Screamo is a subgenre of
hardcore punk which predominantly evolved from
emo,
among other genres, in the early 1990s. The term "screamo" was
initially applied to a more aggressive offshoot of emo that developed in
San Diego in 1991, which used short songs that grafted "spastic
intensity to willfully experimental dissonance and dynamics."
[2]
The genre experienced a popularity boost in the late 1990s and early
2000s, and by mid-2000s the over-saturation of the scene encouraged
bands to incorporate more experimental elements. Due to the popularity
and evolution of the style to a point of being unrecognizable, the term
"skramz" is sometimes used to describe bands from the first wave of
screamo.
Characteristics
Screamo essentially describes a particularly dissonant style of emo influenced by hardcore punk.
[3] Screamo uses typical rock instrumentation, but is notable for its brief compositions, chaotic execution, and
screaming vocals. The genre is "generally based in the aggressive side of the overarching punk-revival scene."
[3] Primary characteristics of the genre are described by
Allmusic:
[3]
| “ |
It came to be
that the soft/loud dynamic of having either one or two singers who
alternate between passionate singing and distraught shrieking that
characterizes most screamo. These vocals are often layered or appear
side-by-side amid aggressive, hard-hitting guitar licks used to trigger
an exhaustive, emotional catharsis. Though the music is outwardly tough
and powerful, the lyrics are usually of the introspective kind found in
softer emo bands. |
” |
In addition to melodic transitions from heavy to soft styles, the
genre is also characterized "by frequent shifts in tempo and dynamics
and by tension-and-release catharses."
[6]
Screamed vocals are used "not consistently, but as a kind of crescendo
element, a sonic weapon to be trotted out when the music and lyrics
reach a particular emotional pitch."
[6] Some consider the genre to be a bridge between hardcore punk and emo.
[7]
Conceptual elements
Screamo lyrics often feature topics such as emotional pain, romantic interest, feminism, politics, and human rights.
[8] The New York Times
noted that "part of the music's appeal is its un-self-conscious
acceptance of differences, respect for otherness." Some screamo bands
openly demonstrate acceptance of religious, nonreligious,
straight edge, and
homosexual lifestyles.
[6]
Many screamo bands in the 1990s saw themselves as implicitly political, and as a reaction against the turn to the
right embodied by California politicians, such as
Roger Hedgecock.
[9] Some groups were also unusually theoretical in inspiration: Angel Hair cited
surrealist writers
Antonin Artaud and
Georges Bataille,
[2] and
Orchid lyrically name-checked
French new wave icon
Anna Karina, German philosopher
Friedrich Nietzsche, French philosopher
Michel Foucault, and
critical theory originators
the Frankfurt School.
[10]
History
Origins (early 1990s–early 2000s)
The term screamo is applied to a music genre that began in 1991, in San Diego, at the
Ché Café,
[11] with groups such as
Heroin,
Antioch Arrow,
[12] Angel Hair,
Mohinder,
Swing Kids, and
Portraits of Past.
[13] These groups were influenced by
post-hardcore bands from
Washington D.C., particularly
Fugazi and
Nation of Ulysses,
[2] straight edge, the Chicago group
Articles of Faith, the hardcore punk band
Die Kreuzen,
[14] and
post-punk, such as
Joy Division[15] and
Bauhaus.
[2] Some early screamo bands such as
Far incorporated elements of
alternative rock.
[16]
Gravity Records[14][17] and
Ebullition Records[13] released this more chaotic and expressive style of hardcore. The scene is noted for its distinctive fashion sense, inspired by
mod culture.
[9] Much as the term "emo" is, the term "screamo" has always been controversial in the scene.
[2]
The innovations of the San Diego scene eventually spread elsewhere, such as to the Seattle group
The Blood Brothers.
[18] Many groups from the East Coast were influential in the continual development and reinvention of the style, including
Orchid,
[19][20] Circle Takes the Square,
Pg. 99,
Hot Cross,
Saetia,
[21] Ampere,
[22] and
City of Caterpillar.
[3] The Canadian band
Grade is also known for aiding the genre's early development.
[23]
Contemporary screamo (2000s–present)
By 1995, the genre name "screamo" drifted into the music press, especially in the journalism of
Jim DeRogatis and
Andy Greenwald,
[8]
and by the mid-2000s, the over-saturation of the screamo scene had
caused many bands to purposefully expand past the genre's trademarks and
incorporate more experimental elements.
[3] Some bands that formed in North America during the late 1990s and remained active throughout the 2000s, such as
Thursday,
Alexisonfire,
Poison the Well, and
The Used made screamo much more popular.
[3][24] Thursday cited the post-punk band
Joy Division, and the post-hardcore band
Fugazi as important influences, but also took cues from the alternative rock of
Radiohead,
U2, and
The Cure.
