King Slender

King Slender a four-piece screamo/post-hardcore band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that formed in 2016. Following a number of releases, their debut full-length finally came out in 2023. This is pretty fantastic stuff, with angular discordant guitars and lean octave chords pounded out with shimmers of melody cutting through the chaos. They've got a tangibly ripping energy and great production quality to boot as well. If you're a fan of bands inlcuding We Were Skeletons, The Saddest Landscape, or Portraits Of Past, this is definitely worth a listen. Enjoy.

Demo (2016)

1. Twelve

2. Snowball Wit

3. Drunk At The Water Park

King Slender (2017)

1. Bubble Buster (Tell Your Friends)

2. New Funeral

3. Gold Bags

4. Forever Circling

Steve Blank Has Come To Conquer Boulder (2018)

1. Steve Blank Has Come To Conquer Boulder

Brian Dailey's Olympic Karate (2019)

1. Honeycombers

2. Marifa Tomei

3. Stargate, DE

4. How Many Lizards You Got?

Gold Days (2023)

1. Clock Museum

2. Double Dribble

3. True Sin

4. Adult Water Ice

5. Half Priced

6. Stint

7. Adversarial

8. Crucible

9. Keys

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Vs Self

Vs Self are a three-piece screamo/emo band from Apple Valley, California that formed in 2018. I know I'm late to the game with this band, since they've garnered a pretty strong following within the past few years. Their skeletal approach of drums, one guitar, and two vocals really works in their favour, as there's this melancholic, atmospheric spaciousness amidst the instrumental noodling that makes these songs stand out, with lyrics that really cut straight to the point. Their sadly relatable and anthemic, suited for both bedroom and live show scream-alongs. I'm sure most are at least tangentially aware of this band by now, but if not, enjoy.

Demo (2019)

1. Worthless

2. Leave Everything

3. Ti Esrever

4. Wake

Everything Seems Better Now (2020)

1. Homesick

2. Waves

3. Promise

4. Heartache

5. Leave Everything

6. Desert

7. Worthless

8. Yesterday by The Beatles: or Imagine by Yoko Ono as performed by John Lennon

9. Ti Esrever

10. Still

11. Wake

12. Mourn

Despair (2020)

1. Despair

Vs Self/Knumears (2022)

1. Vs Self - Maudlin

2. Vs Self - LJP.HTPaPSTLBM

3. Vs Self - Departures

4. Vs Self - Steep

5. Knumears - Harrison Bergeon Saved My Life

6. Knumears - I Love You Now I Love You Never

7. Knumears - Threehundredsxityfive days in a week

8. Knumears - Stuck At Sea With My Paddles On The Shore

Catalyst/Vs Self/Knumears/Party Hats (2024)

1. Catalyst - Yesterday's Apology

2. Knumears - No Count

3. Vs Self - Tide And Swell

4. Party Hats - Today's For Sale

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Kittyhawk

Kittyhawk are a four-piece emo/indie band from Chicago, Illinois that were initially active from 2011 to 2016 before reuniting in 2019. This is another band that can be filed under "posts I thought I did years ago". Kittyhawk have released one EP, an LP  and a handful of splits. A few years back, they released a compilation which includes all their recorded material (aside from their LP). Speaking of which, it was released by Count Your Lucky Stars, so if you're a fan of those shimmering clean guitar arpeggios, breathy poppy vocals, and dynamic build-ups, this is likely a band you're already familiar with. If not and you like Joie De Vivre, Dowsing, Dikembe, Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate), you're going to love this. I haven't returned to them in a long time and it was a genuine joy to hear this album again. Enjoy.

Kittyhawk EP (2012)

1. The First One

2. Older/Wiser

3. Science Fiction

4. He Travels In A Suit

5. Partial Paradigm

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

Hello, Again (2014)

1. Contact

2. The Petravicz Estate

3. Sunny Day Renter's Insurance

4. Vaudeville

5. Jude II

6. Welcome Home

7. Self v. Former Self

8. Hans Christian Andersen

9. Zodiac

10. Seasonal Abjective Disorder

11. Better Homes

12. Better Gardens

13. Tourisme

Sundae Bloody Sundae (2014)

1. The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die - Fat Heaven

2. Rozwell Kid - The Weather (Spirit Night)

3. Kittyhawk - Soft Serve

4. Two Knights - Benji's Cool Times Summer Jamz

Mikey's Favorite Songs (2021)

1. The First One

2. Older/Wiser

3. Science Fiction

4. He Travels In A Suit

5. Partial Paradigm

6. Silver Bells

7. The Green

8. The Rot

9. The Red

10. The Daily Dodger

11. Food Fight

12. Soft Serve

13. You Keep Me Hanging On

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Edaline

Edaline were a four-piece emo/post-hardcore band from Santa Rosa, California that were around from 1996 to 1999. They released an EP, an LP, and a live album. Sonically, they incorporate dynamic vocals, cathartic climaxes, octave chords/mathy noodling guitars, prominent bass lines, and surprisingly technical drum work. It is what you'd expect out of a vastly underrated 90's emo band, but the tight musicianship and incorporation of almost jazzy elements and varied instrumentation (acoustic guitars, pianos, saxophones) do make them stand out. I hadn't heard of them until recently and they struck me as noteworthy, so give them a try if you've never heard of 'em. Their debut EP is probably your best bet as a starting point, but it's not like there's a ton of material here to work through. Enjoy.

