and human heartache. Camping In Alaska is one of my personal favorites and I’m so glad to be getting more. Thank you
this was a great breakdown of emo and midwest emo. I grew up on a lot of such bands, including ones that weren't mentioned such as Black Veil Brides, Adept, and Escape The Fate among countless others. I was an emo kid in the mid 2000's and it was a time like none other, the internet was still young and for the most part it was still a place for outcasts, and I became enveloped in it to escape abuse at home. I was always a rebel, I still am, but that was something different, packed with passion, love, and general emotion, not just disdain and being jaded. dating a "rawr xd" girl or guy in those days was a lot different from the dating scene my cousins have these days.
While walking back home & I heard some very nostalgic & familiar tune from a local cafe. Christie Front Drive, Penfold, Mineral & Sunny Day Real Estate. Reminded me of the good old days 😢
About 6 months ago I discovered Modern Baseball. I absolutely fell in love with the band, learned the whole of sports on guitar in a month. I love their sound, it just sounds so raw and from the heart. I really can keep listening to their albums on repeat for days. This kind of ganre got me curious and really opened a door to midwest emo for me. Bands like Moms jeans, Car seat headrest or Slaughter Beach, Dog are just awesome. I am really glad that I stumbled on this kind of music. It almost seems That waited for me to discover it. I fell in love with it. Its very emotional to listen and so fun to play. I really like the riffs in these weird tunings and odd time signatures. Its challenging but fun. Anyway great video man, you put it out really well. Not a lot of people know this genre, and you summed it up really nice. Keep up the good work!
I spent my teen years listening to Modern Baseball non-stop. I still have days where I've got my MoBo playlist (titled "Can't find my socks") running all day. I was sad that they'd gone on indefinite hiatus but Jake Ewald's graduation (pun intended) from MoBo into Slaughter Beach, Dog represented an illuminating emotional development. There was a long time that I didn't really like SBD's sound, but in hindsight I was just too young. The journey from our brick-boot swimming lesson in the deep end of our adolescence, to wanting to fly to Ireland knowing we'd be good for the ticket may not be longer than just a few short years; but those years we learned how to be real people were captured perfectly. Ewald even talks about this growth explicitly in a Stereogum article, "But if you’ve ever engaged in critical discussion about Wilco, it’s often less about the music than it is about what liking Wilco says about you. For the most part, it means your contrarian punk days are over, that you’re probably on the path towards the dull demands of adulthood and … gasp, full-on 'dad-rock'" (www.stereogum.com/2053086/slaughter-beach-dog-safe-and-also-no-fear-jake-ewald-modern-baseball/interviews/). Whether your contrarian punk days are over, or you're a Wilco fan, enjoy your emotions. See you in the Void Saloon :)
@@the_gartender Damn. You're right about SBD it took me a while to get into the sound but it stuck. I guess I just connected the music with new memories.
I’m 42 years old and grew up in and still live in Chicago and I was part of the scene in the 90’s, I’ve seen all those bands at the Fireside Bowl, Metro, Off the Alley, Empty Bottle and wore Argyle Sweaters, retro running shoes, Argyle socks, Tweed Blazers with elbow patches and vintage T-shirts. Scarves were big too, the ones that grandmas knitted and crocheted were big. The biggest and most important bands of that era were hands down Cap N Jazz and Braid. American Football not so much. They seem to be more popular and important to the current scene but clearly American Football is Mikes more traditional, less chaotic take on Cap N Jazz’s sound.
I’m 42 as well. You basically described my later HS and early (well most of) college years here in Omaha, just different venues, but the style is spot on, add western style shirts, and vintage track jackets, bowling shoes (or ones that looked the part), and dress shoes to that. I love Cap’n Jazz, Braid (Hey Mercedes too). Omaha, KCMO/Lawrence, KS, and Chicago bands made up a great deal of my music collection in the late 90’s/early 00’s.
@@Sean0780 Agreed. there was a lot of good stuff coming out of KC/LKS that either didnt get enough attention, or I had no idea their popularity. If you've never heard them, checkout out Panel Donor - previously ZOOM - from Lawrence. Great noise, math, and tones.
Remember the dark blue beer brand jackets? I had an “Olympia Light Beer” jacket. I think it had like “Frank” embroidered on the front in Cursive. I believe I bought it at Strange Cargo in Chicago back when it was a vintage clothing store.
Glad to see Braid mentioned. Braid and Corm were big influences on me in my teens. The early Cursive records as well. I've always kind of considered some of the Chicago art mafia stuff to be part of the 90s emo scene as well, but I don't know if it quite fits. Heroic Doses/5ive Style and Ghosts & Vodka in particular. They shared some members with emo bands and had a similar vibe, but no lyrics and not as melancholy.
@@Sean0780It was a great time for music and to be young. I hate that people think My Chemical Romance and Fallout Boy when they think Emo. What is commonly known as Emo is more like Goth kids who like pop punk. Midwest Emo was smart music, poetic and sarcastic with a touch of pretension. The music wasn’t all sad bastard stuff, in fact a lot of it was uplifting and happy sounding to me. It was catchy in a non traditional sense and very melodic and created emotions other than sadness. We dresses way better than the goth Emo, who took it almost to hair metal level ridiculousness.
I'm not from the Midwest, I'm even not from America, yet I still managed to find this music and found apart of me in the music and that's what I love most about it
I love the opening with scene kids and goth ravers (nothing against either groups!) but that kinda stuff is really what a lot of people think when you say emo… And then the video kicks off with the real shit ❤ Although I feel like some of the later bands are more like a midwest emo revival/5th wave emo, but I realize that’s mostly my personal subjective view. (You even managed to get Yung Lean in there, not just the usual emo-rap suspects😲)
I'm sad that Marietta wasn't mentioned at all because that was *the* band that really got me into the genre. Although American Football, Free Throw, The Hotelier, and (debatably Midwest Emo adjacent) Oso Oso were all bands I listened to a lot, Marietta was the one that stuck with me the most, Oso Oso being a close second.