[25][26] Many of these bands took influence from the likes of
Refused,
At the Drive-In,
[3] and
Keepsake. In contrast to the DIY first-wave screamo groups, Thursday and The Used have signed multi-album contracts with labels such as
Island Def Jam and
Reprise Records.
[27]
Hawthorne Heights and
Story of the Year, two bands frequently featured on MTV, have been noted for their popularization of contemporary screamo,
[3] although both have since made stylistic changes.
[28][29] Other active American screamo acts include
Comadre,
[30] Off Minor,
Men As Trees,
[31] Senses Fail,
[32][33] Sleeping with Sirens,
[34] and
Vendetta Red.
[3] The contemporary screamo scene is also particularly active in Europe, with bands such as
Funeral For a Friend,
[35] Amanda Woodward,
[36] Louise Cyphre,
[37] Le Pré Où Je Suis Mort,
[38] La Quiete, and
Raein all being prime examples of their scene.
Influence on other styles
"Emo violence" is a term used to describe a fusion of screamo, emo and
powerviolence. The name was coined half-jokingly by
In/Humanity.
[39]
Recognisable elements of emo violence are its incorporation of
amplified feedback and blast beats; the music is highly dissonant and
chaotic, generally featuring fast tempos, shouting, and screamed vocals.
[40][41] Emo violence practitioners include
Pg. 99,
Orchid,
[42] Reversal of Man,
[42] Agna Moraine, RentAmerica,
[41] and In/Humanity.
[39][43]
Some screamo groups, such as Orchid, Reversal of Man, and
Circle Takes the Square tend to be much closer to
grindcore than their forebears.
[42][44] Other screamo acts have often incorporated
post-rock
into their music. This fusion is characterized by abrupt changes in
pace, atmospheric, harmonic instrumentation, and low-volume vocals.
[45][46] Pianos Become the Teeth,
[47] City of Caterpillar,
Envy,
Funeral Diner, and Le Pre Ou Je Suis Mort
[38][45] are examples of post-rock influenced screamo acts.
Other screamo-influenced genres include
crunkcore and
Nintendocore. Crunkcore combines screamo with
crunk hip hop and various electronic elements.
[48] Nintendocore, a term coined by
Horse the Band, describes a music genre that fuses elements of modern rock with
video game music,
chiptunes, and 8-bit music.
[49][50][51] It is considered a derivative form of screamo,
[51] post-hardcore
[49] and metalcore.
[52][53] Nintendocore borrows many characteristic of screamo, such as screamed vocals and unpredictable rhythms.
[49]
Vagueness of the term "screamo"
While the genre was developing in the early 1990s, the term "screamo" was not used.
[13] Chris Taylor, lead vocalist for the band
Pg. 99,
said "we never liked that whole screamo thing. Even during our
existence, we tried to venture away from the fashion and tell people,
"Hey, this is punk."
[54] Jonathan Dee of
The New York Times wrote that the term "tends to bring a scornful laugh from the bands themselves."
[6] Lars Gotrich of
NPR Music made the following comment on the matter:
[54]
| “ |
The screamo scene [has] change[d] a lot in the last 10 years. There used to be more creative bands like Circle Takes the Square and City of Caterpillar.
And then it took this route where screamo got really streamlined and
unrecognizable to the point where someone hilariously invented the term
"skramz" to distinguish the first wave of screamo bands. |
” |
Allmusic
has noted that the term "screamo" can sometimes be vague, and that even
bands that weren’t necessarily screamo would often use the style's
characteristic guttural vocal style.
[3] Derek Miller, guitarist for the band
Poison the Well noted the term's constant differing usages and jokingly stated that it "describes a thousand different genres."
[55] According to Jeff Mitchell of
Iowa State Daily,
"there is no set definition of what screamo sounds like but screaming
over once deafeningly loud rocking noise and suddenly quiet, melodic
guitar lines is a theme commonly affiliated with the genre."
[56] Bert McCracken, lead singer of
The Used, stated that "screamo" is merely a term "for record companies to sell records and for record stores to categorize them."
[57] Juan Gabe, vocalist for the band
Comadre, alleged that the term "has been kind of tainted in a way, especially in the States."
[30]
See also
References
- ^ Interview with Justin Pearson, Skatepunk.net [1] Access date: June 13, 2008
- ^ a b c d e f Jason Heller, "Feast of Reason". Denver Westword, June 20, 2002. [2] Access date: June 15, 2008
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Explore style: Screamo at Allmusic Music Guide
- ^ Telang, Veethi. Buzzle: Intelligent Life on the Web. "Good Screamo Songs".
- ^ Allmusic - The Used songs. "All songs"
- ^ a b c d Dee, Jonathan (June 29, 2003). "The Summer of Screamo". The New York Times. Retrieved September 11, 2010.
- ^ Henderson, Alex. "Let It Enfold You - Senses Fail". AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-12-15.
