The Blacktop Cadence

The Blacktop Cadence were a four-piece indie/emo/post-hardcore band from Gainesville, Florida that were around from 1996 to 1998. They featured members of Hot Water Music and Baroque. Sonically, they were a little more subdued than their other projects, with emphasis being placed on melodic guitar chords, an intricate rhythm section, and forlorn vocal deliveries. During their brief tenure, they only released one album, titled Chemistry For Changing Times in 1997. They also were featured on one of the legendary Emo Diaries compilations with "Cold Night In Virginia". Their LP was reissued by No Idea Records in 2003, which included two bonus tracks, "Worthwhile" and the aforementioned song. Enjoy.

Chemistry For Changing Times (1997/2003)

1. Last Night... After I Bought The Wine

2. Slowstep

3. Off-Track

4. Are You My Angel?

5. Forty Two

6. Sinker

7. I Don't Do Well In Social Situations

8. Sad Passing Shame

9. Station Me Wherever

10. Unlucky

11. Cold Night In Virginia (Bonus Track)

12. Worthwhile (Bonus Track)

die Hoffnung

die Hoffnung are a Gainesville, Florida band formed by brothers Jim Marburger and Jon Marburger. Those names might be familiar to you, since they were previously in bands such as Burnman and the legendary I Hate Myself, a band whose legacy has been cemented in punk/emo history. Luckily for us, they didn't stop there. In 2005, they came together again under a new moniker, which is where die Hoffnung begins. This resulted in their debut LP, Love Songs which was released in 2006. The band crafts a unique sound on this record, featuring some angular guitar work and dynamic drumming. They keep most songs under the three minute mark, with a mathcore-influenced discordance and shouted vocals. In terms of influence, they take from the greats such as The Jesus Lizard, Shellac, and Bastro, as well as Codeine, Red House Painters, and Low for their slower material.  Love Songs is a solid LP that displays some impressive musicianship and well-crafted songs with a lot of energy and a good degree of experimentation.

The project remained relatively quiet post-Love Songs, until the brothers were joined by 2nd guitarist Travis Fristoe, who was previously in Moonraker, True Feedback Story, and Reactionary 3. The three-piece got together in 2012 for the recording of their sophomore album. What was spawned from these sessions is Elegies and Creation Songs, the long-awaited follow-up to their debut. Unfortunately, this album was not released for a few years, and in that time Travis sadly took his own life (RIP). Initially, it was going to released by Travis on his label Obscurist Press. Finally, the album say the light of day after Jason (of Palatka) released it on his own label, Belladonna Records.

Elegies and Creation Songs is an incredible album, that fans of experimental post-hardcore (or even post-punk) would definitely take interest in. It features an eclectic mix of tracks, including drawn out, slow burning rises and falls as seen in "The Passion of the Big Baby Jesus" and "Elegy For Bob Ross", as well as fast-paced, sharp, hard-hitting post-hardcore tracks such as "Horses On Fire" and "In Flower, In Song". I also have to give a specific shoutout to "Elegy for Ned", it's a little different than the other tracks on here (probably the most "emo"), but a definite highlight.  Just like their previous project, die Hoffnung are absolute masters of the loud/quiet dynamic, and can let it out just as much as they can pull it back. Many songs include stream of conscious lyrics delivered by semi-spoken semi-screamed vocals. The band burns through these songs with an undeniable chemistry, and the result is an incredible album that I am both happy and lucky to finally hear. I highly, highly recommend checking out both their full-lengths, which are available below, and if you are interested, you can pick up the LP of Elegies and Creation Songs from Belladonna Records, which is linked below. Enjoy.

Love Songs (2006)

1. Lovemonger

2. Santa Teresa en Fuego

3. Der Autounfull

4. Olga the Contortionist vs. Harry Houdini

5. I Was Born A Long Time Ago

6. Ahab Welcome To Hell

7. Stonecutter

8. Colditz

9. With The Fishes

10. Orpheus In His Underwear

11. Lady, Killer

12. Tour Of Bridges

Elegies and Creation Songs (2018)

1. Elegy for Bob Ross

2. Horses on Fire

3. The Passion of The Big Baby Jesus

4. Embedded Reporter

5. Other People's Pets

6. Elegy For Ned

7. The Creation of Wealth

8. In Flower, In Song

9. Pullman

Bandcamp
Belladonna Records

Palatka

Palatka were a five-piece hardcore/emo violence band from Gainesville, Florida that were around from 1994 to 1999, and returned to play a reunion show in 2015. They played a very spastic and jittery form of hardcore that incorporated the full-throttle aggression of bands like In/Humanity with the rhythmic nuances of a band like Heroin. Palatka also featured two vocalists.