I'm sad none of Jack Sneffs bands made it in either. Midwest Pen Pals, Merchant Ships, William Bonney. His bands were my introduction to midwest emo and I think his bands were big in the revival.
never heard of midwest emo until I was 18. My Instincts Are The Enemy - American Football was the song that introduced me to the genre, it helped me get through my first worst break up, it made me feel like everything was going to be alright no matter how much I was hurting that time. I'm 23 now and I'm still frequently listening to midwest emo songs and I would still be listening to it when I finally have kids.
THANK YOU so much for providing links to the video footage - there is some stuff I haven't seen before from bands I know a lot about. You found some gems. Great video.
7:22 You're telling me there's a band called "The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die", And it's _not_ a Post-Rock band? Inconceivable. That's like one of the most Post-Rock band names I've ever heard.
@@rateeightx Exactly! I always thought of it as "that other EITS album I need to check out at some point" and didn't realise it was actually another band entirely. Now I definitely have to go check it out...
This was the emo I was in on. I'm now a 50+ black man in the southeast of Tennessee and still Love this era of emo. I'm not too big into 3rd wave, I was listening to a bunch of other stuff as that came out though I have checked out Paramore since then. I heard certain songs out and about but didn't listen to the radio or watch much TV so I didn't always know who was who. I went on a stoner metal/desert rock bender and a post rock jag for a while. Somewhere I randomly heard The World is A Beautiful Place and fell in LOVE! Watching this, I reckon they are considered 4th wave? Cool. I'll have to check out some more of it. I've also meant to check out the 1st incarnations as well. Good video. I've had it in my Watch Later list for a year, maybe? Decided to watch it tonight. ✌🏾🌬️🍂
Great video man ! When I was a teenager I was listening to a lot of bands like MCR panic at the disco etc but was not aware of these other previous bands. I’m gonna give them a listen :)
12-14 years ago, the scene was so different. As i recall it, "Midwest emo" (the twinkly kind anyway) was pretty much solely being used as a term to half-jokingly describe the music that the band Midwest Pen Pals was putting out. It wasn't necessarily a set, determined genre yet at all; it was literally in the middle of being birthed and evolving. The influence acoustic stuff Owen did and the music of American Football can not be understated; mike kinsella's music and style of guitar playing were quite literally THE building blocks for all of twinkly emo!!! "midwest emo" a decade and a half ago didn't sound exactly as we may think of it now. 12-15 years ago, the genre still had a lot of vocalists trying to scream over it or do really rough sounding vocals. Bands like Street Smart Cyclist (eventually Snowing), Make Me, Merchant Ships, Tiny Moving Parts, Lana Avacada, My Head in Clouds... Old Grey. These aren't necessarily bands you would think of as being called "Midwest Emo" these days necessarily because of the rough vocals, but they were extremely EXTREMELY fundamental in creating Midwest emo as it is today! You have to remember, Marietta wasn't a band yet. Modern Baseball wasn't a band yet. TWIABP wasn't a band yet. There weren't a lot of bands doing twinkly clean "midwest emo" as we know it now with unique guitar tunings. But these "screamo" bands from around this time influenced the clean midwest emo bands that came later. There were legit so few bands to get into back then! Basically at the time, if you said you liked "midwest emo" (no one really said this), it meant you liked Snowing, Oh My God Elephant, Midwest Pen Pals, American Football, Mineral, Footnotes, Empire! Empire, and Algernon Cadwallader. But that was it!!!!!!! There wasn't a whole expansive subgenre of music called midwest emo yet that you could dive into. Those were the only bands with any modest following out there tuning their guitars to weird tunings and singing about emo shit. I remember when Snowing dropped fuck your emotional bullshit and I was like WHOA!! What the fuck is this! How do I find more of it? The scene started to grow and grow organically from there. New bands started to sprout. I remember when Tiny Moving Parts dropped this couch is full of friendship, when modern baseball dropped sports, when "DADS" became a band and nobody wanted to admit they liked them. I remember when Merchant Ships broke up and Nick tried to start Cougar Season and Park Jefferson. I saw Merchant Ships and Algernon live (different shows). Midwest emo as a genre was literally just like growing before your eyes, and it was just really cool to be a part of. I wish I could go back sometimes. Nothing will ever beat being 16 and looking through "Similar Artists to Snowing" or "Similar Artists to Rainbow Tornado" on Last.FM and discovering 20 new bands that were just three 17 year old kids recording music with one mic into a garage band track. other bands I remember from the time: mane horse, lights on emendy, acres, lana avacada, JOIE DE VIVRE (literally so underrated- the north end is amazing, hightide hotel, and football etc.... there were many more, but usually a band would crop up for four months and then it would be gone just as quick so nothing ever really stuck.
If I’m being 100% completely honest out of all of the emo genres Midwest and post hardcore are the ones that will stick with me because a lot of them i relate to.its probably one of my favorite type of emo genres because of how dark it is but you know somehow its gonna be better in the end .
finally!! someone’s analysis of midwest emo that isn’t degrading the genre or infantilizes or jokes on its’ listeners. also I really didn’t know some of these things even though being into the genre for quite some time, so thanks for that! :)
I’m not from the Midwest but Midwest emos’s sound fits well with where I’m from, I am from the southwestern U.S. where you trade the foggy forests and abandoned rust belt factories with miles of barren desert wasteland between spread out cities. the sound resonates here because we get the exact same feelings of restlessness, solitude, nostalgia, and generational alcoholism as our midwest peeps
Most people back then just called it emo. But I guess we called a lot of stuff emo. I think the "Midwest" part is just getting tacked on in recent years to differentiate between everything people called emo after the 90s. I mean, Sunny Day Real Estate weren't even from the Midwest, but they still had that same sound.
I'm so glad I ran into my friends british friend who introduced me to midwest emo. It's so fun playing all the riffs and listening to the songs in my darkest days.
A big thing to remember is it wasnt the internet that brought back interest in emo, at least not how people think. It wasnt /Mu-core or RYM, it wasn't simply nostalgia, it was a tradition of DIY that stayed alive and underground for a decade until it finally re emerged into the mainstream. There were workin-ass emo bands in the late 2000s that made this shit possible and they deserve their flowers.
