Sophie's Floorboard: Split Lip

Split Lip were a five-piece post-hardcore/emo band from Indianapolis, Indiana that began in 1990 and "ended" in 1996. They've got an interesting history, with some major evolution occurring in the span of just a few years. Their early work had hardcore as its roots, but the chunky, aggressive riffs and political, straight edge ethos were counterbalanced with melodic, technical flourishes and more personal, introspective subject matter. The latter influence can be traced back to bands like Dag Nasty, Gray Matter and Three. Vocalist David Moore also played an integral role in their sound, with a quavering delivery that quickly become a staple of the emo genre. Following a handful of EP's and compilation trackks, their debut full-length, For The Love Of The Wounded was released in 1993, and is their crowning achivement of this early sound.

The follow-up, 1995's Fate's Got A Driver is where this band's history gets interesting. It marked a change in sound from their previous album, toning down the heaviness to utilize guitar arpeggios and melodic bass lines, further championing them as one of the most influential and underrated bands in emo. Not long after its release, the band decided to overhaul themselves entirely by changing their name to Chamberlain. They remixed and re-recorded the vocals on Fate's Got A Driver, which was then released again under the Chamberlain moniker. Following their debut, they took their sound into a country and roots-rock direction, far from the post-hardcore of their early days. Chamberlain broke up in 2000, and reunited in 2008. In 2009, they played a few shows as Split Lip (as the line-up is virtually the same in both bands) and are still active today as Chamberlain. They're worth a listen as well, but the Split Lip stuff is absolutely essential. Enjoy.