Text by Stephanie Souza
If there's one band we can choose as the one that introduced emo to the American popular imagination in the 90s, that band would be The Get Up Kids .
When questioning the origins of emo as a musical movement, the conclusion has several variables (none 100% correct): Rites of Spring, Sunny Day Real Estate, Cap'n Jazz, Jimmy Eat World, Jawbreaker, Quicksand, Death Cab For Cutie , among others.
But without a doubt, the group that paved the way for emo's rise to the mainstream, becoming a turning point for a part of alternative music in the 90s/2000s, was The Get Up Kids. And they did it masterfully by mixing the rawness of emo with a cleaner, more commercial sound, aimed at radio and TV programs, at a time when the internet was only in its introductory phase.
Unlike bands that later reached the stratospheric peak of emo (including in Brazil), such as Fall Out Boy and My Chemical Romance , The Get Up Kids remained on the B-side of things, without bowing to the commercial pressure of major record labels, becoming an untouchable classic only for those who had a slightly deeper connection with the scene.
Something to Write Home About , released in 1999, is the band's second album, and it became a major turning point, not only for the scene but also for the genre as a whole. It's one of those albums that different bands have tried to replicate from time to time (but none have managed to do so with the same sensitivity and fluidity that TGUK created).
The opening track, “Holiday,” tells us everything the group intends to convey. Explosive guitars, synthesizers (a major differentiator among bands of the time), and Matt Pryor's emotive and high-pitched vocals, which declare themselves in a very sensitive way to lost loves: “Say goodnight, mean goodbye / I know you think my life would stop when you're away / I'm lucky if we're speaking on holidays.”.
“Action & Action,” one of the album’s two singles, highlights the importance of keyboardist James Dewees, who delivers a very well-executed synthesizer line, contrasting with Pryor’s vocals and Ryan Pope’s drumming, which ties everything together. The lyrics reflect not only a band in its maturation phase, bubbling with a certain… “teenage” angst, but also the transition of late 90s music: the rise of boy bands and nu metal and the uncertainty of the alternative scene. The point here is disillusionment, longing, restlessness: “If the world is ending, then we toast to it.”.
“Ten Minutes”, the album’s lead single, sounds very familiar, flirting heavily with pop-punk with its well-placed guitar riffs, in contrast to the sadder tone of its lyrics. In it, one can perceive the impact of TGUK on pop-punk bands that came later, such as Taking Back Sunday .
It's as if the group had a top-secret recipe for this album: the relentless and functional simplicity of "I'm a Loner Dottie, A Rebel" and "My Apology," the timelessness of "Long Goodnight" and "Out of Reach," and the naiveté of "Valentine" convey all the vibrancy and nostalgia that make up the appeal of Something to Write Home About.
“I'll Catch You” closes the album with a slow and gentle piano intro that progressively intensifies and explodes in a beautifully orchestrated way. It's the perfect ending to a classic filled with intense feelings of youthful mental confusion.
There's no denying the space that TGUK created for modern emo/pop punk. Something to Write Home About set a standard for all the bands that followed, pioneering the transition of emo from underground culture to a mainstream phenomenon. Addictive, sincere, and stimulating, it's easy to like and understand how they secured their place in the emo hall of fame.
The band returns to Brazil next weekend with two shows: one in Rio de Janeiro at Circo Voador on August 1st , and one in São Paulo for the Oxigênio Fest, which takes place on August 3rd and 4th – the band will perform on Sunday, August 4th. The tour celebrates the 25th anniversary of the classic album that gives this text its title. This will be the group's second performance in the country.