Origami Angel quickly became my favorite Midwest Emo-esque band after I saw them open for Mom Jeans in Phoenix last year. All the things that make the genre so amazing with a much more uplifting and positive message than I've seen before. Their concept album Somewhere City has really gotten me through some big changes in my life when I'm yearning for a simpler time with good friends.
Saw this and had to click. In highschool I didn't know what midwest emo was, and gravitated more towards punk and pop punk in terms of my rock taste. I didn't get into midwest emo till after I graduated, because I didn't know how to process sadness in an adult way till my 20's. Midwest emo makes me nostalgic for the dread and emptiness I felt as a result of knowing that I wasn't ready to graduate, but also calms me and makes me happy, because as an adult I can process those feelings I had, and enjoy the bittersweetness of times passage like swirled yogurt cup of joy and sorrow.
absolutely loved this, are you actually brazilian? i think its so interesting understand where all these detailes and subcultures came from. I remember casually Lucas Silveira from Fresno describing how the waves of emo came to Brazil and how they spread and mixed, but im not sure if we had a second wave like midwest emo, at least not with the same melodic structures.
good video just wanted to add that 4th wave emo kinda died down a bit a couple of years ago and a new 5th wave started coming up and it would have been a nice mention ^^
I'd recommend listening to Adjy - Idyll Opus, actually an absolute masterclass of midwest emo, It's full of content from lyrical poetry to musical complexity to cryptic puzzles and mysteries to an emotional journey of youth, love, maturity and loss. It's an album that really needs a deep dive for you to fully see how phenomenal and well crafted it really is. In my humble opinion it is one of the best albums of the decade, along with Ants From Up There, Odyssey To The West, Portal Of I and Home Like Noplace Is There
I feel there’s something to be said about the pandemic’s effect on the popularity of the genre as well. I wouldn’t say it’s big enough to be it’s own wave or anything, but it’s certainly it’s own chapter. I think the pandemic and the lockdowns worsened a lot of relationships, and gave people a lot of time alone for reflection and introspection. That’s when I first got into the genre. Early 2020. I had just gone through a rough breakup, and then the pandemic hit. The catchy emotional UA-cam titles and the dissonant amateurish thumbnails of suburban America caught my attention, and I’m glad they did.
Man midwest emo just reminds me of the brutal unforgiving cold of a winter in the midwest, and the promise of the spring...it's beautiful
This comment is very poetic!
This is also what life is like in the Netherlands
Yeah when you’re deep into winter and there’s literally nothing to do
The wind whipping against your face, the chilling numb making you blissfully unaware of how much your nose is actually running. Snow like 6 inches and only growing, roads covered in black ice, the weatherman says there's gonna be a blizzard. The cuffs of your jeans soaked through from snow, your socks wet and your toes numb. You regret not wearing another flannel to go out and get the mail. The sky has been grey and cloudy all month, and so have you. Every day makes you tired- you're still recovering from a cold, and you're tired of waking up earlier every day to give your car time to warm up. Walking through snow is exhausting, stepping in a deep puddle of ice water is exhausting, going through your whole day feeling the bitter, apathetic chill of Midwestern winter, is exhausting. But the snow looks so beautiful. And the wind whistles a sad, lonely sound. The Midwest reminds you that even in the everlasting darkness of a winter that starts and ends at least a month before and after it should (respectively), even when you haven't seen the sun in seven days, even when you give up on cleaning up the mud and melted slush by the door, even then, life is beautiful. The Midwest empathizes. The Midwest *is* Midwestern Emo.
You're right, it is beautiful
@@gluedtothemouse wonderfully said, wow
probably one of the most underrated midwest emo video essays, keep going dude, absolutely loved this
thanks so much!
It’s not even ten minutes long, and lightly grazes the surface of the topic. I think you’re just excited to see a video about Midwest Emo, as was I. Stay in school
Except the part where his 90s emo band examples were jew and weezer lol ;-;
underrated by who?
midwest emo is the only genre that survived the post MCR world. I've always listened to the genre a little bit in high school, but never go too into it. I was more into traditional punk/hardcore, and never felt like I was "soft" enough to relate to the nerdy easy catharsis of the aforementioned bands, I still don't really relate, but I have a lot of respect for the genre as its one of the rare true musical continuations of the 90's. Everyone says pop punk is back rn, and I think that's bull, the mainstream appeal may be back, but this scene is one of the few that holds true to the actual musicality
No one's even gonna MENTION Cap'n Jazz, the predecessor to American Football both spiritually and literally. Mike was literally IN the band, alongside his brother Tim who's unique vocals have an obvious influence of some of the 4th wave midwest revival bands such as Algernon, or The Brave Little Abacus. Not to mention their guitar player greatly inspired much of the neck pickup Tele/tappy riffage that midwest emo and American Football are so well known for.
Exactly, I feel like this video could’ve been better researched. Cap’n Jazz basically defined the genre
fr fr dude i was waiting for him to mention them but it never came. cap’n jazz was literally the big bang for midwest emo, pretty sure their guitarist and drummer even formed the promised ring.
the visuals had tim or nate singing i think
And he mentioned Battles but not Don Caballero?? That threw me too
@@MattyPants00 Idk overall I feel like this vid wasnt super well researched, most people wouldn't even agree that TMP is math rock.
I think what I love about midwest emo as opposed to the mainstream pop punk emo is that it's a lot softer, less chaotic, and arguably more beautiful. It's not in your face with eyeliner and weird hair telling you they're depressed, it's a bittersweet declaration of emotion bathed in open guitar tunings and the descending vi-V-IV bassline
Midwest Emo fills me up with childhood. It reminds me of the times I'd run outside in the morning to catch the bus or hanging out with friends and doing stupid shit in the woods. Never had a girlfriend that young, so I can't relate to the heartbreak that much. But when I hear midwest emo rock, I still get a picture. I imagine sleek, scratchy animation. Almost like anime but also American. Like Scott Pilgrim. A humble, relatable protagonist going through life, trying his best, and defeating his enemies with everything he has. Dunno why that comes to mind, but that's what goes through my head when I hear midwest emo. A very honest, kickass, heartfelt genre.