They were relatively prolific for a band in their corner of the musicsphere, releasing multiple splits, being featured on many, many compilations, and putting out a full-length on No Idea Records. They also toured in Europe, which is a seemingly rare thing for bands like this around then. Despite putting out some incredible work, they are incredibly underrated, so definitely check them out. Below is their full-length and their most notable split, along with a discography released in 2002 that I unfortunately don't have much info or artwork for. If you know anything about it, please fill me in! Enjoy.

A Tampa/Gainesville Do-It-Ourselves Split Seven Inch Record Project (1996)

1. Palatka - Stutter Mispronounce

2. Palatka - Fucked From The Start

3. Palatka - Recite Ad Nauseam

4. Palatka - This Place Is Shit

5. Palatka - Garbage

6. Palatka - Nathan Collier

7. Palatka - Yours At Best

8. The End Of The Century - So Long 

9. The End Of The Century - Childhood Hopes Of Self Defense

10. The End Of The Century - Hope Me Blind

11. The End Of The Century - Filed

The End Of Irony (1999)

1. The State of 6pm

2. If You're Not Satisfied with the Current Arrangement...

3. Cheering Section

4. Where the Teachers Go to Learn

5. Rate x Time = Distance

6. Palatka Kills Young Republicans

7. Matured? You Bet!

8. "Let's Have a Kid." "Sure, Why Not?"

9. Another Kind of Blacklist

10. Mark's Shit

11. Voice of the Actors

12. The Current Definition of Friendship is Sorely Lacking

Discography (2002)

1. The State of 6pm

2. If You're Not Satisfied with the Current Arrangement...

3. Cheering Section

4. Where the Teachers Go to Learn

5. Rate x Time = Distance

6. Palatka Kills Young Republicans

7. Matured? You Bet!

8. "Let's Have a Kid." "Sure, Why Not?"

9. Another Kind of Blacklist

10. Mark's Shit

11. Voice of the Actors

12. The Current Definition of Friendship is Sorely Lacking

13. Rock Concert

14. Home Is Killing Me

15. Smoking Section

16. Soldier With Staring Problem

17. Haunted House Movie

18. The Eyes And Ears Of The Shit

19. Job Fair

20. Misinformed

21. Cool Breezes Daring Escape From Hogtown

22. Taco Bell Has Nothing To Do With Hardcore

23. I'm The Most Important Fucking Person In The Whole World

24. Black Elk

25. Stutter Mispronounce

26. Fucked From The Start

27. Recite Ad Nauseam

28. This Place Is Shit

29. Garbage

30. Nathan Collier

31. Yours At Best

32. Bicentennial

33. Vultures Hyenas

34. Apartment

35. Property Values

36. Straight Straight Youth

37. Good Intentions

38. Sunshine State Sprawl

39. The Bus Ride

40. Washington Park

41. The Truth About San Diego

42. Sections A-Z

43. Future Site Of

44. Let's Toss This Fucking Shit To The Fire!

45. New Feedback

46. Yours At Best

47. Nathan Collier

48. Choicenochoice

Boyfriend Material

Boyfriend Material are a three-piece indie pop band from Gainesville, Florida that was started as a solo project by frontwoman Shauna Healey in 2014. For their first two releases, this project consisted solely of Shauna's vocals and a ukele, which made for some raw, intimate songs that really bring out how good her writing is. Now in 2016, Boyfriend Material has expanded to a full-band project with the release of their self-titled EP. This band crafts bright pop tunes that center on Shauna's vocals and lyrics, which often detail personal stories and feelings. To back her are these lazily strummed guitar chords, along with a very distinct bass sound cutting through providing a heavy rhythm section to counter the pop jangle. They could be loosely compared to bands like Hop Along, Laura Stevenson, and Waxahatchee, or something along those lines. Their self-titled is available for download and on tape over at Community Records, check out the link way down below. Enjoy.

Little Boxes (2014)

1. 01.

2. Madison

3. Wilson

4. Damien

5. Conor

6. Jason

7. Spaulding

8. Emerson

9. Laura

10. Rosie

11. Nina

Far From Home (2015)

1. Lights

2. Hometown

3. Needlepoint & Post Cards

4. Decisions

5. Coast To Coast

6. Scraped Knees

7. Better

8. Small Cups Of Tea

9. Weightless

10. Recovery

Boyfriend Material (2016)

1. Small Talk

2. Two Steps Back

3. Good Graces

4. Absentminded

Community Records

Bandcamp

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Dikembe

Dikembe are a four-piece emo/indie band from Gainesville, Florida, that formed in 2011. They are currently signed to Tiny Engines Records. Dikembe, along with bands such as You Blew It! and Dowsing, are part of a group of bands part of the recent "emo revival" movement, in which modern bands take major influence from the great emo/indie bands of the 90's, such as Braid, Sunny Day Real Estate, The Promise Ring, etc. Dikembe are an amazing band that are equally catchy and upbeat, as well as slower and melancholic. Plus they come with all the staples of a modern "emo" band, including inside jokes for songs and titles. Enjoy.