- ^ a b Jim DeRogatis, "Screamo", Guitar World, November 2002 [3] Access date: July 18, 2008
- ^ a b Interview with Justin Pearson on Skatepunk.net, [4] Access date: June 13, 2008
- ^ Orchid, Dance Tonight, Revolution Tomorrow. Allmusic Guide. [5] Access date: June 17, 2008.
- ^ "A Day with the Locust", L.A. Weekly, September 18, 2003 [6] Access date: June 19, 2008
- ^ Local Cut, Q&A with Aaron Montaigne. [7] May 14, 2008. Access date: June 11, 2008.
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- ^ a b "Blood Runs Deep: 23 A hat.". Alternative Press. 2008-07-07. p. 126.
- ^ Swing Kids covered "Warsaw"; Justin Pearson discusses Joy Division's influence in an interview on Skatepunk.net, [9] Access date: June 13, 2008
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- ^ Trevor Kelley, "California Screaming". Alternative Press 17 (2003), pp. 84-86.
- ^ Matt Schild, "Bleeding Hearts." Aversion.com. March 3, 2003. [11] Access date: June 15, 2008.
- ^ Anchors (December 27, 2005). "Review of Orchid's Totality". Retrieved June 16, 2008.
""Orchid always was, and always will be the quintessential screamo band
of the late 90s, as they encompassed everything people like me love
about the genre, and throw their own unique spin on it""
- ^ Nick Catucci (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Retrieved June 17, 2008.
- ^ Ryan Buege (June 15, 2008). "Circle Takes the Square is in the Studio". Metal Injection. Retrieved June 17, 2008.
- ^ Nick Greer (August 29, 2005). "Ampere review". Sputnik Music. Retrieved August 9, 2008.
- ^ "Blood Runs Deep: 23 Bands Who Shaped the Scene". Alternative Press. 2008-07-07. pp. 126.
- ^ Dee, Jonathan (2003-06-29). "The Summer of Screamo". The New York Times. pp. Section 6; Column 1; Magazine Desk; Pg. 26.
- ^ Interview with Thursday on The PunkSite.com, [12] Access date: June 13, 2008.
- ^ Andy Greenwald, Nothing Feels Good: Punk Rock, Teenagers, and Emo, New York: Saint Martin's Griffin, 2003, p. 153
- ^ Greenwald, p. 149.
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- ^ "Story of the Year Archive First Media Communications". First-media.com. Retrieved 2011-12-15.
- ^ a b Jan, "Yellow is the new pink", 18-04-07
- ^ scenepointblank: Men as Trees - Weltschmerz
- ^ Alex Henderson. "Let It Enfold You". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 December 2011.
- ^ Andrew Leahey. "Life Is Not a Waiting Room". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 December 2011.
- ^ Schreurs, Jason. "With Ears To See And Eyes To Hear" (album review). Alternative Press. Retrieved 10 August 2011.
- ^ Funeral For a Friend biography
- ^ Kevin Jagernauth, PopMatters, November 29, 2004. [13] Access date: July 28, 2008.
- ^ "Altogether, our music certainly still is 'screamo'." - Sven, interview with Julien, "ShootMeAgain Webzine", 06-11-2006. [14]
- ^ a b "Live Review: La Dispute, Le Pre Ou Je Suis Mort, Maths and History, The Chantry, Canterbury - 22/06/10". Alter The Press!. 2010-06-22. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
- ^ a b Jason Thompson (15 June 2008). "CIRCLE TAKES THE SQUARE is in the studio". PopMatters. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
- ^ Anchors (December 27, 2005). "Punknews.org Orchid - Totality". Punknews.org. Retrieved 26 March 2011.
- ^ a b "Agna Moraine’s Autobiography & RentAmerica split". Thats Punk. September 14, 2010. Retrieved August 18, 2011.
- ^ a b c Greg, Pratt (22 September 2010). "Altered States, Grindcore Special part 2". Terrorizer (United Kingdom: Miranda Yardley) (181). "Another interesting sub-sub-genre was this strange crossover of first-generation emo and grind.
Bands like Reversal of Man or Orchid may not have stood the test of
time, but it was a pretty cool sound at the time and one that was pretty
uniquely American"
- ^ Andy Malcolm. "La Quiete - the Apoplexy Twist Orchestra split (Heroine Records)". Retrieved August 18, 2011.
- ^ "CIRCLE TAKES THE SQUARE is in the studio". metal injection. 15 June 2008. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
"...CIRCLE TAKES THE SQUARE have retained their integrity and stayed
true to to the grind influenced experimental, progressive hardcore
soundscapes that defined the screamo albums of the early part of the
millenium."
- ^ a b "Interpunk.com - The Ultimate Punk Music Store! Le Pre Ou Je Suis Mort". Interpunk. January 15, 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
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- ^ a b Wright (2010-12-09). "Subgenre(s) of the Week: Nintendocore (feat. Holiday Pop)". The Quest. Retrieved 2011-03-21.
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(Bridgend, Mid Glamorgan)