The very recent "fifth wave" of emo, sometimes referred to as post-emo, is something truly special to me as a gen z young adult. It incorporates many influences and styles (including midwest emo) and features a lot of new blood. Come In by Weatherday is a good album to get in to the wave with.
i love weatherday as much as the next guy but i feel like we are very much still in the 4th wave, the sound hasn’t evolved or separated enough from the “4-wave” sound
weatherday takes a lot from noise genre too
Would recommend listening to Idyll Opus - Adjy. It's Folk Midwest Emo but is phenomenal musically, lyrically and contextually. Throughout the album you get introduced to tons of mysteries and puzzles. It's an intricate, masterful and emotional album.
i LOVE weatherday
@@katfoode3222I’d disagree, I’d say the difference between “5th wave” like Weatherday, Asian Glow, glass beach vs emo revival like Algernon, Snowing, Glocca Morra is pretty significant.
I think the main point of conflict is identifying when 5th wave even really began
I love that I feel like I’m almost at the ground floor of the fourth wave of Midwest emo. It feels so authentic.
politely we are like firmly into the fifth wave
@@gregdubin8316 thank god you mentioned this
@@gregdubin8316 facts
lol what
I feel like Hot Mulligan is so close to exploding into a huge band. They're going to take Midwest emo into the mainstream
So true, you'll be fine was amazing; so well done. I really hope their next LP takes them into headlining band territory
I've listened to some of them and didn't like it. What tracks would you recommend?
@@frogdeity my personal favourites are: Featuring Mark Hoppus, BCKYRD, Digging In, and MakeDamnSure (off their 2nd acoustic EP which is so good). I personally love every song they have but those are some of my favourites!
@@matchress3832 Thanks. I'll check them out.
@@frogdeity also try How do you Know it’s not Armadillo shells? It’s the song that made me fall in love with them and talks about anxiety and being overwhelmed and struggling to cope. If you like more subdued, Please Don’t Cry you Have Swag is also hella powerful with a huge ending.
This really amazes me- I'm 46 years old and grew up in the suburbs of Chicago. While different in sound, my best buds were in a band so we always hung out with the Cap'n Jazz guys. I must have seen them perform in at least 100 basements in the early early 90s before migrating to the Fireside Bowl (where all the bands in the scene played). Another band we hung out with, Sidekick Kato, was nearly as influential yet doesn't get namechecked as much. I'm literally just learning about Midwest Emo being a thing and while I was long out of the scene by the time American Football formed, this brings back incredible memories of my teens and makes me proud to have been "in the room where it happened."
someone should make a emo progression playlist so we can listen to it from the start
The big stuff here in Illinois at the time that people were listening to were Cap’n Jazz, later Promise Ring, and Joan of Arc, Braid, Sidekick Kato, Cursive, Jawbreaker and later Jets to Brazil, Sunny Day Real Estate, Tuesday, Rainer Maria, Karate, Texas is the Reason, Get Up Kids, Christie Front Drive, Hum, lots of other stuff. American Football was rather late in the scene, but Mike had been in Cap’n Jazz and Joan of Arc previously. It was not a big record at the time. There was also the more slow core scene with stuff like June of 44, Slint, Codeine, Don Caballero, Polvo, Shellac, etc. Most of those 2nd wave emo bands were taking lots of cues from the older slow core scene as well as older indie bands like Built to Spill, Archers of Loaf, Modest Mouse, Dinosaur Jr, and older post hardcore like Fugazi and Drive Like Jehu but making it more poppy / punk. It was an interesting time and place to be, having grown up around the Champaign and Chicago scenes in the 90s. Things seemed so fresh and new at the time, but maybe part of it was my age as well. Not all of the “Midwest Emo” sound has aged well IMO but definitely some of the albums continue to be classics. We just called it emo back then, the Midwest label came way after the fact.. :)
The genre makes me nostalgic for summer evenings that i never experienced
I saw the American Football house and had to stop by. That alone brought back great memories. Great video
I'm really happy that Memo never did get that big back in the day. It gives it that extra oomph because it was never supposed to be big. It's ment for lost people who find it. It doesn't find you, you find it
Also check out Rainer Maria, Elliot, Cap’n Jazz, I Hate Myself, Piebald, Texas is the Reason, Jazz June, Braid, Hot Water Music...
I'm an old guy who's 40 and I'm just now getting into Midwest emo.
Here are the best bands from my time: Marietta, Midwest pen pals, street smart cyclist, Algernon cadwallader, cap'n jazz, merchant ships, oh my God elephant, snowing, I kill giants, William bonney, old gray, camping in alaska
I'm 35 and only got into it like 5 years ago
I'm 17 and I recently discovered midwest emo, so far Title Flight is my favorite band. It's nice living in an age where I can find three hour long playlists of this kind of music for free. Im grateful to youtubers and the weird algorithm for introducing me to so many genres and subcultures. If anyone has any artists recommendations let me know : )
you should listen to the brave little abacus and parannoul
citizen will always be my favorite, no two albums of theirs are the same
There are a few mostly unknown bands there are still making really good Midwest emo like Good Sleepy, Padfoot, Flight Patterns, Frat Mouse, and Worst Party Ever
Marietta!
If you like Title Fight you'll like Touche Amore. Also listen to "the classics:" Texas is the Reason, Mineral, Sunny Day Real Estate, Indian Summer, Jejune, Jimmy Eat World, early Death Cab for Cutie, etc.,
Also check out Hum. It's not an emo band, but they were big in the Urbana-Champaign music scene at the same time American Football was.
I think the early pandemic played a significant role in the uptick of midwest emo
BEST BUDS IS LEGENDARY?! I love that record.
But my favorite Midwest emo is Real Friends’ The Home Inside My Head.
Don’t sleep on it!