Every Time You See Me I Look Like I Hit The Lotto Twice (2011)

1. Dikembe - Scottie Spliffen

2. Dikembe - Luc Bongley

3. Dikembe - Michael Jordank

4. Dikembe - Tony Kukush

5. Dikembe - That's How What Works

6. Dikembe - Librarians Kill For That Kind Of Quiet

7. Dikembe - We Could Become River Rats

8. You Blew It! - Terry v. Tori

9. Little League - Hey, Feet

10. Douglas Shields & The X-Factors - Teenage Wasteland

11. Parasol - What I Know

12. The Caution Children - Could He Avoid Dying

13. You'll Live - Lost In The Tide

Broad Shoulders (2012)

1. Nothing. Stuff.

2. Apology Not Fucking Accepted

3. I Watch A Lot Of Jackie Chan Movies

4. We Could Become River Rats

5. I Just Don't Understand What All These Dogs Dig About Him

6. Not Today, Angel

7. Librarians Kill For That Kind Of Quiet

8. That's How That Works?

9. I'm Gonna Deck Your Halls, Bub!

10. Sorry I Can't Stick Around

Chicago Bowls (2013)

1. Scottie Spliffen

2. Luc Bongley

3. Michael Jordank

4. Tony Kukush

Dikembe/Hightide Hotel/Jet Set Sail/Monument (2013)

1. Dikembe - Donuts In A Six Speed

2. Hightide Hotel - Built To Last

3. Jet Set Sail - Strickland North

4. Monument - Sophisticated Liars

Pet Symmetry/Dikembe (2013)

1. Pet Symmetry - Boldly Going Nowhere

2. Dikembe - Keys To The Jeep

June 4-Way Split (2013)

1. You Blew It! - Medal Of Honor (Acoustic)

2. Nai Harvest - Washy (Acoustic)

3. Marietta - You've Got The Map Backwards, Matt (Acoustic)

4. Dikembe - Untitled (How Demos Feel)

Fest 12 Split (2013)

1. Dikembe - I Watch A Lot Of Jackie Chan Movies (Acoustic)

2. The Hotel Year - Settle The Scar

3. Modern Baseball - Voting Early

4. Old Gray - The Foxes Begin To Starve

5. Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) - The Hour of Pearl

6. Pentimento - It Happens To The Best Of Us

All I Want For Christmas Is You (2013)

1. All I Want For Christmas Is You (Mariah Carey cover)

Dikembe/The Jazz June (2014)

1. Dikembe - Healer Of The Pride

2. The Jazz June - Over Underground

Mediumship (2014)

1. Even Bother

2. Hood Rat Messiah

3. Pelican Fly

4. Las Vegas Weather

5. Snakes In My Path

6. 24 Karats

7. Mad Frustrated

8. Donuts In A Six Speed

9. Gets Harder

10. Throw Lips

Ledge (2015)

1. Worst in the Fury

2. Surfed in the Loft

3. Teeth in the Sink

4. Guts in the Brush

Hail Something (2016)

1. Hail Something

2. Like An Archer

3. Earth Around Me

4. All Wrong

5. Fix

6. Shelf

7. Awful Machine

8. Creature Of The Week

9. Box Springs

10. Just Explode

11. Eat

Bandcamp
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Frameworks

Frameworks are a five-piece post-hardcore/screamo/melodic hardcore band from Gainesville, Florida that formed in 2011. They just put out their first full-length this year, Loom, on Topshelf Records, and holy shit is it good. The band blends harsh, screamed vocals with intricate instrumental parts, using both clean arpeggios as well as distorted climaxes. The band uses the perfect balance of dissonance and melody, creating dynamic songs that go in many different directions. Fans of modern bands such as Pianos Become The Teeth,  The Saddest Landscape, We Were Skeletons, Tiny Moving Parts, Old Gray, Prawn, Caravels and Native need to check out Frameworks. They certainly stand out as far as modern post-hardcore/screamo goes, and all their work so far has been mind-blowing. Enjoy.

