Know if You're a Real Emo

There are a lot of people who claim to be emo, but most are just following the emo trend/phase and are really listening to emo pop punk music (which is not actually emo). This article will not only help you understand if you're a real emo or not, but it will help you understand the differences on mall emo and emotive hardcore.

Steps

  1. Research. To truly be something, you need to research it first. You need to understanding the meaning behind the subculture, the sub-genre, the mindset, fashion, whatever you are researching.There are several sources online which offer a good explanation on the emotive hardcore sub-genre, as well as neighbouring sub-genres like hardcore punk, screamo and emoviolence/powerviolence. It is very important to find the real meaning, the underground meaning and not the mainstream definition. The mainstream definition usually includes stereotypes and the mall version of the actual sub-genre. To start you off, some facts about emo are:
    • Emo stands for emotive hardcore punk.
    • It is a sub-genre of hardcore punk which formed in the mid 80s in Washington D.C. It had fast guitar riffs with shouting vocals but the lyrics were emotional and about the world/personal problems.
    • Most real emo bands could be considered hardcore punk, since the genres sounded so similar. Some real emo bands are Rites of Spring, Embrace, One Last Wish and Gray Matter.
    • In the 90s, emo was reinvented with bands like Sunny Day Real Estate and Texas is the Reason. Instead of a fast hardcore punk sound, it was replaced with a more melodic sound. A subculture formed out of this, but it wasn't long lived.
  2. Take a look at your music taste. What most people think emo is today actually isn't. Emo is an underground, D.I.Y, punk sub-genre of music. Following emo is about listening to emocore/skramz (screamo) bands and being creative. If you are considered to be a real emo, you listen to the old school/original bands, indie emo bands or screamo genre. There is nothing wrong with listening to emo pop punk bands, it's just that it's not actual emo. It comes from emo, but it's a different genre entirely. If you are a real emo, some bands you may listen to include:
    • Rites of Spring
    • Embrace
    • One Last Wish
    • Gray Matter
    • Off Minor
    • Heroin
    • Braid
    • Drive Like Jehu
    • Sunny Day Real Estate
    • Texas is the Reason
    • Jawbreaker
    • Circle Takes The Square
    • Piano Became The Teeth
    • City of Caterpillar
    • Funeral Diner
    • Dag Nasty
    • Jets to Brazil
    • I Hate Myself
  3. Look at your attitude. Most followers of emos are in touch with their emotions, they are not exactly extremely emotional but they may like to write poetry/stories, play an instrument, make their own clothes/D.I.Y (which includes sewing pins/attaching on to jackets) and support local shows.
  4. Consider whether you support your local artists/underground artists. Supporting local shows, especially emo/hardcore punk ones, are important as it keeps the scene going. Most emo scenes have died out, but you may be able to find emo bands playing in larger cities (more people) these days. Find local artists by checking out certain websites like:
    • Last.fm (there will be some recommendations) in similar artists.
    • YouTube (there is a YouTube account based around emotive hardcore and you can view that at forgottenemotivehardcore.com)
    • bandsintown
    • Bandcamp
  5. DIY your own clothes. This is very important because emo is supposed to be against the mainstream, therefore buying your clothes from Hot Topic and listening to bands that are played on the radio would not be the most emo of things. No matter which way the sub-genre expands, it should always stick to its roots because that's what started it and that's where it came from. It would be disrespectful if it completely forgot about it.
  6. Recognize what a mall emo is. When the subcultures form, it's only a matter of time before mainstream society/media catches on and everyone (usually teenagers; it's perfect because teenagers are usually experimenting with their style at this time) jumps on the band wagon, wanting to be goth, emo or punk. Mall emo happened in the 90s, when Hot Topic opened. Hot Topic, at that time, catered towards the majority; hence "Hot Topic" so it would sell. In the 2000s, the emo trend came about, with My Chemical Romance, eyeliner and skinny jeans. Further down the line, the scene trend came about and the stocks changed to suit that.

Tips

  • Just because emo pop punk/pop punk isn't actually emo, it doesn't mean you can't listen to it. It's its own separate genre; you can't ignore that. But most emos who understand where emo came from actually like it. Saying that you "can't be emo because you listen to MCR" would be being an elitist, but you do have to make sure that you include some emocore/skramz in your music taste because listening to emo pop punk alone would not make you an emo, it would make you emo pop punk.
  • Be yourself. Don't get the idea into your head that you have to be the most "perfect emo". Emo is musical based so as long as you have some emocore/skramz in your music taste, you can listen to whatever you please. You can't label yourself something if you have no association with it.
  • Most followers of emotive hardcore do not call themselves "emo". It wouldn't make you a poseur if you do, it would just confuse people so they think you'd listen to MCR and wear skinny jeans. Most of them would identify as hardcore or punks as emo wasn't a big enough sub-genre to be considered a subculture (like goth or punk).

Warnings

  • Some people do not understand that emo has a genuine meaning, they will think that you're policing what is emo/what isn't. The fact is that if something doesn't have emo influences or characteristics, it cannot be considered emo or emo influenced. For example, My Chemical Romance's debut album has several emo/hardcore punk influences but the others do not. This doesn't quite make them an emo band, but you can see where they're coming from.
  • The emo trend is still quite popular so be careful of poseurs. There are still several people out there who will insist that emo is a dark culture or that it's connected to goth, or that emo stereotypes (like depression) are part of "being emo".
  • Most people today think emo or screamo is something completely different. You will see that most bands that get called emo or screamo are in the emo pop punk/pop punk (My Chemical Romance Paramore, Fall Out Boy, Panic! At the Disco), metalcore (Black Veil Brides, Bring Me The Horizon), deathcore (Suicide Silence), or even crunkcore (Blood on the Dance Floor, Jeffree Star, music usually popular with scene kids) and electronicore (Asking Alexandria).
  • Goth and emo are not similar and it's impossible to be both (like an "emo goth"). You can listen to both genres, but the subcultures do not cross as emo has an emotional mindset whereas Goth has a dark mindset (and emo isn't darkly themed). The only thing that they share is that they're both from sub-genres of punk (emo from hardcore punk and goth from post-punk).

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