I'm into it deeply since 2018 and it made me fall in love even with the new wave of sad/chillrap heavy inspired by midwest emo. I shift from one genre to the other, and it's been my true friend since the discovery. Music for lost souls and broken bodies, this is this kind of music for me
i love daniel johnston more than anything, i had a dream is such a great song to verbalize feeling decidedly below others, i love absurdity and i love that dude
midwest emo is the genre that gets me. it’s the songs and the lyrics that hit every time and the passion that makes life just a tad bit easier.
It’s funny that, for me, “Midwest Emo” makes me think of Connor Oberst and Bright Eyes - who were from the Midwest and sang a sort of emo-folk music.
For me I got into Midwest emo from listening to emo rap. Rappers such as lil peep, Suicideboys, bones, yung lean, and all of those underground rappers (too many to name). As someone who grew up listening to bands like greenday and punk rock and hardcore music I see why I love it. Not to mention I was an emotional teenager growing up in northwestern Pennsylvania. I got into it through modern baseball and the rest followed. I love how real the lyrics are and the guitar. Best genre ever.
I’m an emotional 20 year old now so not much has changed lol. But I think that rawness and emotion is what makes it great. The instrumentals portray emotions and the singing. Music is an art and art is an outlet to show our emotions and let them out and I think that’s what’s really beautiful about Midwest emo, it’s a poetic, chaotic, peaceful, and all around great portrayal of emotion and commentary on life. Emo anything is great, it’s such a broad term because basically anytime someone is honest in their songs it’s branded as emo, very great though.
Same. I also started of listening to emo rap, like yung lean, xxxtentacion, juice wrld. I wonder if this is how most teenagers get into the genre nowadays.
@@hdrbros2435 I would say so, it’s kind of a pattern I’ve seen with a lot of people around me. I think also a lot of these rappers were influenced by such genres, you can see that in the music they sample and play in between sets at their shows. I think the lyrical content and general themes of the two genres overlap a lot too
@@hdrbros2435 also kinda funny but you probably know who WiccaPhase is? He started GothBoiClique the emo rap group lil peep and others were apart of and he was actually the singer in a band called Tigers Jaw before he started doing emo rap. So definitely an overlap
@@aidannorthup5326 that’s pretty interesting. I don’t know him, but that’s cool. Peep has that vibe to his music though, especially on his acoustic songs
Sunny Day Real Estate is crazy *UNDERRATED* man.
Having been born in 1994, I grew up mainly with the third wave of emo. It wasn't until my last two years in high school that I discovered American Football, man LP 1 was the first time I've cried to music. While Blink 182 numbed me and got me through my bad days, AF got me through the bad thoughts, as cliche as it sounds. Later I discovered Mike Kinsella's Owen which felt like finding someone's old diary and just built upon what AF had placed in me; as a musician it did wonders for my playing and style horizons.
Very well done video essay.
Maybe you can do one on the Cap'n Jazz/American Football family tree
Thanks for sharing your experience, my first listen of LP1 will always stick with me too!
This video needs more views I would’ve never expected a video explaining one of my favorite genres
Thank you! Glad you liked it
I highly recommend the album ‘Please Be Nice’ by Camping In Alaska.
I still remember hearing Mineral's "Endserenading" in the record store player in San Luis Obispo CA in 1997. Just the intro alone blew me away immediately. I came back and bought it as soon as I had money along w "30 Degrees Everywhere" and "Forever and Counting".
Incredible quality for your size, I totally expected to see at least 100k subs when I finished the video, you have a very cool and calm delivery and talk with lots of confidence, loved the video.
Thank you so much!
Ive been listening to midwest emo and math rock since i was about 13-14 in my first years in high school, it has stuck with me since then due to the fact that I grew up in a broken home filled with hate and addiction and midwest emo's relatability was the first and only embrace of familiarity my 14 year old self felt, it was amazing, and by god as much as i hated everything, it is the only thing I miss.
The Brave little Abacus deserves a mention here
Great video! The only thing that I won't to criticise is how much you emphasised heartbreak as the main theme of midwest emo. It's definitely a big part of the genre, but imo friendship and good ol' times spent with the bois seems to be just as important. Pop music is filled with songs about heartbreak and love. That's why I love midwest emo. It makes me think about my friends and good times we had.
Glad you like the video, and I appreciate the feedback!
I definitely agree with the last part of the video. The reason why I like midwest emo is how it makes me acknowledge the heartbreak and the shitty feelings I went thru. Listening to other genres do give off a good feeling by having upbeat and optimistic lyrics, but it only suppresses the sad feelings I have for a short while before they resurface. Midwest emo makes me face them upfront, and gives me a sense that the lyrics empathizes with my feelings that counterintuitively, soothes the feels more. I'm forever grateful to be able to find this beautiful precious genre of music. 🙏🏈⚽
Remo Drive is the only band that I can consistently like songs for in the whole mid west emo genre. If you haven’t look up their early stuff, kol rd is a channel that has all of it. Songs like “twelve” just bring such a feeling that no others can
Good job on the video, it’s very good
Thanks!
My favorite genre of music. Holds a very dear spot in my life. emo forever
This video popped up on my recommended. Clicked without thinking. I didn't realize it was produced by a channel with under 200 subs. Amazing essay. You deserve so much more recognition, can't wait to see what you put out in the future!
Thanks so much!
I lived the first few years of my life in Urbana, in the neighborhood where the American Football house was located. I never liked midwest emo at all, but I'm glad it had shed some light on my region. Whenever I do go down to the Champagne-Urbana area, I always make sure I stop by the American Football house.