Every Day Is The Same (2011)

1. Tile Floors

2. Ceilings

3. April

4. Rosebuds

5. Our Fragile Intakes

Small Victories (2013)

1. Ida

2. Sewn

3. Model Homes

4. Old Chokes

Kittyhawk/Prawn/Droughts/Frameworks (2014)

1. Kittyhawk - Daily Dodger

2. Kittyhawk - Food Fight

3. Prawn - Nerves

4. Prawn - Laki

5. Droughts - Deaf Grin

6. Droughts - Financed Furniture

7. Frameworks - Presomnal

8. Frameworks - Preamble

Loom (2014)

1. Disquiet

2. Loom

3. Mutual Collision

4. True Wealth

5. Splinters

6. Rosie

7. Bright And New

8. Affordance

9. Familiar Haze

10. Autonomy

11. Agreeable Thoughts

Frameworks/The Saddest Landscape (2014)

1. Frameworks - Fell In Love With A Girl (The White Stripes cover)

2. The Saddest Landscape - Burning Fight (Inside Out cover)

Time Spent (2016)

1. Worn Out

2. Time Spent

Smother (2016)

1. Fear Of Missing Out

2. Smother

3. Peculiar People

4. Purge

5. Song Of Myself

6. Tinnitus

7. Marathon

8. Interlude

9. Trite

10. Tangled

11. The New Narcissistic American Dream

Joliette/Frameworks (2018)

1. Joliette - Henry Coyote

2. Frameworks - The New Narcissistic American Dream

3. Frameworks - Marathon

4. Joliette - Tionkel

Bandcamp

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Topshelf

I Hate Myself

I Hate Myself was a three-piece emo band from Gainesville, Florida, formed by brothers Jim (lead vocals + guitar) and Jon Marburger (drums + backing vocals), as well as Steve Jin (bass + backing vocals). The band was initially around from 1997-1998, and reunited in 2003 to play two shows and 2005 to record 3 Songs (which only featured the brothers, with Jon filling in on bass). They were signed to No Idea Records, and worked with them on almost all of their releases. Jon would play in Gunmoll after I Hate Myself broke up, and both brothers are now in Die Hoffnung together.

It's kind of unclear whether or not the band took themselves seriously, but that's kind of irrelevant. They made some fucking awesome music. The band often used a loud-soft dynamic (Indian Summer style). The band would alternate between guitar melodies colliding with some great bass lines during quieter parts, and explosions of distortion and octave strumming. The vocals sometimes use this nasally, whiny, singing voice, or burst out in a scorching screech. The lyrics often touch upon personal thoughts and experience (and Dragon Ball Z). They're a great band who everyone does (or should) know, I don't know what to say really. They're one of my favourite emo/screamo/post-hardcore/whatever the fuck bands ever, if that means anything. If you're starting with them, 10 Songs is the obvious choice to begin with, but 4 Songs is also amazing.

A few notes on their discography: 4 Songs has no official song titles. However, the second track appeared on  the compilation Bread: The Edible Napkin under the title "Less Than Nothing". 10 Songs was released in 1997 on vinyl. In 2000, the album was reissued on CD with an additional song, "To A Husband At War", which first appeared on the Strikeforce Diablo split. This version is what's included below. I guess I already mentioned 3 Songs being recorded during their second reunion, and how Jon plays bass on it. I Hate Myself also appeared on a bunch of compilations, but every song included was previously released on one of their own albums, except for their cover of "Care", originally by Spoke, which appeared on No Idea 100: Redefiling Music, which I don't have. If they ever get around to releasing 15 Songs, an album containing all songs not on their full-length, it'd be on there. Regardless, enjoy their amazing discography.

4 Songs (1997)

1. Song 1

2. Less Than Nothing

3. Song 3

4. Song 4

10 Songs (1997/2000)

1. This Isn't The Tenka-ichi-Budokai

2. Urban Barbie

3. Polar Bear Summer

4. ...And Keep Reaching For Those Stars

5. Caught In a Flood With The Captain Of The Cheerleading Squad

6. Kind Of A Long Way Down

7. Not Waving But Drowning

8. Destroy All Monsters

9. To A Husband At War

10. Conversation With Dr. Seussicide

11. Secret Lovers At The Heaven's Gate Ranch

I Hate Myself/Twelve Hour Turn (1997)

1. I Hate Myself - Fred Mertz Was Most Likely A Bad Poet And A Pervert

2. I Hate Myself - Song For All The Young Casanovas And Casanovettes

3. I Hate Myself - Kamikaze

4. Twelve Hour Turn - Pennyloafer

5. Twelve Hour Turn - Jack

6. Twelve Hour Turn - Call Chance

7. Twelve Hour Turn - Clothesline

8. Twelve Hour Turn - Cassette 

I Hate Myself/Strikeforce Diablo (1998)

1. I Hate Myself - To A Husband At War

2. Strikeforce Diablo - Lift Me Up

3. Strikeforce Diablo - Sleepyhollow

2 Songs (2000)

1. Darren's Roof

2. Drama In The Emergency Room

3 Songs (2005)

1. Roy Sullivan, By Lightning Loved

2. Roy On The Make

3. The Lightning Says