It’s insane how I stumbled across this genre essentially on a white, by pure happenstance. It’s the only genre I’ve felt to capture the, “essence”, of melancholy and human heartache. Camping In Alaska is one of my personal favorites and I’m so glad to be getting more. Thank you
hey man, thats a really cool video you made, i would love to see more content of yours! hope you are having a lovely day :)
Thank you! Making more content, hopefully up soon:)
this was a great breakdown of emo and midwest emo. I grew up on a lot of such bands, including ones that weren't mentioned such as Black Veil Brides, Adept, and Escape The Fate among countless others. I was an emo kid in the mid 2000's and it was a time like none other, the internet was still young and for the most part it was still a place for outcasts, and I became enveloped in it to escape abuse at home. I was always a rebel, I still am, but that was something different, packed with passion, love, and general emotion, not just disdain and being jaded. dating a "rawr xd" girl or guy in those days was a lot different from the dating scene my cousins have these days.
wow this is a really well done first video for the channel holy moly
Thank you!
While walking back home & I heard some very nostalgic & familiar tune from a local cafe. Christie Front Drive, Penfold, Mineral & Sunny Day Real Estate. Reminded me of the good old days 😢
thank you for making this, genuinely.
thanks so much!
About 6 months ago I discovered Modern Baseball. I absolutely fell in love with the band, learned the whole of sports on guitar in a month. I love their sound, it just sounds so raw and from the heart. I really can keep listening to their albums on repeat for days. This kind of ganre got me curious and really opened a door to midwest emo for me. Bands like Moms jeans, Car seat headrest or Slaughter Beach, Dog are just awesome. I am really glad that I stumbled on this kind of music. It almost seems That waited for me to discover it. I fell in love with it. Its very emotional to listen and so fun to play. I really like the riffs in these weird tunings and odd time signatures. Its challenging but fun.
Anyway great video man, you put it out really well. Not a lot of people know this genre, and you summed it up really nice. Keep up the good work!
Thank you for your comment!
I spent my teen years listening to Modern Baseball non-stop. I still have days where I've got my MoBo playlist (titled "Can't find my socks") running all day. I was sad that they'd gone on indefinite hiatus but Jake Ewald's graduation (pun intended) from MoBo into Slaughter Beach, Dog represented an illuminating emotional development. There was a long time that I didn't really like SBD's sound, but in hindsight I was just too young. The journey from our brick-boot swimming lesson in the deep end of our adolescence, to wanting to fly to Ireland knowing we'd be good for the ticket may not be longer than just a few short years; but those years we learned how to be real people were captured perfectly. Ewald even talks about this growth explicitly in a Stereogum article, "But if you’ve ever engaged in critical discussion about Wilco, it’s often less about the music than it is about what liking Wilco says about you. For the most part, it means your contrarian punk days are over, that you’re probably on the path towards the dull demands of adulthood and … gasp, full-on 'dad-rock'" (www.stereogum.com/2053086/slaughter-beach-dog-safe-and-also-no-fear-jake-ewald-modern-baseball/interviews/). Whether your contrarian punk days are over, or you're a Wilco fan, enjoy your emotions. See you in the Void Saloon :)
i have a midwest emo playlist on spotify lmk if you want it. its like 10hrs long.
@@dnkmarci of course, drop the link bro!
@@the_gartender Damn. You're right about SBD it took me a while to get into the sound but it stuck. I guess I just connected the music with new memories.
Was the early drummer of Oxford remedy, trying to personally grow from that genre, but it’s really been a scene that’s grown here
I’m 42 years old and grew up in and still live in Chicago and I was part of the scene in the 90’s, I’ve seen all those bands at the Fireside Bowl, Metro, Off the Alley, Empty Bottle and wore Argyle Sweaters, retro running shoes, Argyle socks, Tweed Blazers with elbow patches and vintage T-shirts. Scarves were big too, the ones that grandmas knitted and crocheted were big.
The biggest and most important bands of that era were hands down Cap N Jazz and Braid. American Football not so much. They seem to be more popular and important to the current scene but clearly American Football is Mikes more traditional, less chaotic take on Cap N Jazz’s sound.
I’m 42 as well. You basically described my later HS and early (well most of) college years here in Omaha, just different venues, but the style is spot on, add western style shirts, and vintage track jackets, bowling shoes (or ones that looked the part), and dress shoes to that. I love Cap’n Jazz, Braid (Hey Mercedes too).
Omaha, KCMO/Lawrence, KS, and Chicago bands made up a great deal of my music collection in the late 90’s/early 00’s.
@@Sean0780 Agreed. there was a lot of good stuff coming out of KC/LKS that either didnt get enough attention, or I had no idea their popularity. If you've never heard them, checkout out Panel Donor - previously ZOOM - from Lawrence. Great noise, math, and tones.
Remember the dark blue beer brand jackets? I had an “Olympia Light Beer” jacket. I think it had like “Frank” embroidered on the front in Cursive. I believe I bought it at Strange Cargo in Chicago back when it was a vintage clothing store.
Glad to see Braid mentioned. Braid and Corm were big influences on me in my teens. The early Cursive records as well. I've always kind of considered some of the Chicago art mafia stuff to be part of the 90s emo scene as well, but I don't know if it quite fits. Heroic Doses/5ive Style and Ghosts & Vodka in particular. They shared some members with emo bands and had a similar vibe, but no lyrics and not as melancholy.
@@Sean0780It was a great time for music and to be young. I hate that people think My Chemical Romance and Fallout Boy when they think Emo. What is commonly known as Emo is more like Goth kids who like pop punk. Midwest Emo was smart music, poetic and sarcastic with a touch of pretension. The music wasn’t all sad bastard stuff, in fact a lot of it was uplifting and happy sounding to me. It was catchy in a non traditional sense and very melodic and created emotions other than sadness. We dresses way better than the goth Emo, who took it almost to hair metal level ridiculousness.
I'm not from the Midwest, I'm even not from America, yet I still managed to find this music and found apart of me in the music and that's what I love most about it
Midwest Emo / Post Rock is the soundtrack to the Suburbs.
I love the opening with scene kids and goth ravers (nothing against either groups!) but that kinda stuff is really what a lot of people think when you say emo… And then the video kicks off with the real shit ❤
Although I feel like some of the later bands are more like a midwest emo revival/5th wave emo, but I realize that’s mostly my personal subjective view.
(You even managed to get Yung Lean in there, not just the usual emo-rap suspects😲)
I recommend try listening to Nouns Still Bummed,it is absolutely one of the best emo-punk,album out there.Its filled with rock experiments too.
This video is amazing it explains the genre so well. Thanks for making me it!
Thanks so much!
I'm sad that Marietta wasn't mentioned at all because that was *the* band that really got me into the genre. Although American Football, Free Throw, The Hotelier, and (debatably Midwest Emo adjacent) Oso Oso were all bands I listened to a lot, Marietta was the one that stuck with me the most, Oso Oso being a close second.
I'm sad none of Jack Sneffs bands made it in either. Midwest Pen Pals, Merchant Ships, William Bonney. His bands were my introduction to midwest emo and I think his bands were big in the revival.
Marietta is great!
And Midwest Pen Pals too
I love Marietta!! Waiting for them to come back for one more tour. I just got into them 😭
How was saddle creek not mentioned
Great video! Bummed Hot Mulligan wasn’t mentioned but happy Mom Jeans got a shout out!
I like Hot Mulligan, Mom Jeans, Free Throw, and Panucci's Pizza
never heard of midwest emo until I was 18. My Instincts Are The Enemy - American Football was the song that introduced me to the genre, it helped me get through my first worst break up, it made me feel like everything was going to be alright no matter how much I was hurting that time. I'm 23 now and I'm still frequently listening to midwest emo songs and I would still be listening to it when I finally have kids.
THANK YOU so much for providing links to the video footage - there is some stuff I haven't seen before from bands I know a lot about. You found some gems. Great video.
Thank you! Theres some brilliant midwest emo video footage on youtube so included some of my faves:)
The 4th wave of Midwest Emo was absolutely life changing for me
7:22 You're telling me there's a band called "The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die", And it's _not_ a Post-Rock band? Inconceivable. That's like one of the most Post-Rock band names I've ever heard.
They kind of are a mix of midwest emo and post-rock
@@FastFoodForum Ah neat.
I actually thought it was an Explosions in The Sky album until just now, you learn something new every day!
@@Howlingd0g I can definitely see it, Similar title to their classic "The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place".
@@rateeightx Exactly! I always thought of it as "that other EITS album I need to check out at some point" and didn't realise it was actually another band entirely. Now I definitely have to go check it out...
This was the emo I was in on. I'm now a 50+ black man in the southeast of Tennessee and still Love this era of emo. I'm not too big into 3rd wave, I was listening to a bunch of other stuff as that came out though I have checked out Paramore since then. I heard certain songs out and about but didn't listen to the radio or watch much TV so I didn't always know who was who. I went on a stoner metal/desert rock bender and a post rock jag for a while. Somewhere I randomly heard The World is A Beautiful Place and fell in LOVE! Watching this, I reckon they are considered 4th wave? Cool. I'll have to check out some more of it. I've also meant to check out the 1st incarnations as well. Good video. I've had it in my Watch Later list for a year, maybe? Decided to watch it tonight. ✌🏾🌬️🍂
Great video and analysis - loved seeing a clip from the Joiners in there, that was the first venue I ever saw a gig at.
thank you!
Litterally the best video essay I’ve ever seen. So wel articulated
Thanks so much!
Great video man ! When I was a teenager I was listening to a lot of bands like MCR panic at the disco etc but was not aware of these other previous bands. I’m gonna give them a listen :)
Thank you! hope you like them
12-14 years ago, the scene was so different. As i recall it, "Midwest emo" (the twinkly kind anyway) was pretty much solely being used as a term to half-jokingly describe the music that the band Midwest Pen Pals was putting out. It wasn't necessarily a set, determined genre yet at all; it was literally in the middle of being birthed and evolving. The influence acoustic stuff Owen did and the music of American Football can not be understated; mike kinsella's music and style of guitar playing were quite literally THE building blocks for all of twinkly emo!!! "midwest emo" a decade and a half ago didn't sound exactly as we may think of it now. 12-15 years ago, the genre still had a lot of vocalists trying to scream over it or do really rough sounding vocals. Bands like Street Smart Cyclist (eventually Snowing), Make Me, Merchant Ships, Tiny Moving Parts, Lana Avacada, My Head in Clouds... Old Grey. These aren't necessarily bands you would think of as being called "Midwest Emo" these days necessarily because of the rough vocals, but they were extremely EXTREMELY fundamental in creating Midwest emo as it is today! You have to remember, Marietta wasn't a band yet. Modern Baseball wasn't a band yet. TWIABP wasn't a band yet. There weren't a lot of bands doing twinkly clean "midwest emo" as we know it now with unique guitar tunings. But these "screamo" bands from around this time influenced the clean midwest emo bands that came later. There were legit so few bands to get into back then! Basically at the time, if you said you liked "midwest emo" (no one really said this), it meant you liked Snowing, Oh My God Elephant, Midwest Pen Pals, American Football, Mineral, Footnotes, Empire! Empire, and Algernon Cadwallader. But that was it!!!!!!! There wasn't a whole expansive subgenre of music called midwest emo yet that you could dive into. Those were the only bands with any modest following out there tuning their guitars to weird tunings and singing about emo shit. I remember when Snowing dropped fuck your emotional bullshit and I was like WHOA!! What the fuck is this! How do I find more of it? The scene started to grow and grow organically from there. New bands started to sprout. I remember when Tiny Moving Parts dropped this couch is full of friendship, when modern baseball dropped sports, when "DADS" became a band and nobody wanted to admit they liked them. I remember when Merchant Ships broke up and Nick tried to start Cougar Season and Park Jefferson. I saw Merchant Ships and Algernon live (different shows). Midwest emo as a genre was literally just like growing before your eyes, and it was just really cool to be a part of. I wish I could go back sometimes. Nothing will ever beat being 16 and looking through "Similar Artists to Snowing" or "Similar Artists to Rainbow Tornado" on Last.FM and discovering 20 new bands that were just three 17 year old kids recording music with one mic into a garage band track.
other bands I remember from the time: mane horse, lights on emendy, acres, lana avacada, JOIE DE VIVRE (literally so underrated- the north end is amazing, hightide hotel, and football etc.... there were many more, but usually a band would crop up for four months and then it would be gone just as quick so nothing ever really stuck.
If I’m being 100% completely honest out of all of the emo genres Midwest and post hardcore are the ones that will stick with me because a lot of them i relate to.its probably one of my favorite type of emo genres because of how dark it is but you know somehow its gonna be better in the end .
Amazing work here man; I especially loved all the footage you included. So much old gold!
thanks so much!
the mobo basement diy video is making me feel some type of way. so nostalgic
So well said! Man, Midwest Emo is home and hits like nothing else. LP1 Forever
Thanks! and agreed
finally!! someone’s analysis of midwest emo that isn’t degrading the genre or infantilizes or jokes on its’ listeners. also I really didn’t know some of these things even though being into the genre for quite some time, so thanks for that! :)
Thanks so much! Really appreciate that
I’m not from the Midwest but Midwest emos’s sound fits well with where I’m from, I am from the southwestern U.S. where you trade the foggy forests and abandoned rust belt factories with miles of barren desert wasteland between spread out cities. the sound resonates here because we get the exact same feelings of restlessness, solitude, nostalgia, and generational alcoholism as our midwest peeps
i was a teenager in the midwest during the early 2000's, went to shows every weekend. don't remember it ever being called "midwest emo"
Most people back then just called it emo. But I guess we called a lot of stuff emo. I think the "Midwest" part is just getting tacked on in recent years to differentiate between everything people called emo after the 90s. I mean, Sunny Day Real Estate weren't even from the Midwest, but they still had that same sound.
I'm so glad I ran into my friends british friend who introduced me to midwest emo. It's so fun playing all the riffs and listening to the songs in my darkest days.
A big thing to remember is it wasnt the internet that brought back interest in emo, at least not how people think. It wasnt /Mu-core or RYM, it wasn't simply nostalgia, it was a tradition of DIY that stayed alive and underground for a decade until it finally re emerged into the mainstream. There were workin-ass emo bands in the late 2000s that made this shit possible and they deserve their flowers.
AMAZING VIDEO!!!! much luv for this genre n to you for making this video
Thank you!!
Succinct and lucid. What a great essay. Thank you for this video.
Thanks so much!
Thank you for pointing out Emo's influence on large swaths of Hip-Hop music. I never would have figured that out myself!
ok but why am i in tears
You are so criminally undersubbed dude
thank you!
Thanks a lot for this. Reminded me of a lot of great shows both as musician and audience member. Shoutout especially to Emperor X. Magical band.
Thanks for watching!
Midwest emo is the song that plays through your head as a teen when you drive by a corn field.
as someone from the middle of a cornfield in Illinois, I have to say I never thought I would hear a British man explain something like this
Origami Angel quickly became my favorite Midwest Emo-esque band after I saw them open for Mom Jeans in Phoenix last year. All the things that make the genre so amazing with a much more uplifting and positive message than I've seen before. Their concept album Somewhere City has really gotten me through some big changes in my life when I'm yearning for a simpler time with good friends.
also, damn man this is your first video?? Subscribed
I found origami from a skate 3 montage video and they are now my favorite band at the moment. Glad they are popular
American Football EP1 feels like a hug from someone with the same struggles you are having
Saw this and had to click. In highschool I didn't know what midwest emo was, and gravitated more towards punk and pop punk in terms of my rock taste. I didn't get into midwest emo till after I graduated, because I didn't know how to process sadness in an adult way till my 20's.
Midwest emo makes me nostalgic for the dread and emptiness I felt as a result of knowing that I wasn't ready to graduate, but also calms me and makes me happy, because as an adult I can process those feelings I had, and enjoy the bittersweetness of times passage like swirled yogurt cup of joy and sorrow.
I grew up in the middle of nowhere IL in the 90s I had no idea the music I loved growing up was considered “Midwest emo”
aye big up for using the footage of Modern Baseball playing at The Joiners!
absolutely loved this, are you actually brazilian? i think its so interesting understand where all these detailes and subcultures came from. I remember casually Lucas Silveira from Fresno describing how the waves of emo came to Brazil and how they spread and mixed, but im not sure if we had a second wave like midwest emo, at least not with the same melodic structures.
Thank you - And yes Im Brazilian! not as familiar with Brazilian emo but definitely plan on doing some research about that:)
good video just wanted to add that 4th wave emo kinda died down a bit a couple of years ago and a new 5th wave started coming up and it would have been a nice mention ^^
Awesome work
Thanks!
Thank you for not making this essay all about McCafferty.
I'd recommend listening to Adjy - Idyll Opus, actually an absolute masterclass of midwest emo, It's full of content from lyrical poetry to musical complexity to cryptic puzzles and mysteries to an emotional journey of youth, love, maturity and loss. It's an album that really needs a deep dive for you to fully see how phenomenal and well crafted it really is. In my humble opinion it is one of the best albums of the decade, along with Ants From Up There, Odyssey To The West, Portal Of I and Home Like Noplace Is There
More of this please
Amazing video from front to back and also found a new band during this. Thank you so much
Thank you for watching!
i freaking love the world is a beautiful place and i’m no longer afraid to die, mom jeans and i love this video essay
Algernon Cadwallader is underrated af
awesome video. The summer ends is my favorite song by AF. So beautiful
Thank you! Love that song
Modern Baseball and Free Throw are so fucking good god damn it
I feel there’s something to be said about the pandemic’s effect on the popularity of the genre as well. I wouldn’t say it’s big enough to be it’s own wave or anything, but it’s certainly it’s own chapter. I think the pandemic and the lockdowns worsened a lot of relationships, and gave people a lot of time alone for reflection and introspection. That’s when I first got into the genre. Early 2020. I had just gone through a rough breakup, and then the pandemic hit. The catchy emotional UA-cam titles and the dissonant amateurish thumbnails of suburban America caught my attention, and I’m glad they did.
This is an interesting point!
Midwest emo reminds me of the last days of the summer holiday in semptember in greece