Old City Scenes (1997)

1. Comastar

2. Elevator

3. This Ride

4. Vintage Postcards

5. Spring

6. Broken Ferris Wheel

I Wrote The Last Chapter For You (1999)

1. Andrea Gail

2. Crisis In Silence

3. Stranded

4. This Fabricated Town

5. Southern Pacific

6. Drain It (The End Result)

7. Crescent Moon Eyes

8. Thinking Of View

Live At The Bottom Of The Hill (1999)

1. Elevator

2. Southern Pacific

3. Andrea Gail

4. Stranded

5. Comastar

6. This Fabricated Town

7. Drain It (The End Result)

8. Broken Ferris Wheel

9. Comastar

10. Elevator

11. Spring

12. Vintage Postcards

13. Broken Ferris Wheel

14. The Fly Song

Note: Tracks 1-8 live songs, 9-14 are the Old City Scenes EP

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Falling Forward

Falling Forward were a five-piece emo/post-hardcore band from Louisville, Kentucky that were active from 1991 to 1995. They put out 3 EPs and one split, all of which were compiled and remastered last year, released as the anthology available below. This band is best known for basically being proto-Elliott, with three of their members going on to form that band when Falling Forward disbanded. There is a bit of a sonic throughline, though this is a lot punchier and scrappier than the more matured, airy sound of their later band. The melodic vocals are choruses are there, but with heavier, more hardcore-leaning guitars and pounding drums. Enjoy.

Let These Days Pass: The Complete Anthology 1991-1995 (2023)

1. Drought

2. Sire

3. Third Cross Salute

4. Character

5. Days On File

6. Lane

7. Intonation

8. Sigh

9. Silhouette

10. Natal

11. Wrap Around Suit

12. The Great Union Divide

13. Christensen Spring

14. Twenty-Nine Sixteen Magazine

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Morning Dew

Morning Dew are a two-piece screamo/emo band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that formed in 2015. They've released two projects of raw, trebly, impassioned, and chaotically melodic skramz with fantastic dual vocals and self-effacing lyrics. If you're a fan of bands such as William Bonney, Innards, and Father Figure, this is for you. Enjoy.

Gulp (2017)

1. Let Me Know You're Alright

2. Tonight

3. Honestly Honesty Hurts

4. Quoting Oceans

5. We Will Meet Again, Lucifier

6. Tangelolo's

7. I Hop On Everything I Splash

8. Subclavian Notch

Pulp (2023)

1. Suture Kit

2. Poinsettia (You Haunt Me)

3. Our Cuts Speak So Loud

4. Like A Frog, I Wish I Could Croak

5. Sin

6. (D.R.E.A.M.) Death Rules Everything Around Me

7. The Geography Of Grief

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This Machine Kills

This Machine Kills were a screamo band from Goleta, Santa Barbara, California that were active from approximately 1997 to 2003 (sources vary). They were pretty prolific in terms of releases, with an LP, EP, and multiple splits released over the span of just a few years. Most of you are probably familiar with this band due to their excellent three-way split with Raein and Yaphet Kotto (as well another split with Yaphet Kotto), but their LP Death In The Audoban Ballroom is also worth a listen, especially if you're a fan of In Love With Jetts/The Lady Is A Cat-era Antioch Arrow. And, I can't go without mentioning this, their vocalist was none other than Steve Aoki, better known now as an internationally recognized DJ. Before all that, he was active in the hardcore scene, fun little fact for ya there. I'm missing the Bury Me Standing and JR Ewing splits, so if you have those, let me know! Enjoy.

Demo (1998)

1. Guilty As Fuck

2. Culture Of Protest

3. My Generation

4. Agent Provocateur

5. Collaborator Put Down

6. Everything

On The Move (2000)

1. The Revenge Of John Africa

2. Culture Of Protest

3. Three Hundred & Sixty Degrees

4. Anger Lined With Cement

Envy/This Machine Kills (2000)
1. Envy - A Red Wound Picture

2. This Machine Kills - Forty One Bullets

Death In The Audobon Ballroom (2002)

1. Cracking The Mask

2. Bending The Erotic

3. Giving Testimony

4. Our Histories Have Burned Holes In Your Flag

5. Running With All These Names

6. Breakdown

7. Hearts And Minds

8. Death In The Audobon Ballroom

9. And The Weight Of That Silence Alone Will Choke Us

Yaphet Kotto/This Machine Kills/Envy (2003)

1. Yaphet Kotto - The Fall

2. Yaphet Kotto - Tracing

3. Yaphet Kotto - Momentary Loss Of Breath

4. This Machine Kills - Define Silence

5. This Machine Kills - Carpet Of Gold/Carpet Of Bombs

6. This Machine Kills - Our Histories Have Burned Holes In Your Flag

7. Envy - A Far-Off Reason

8. Envy - Signal

9. Envy - An Adventure Of Silence And Purpose

10. Yaphet Kotto/This Machine Kills/Envy - Untitled

Bread And Circuits

Bread And Circuits were a five-piece post-hardcore/emo band from the Bay Area, California that were active from around 1998 to 1999 (can't fully confirm). They're perhaps best remembered as one of Sarah Kirsch's many excellent projects (whose résume also includes Navio Forge, Fuel, John Henry West, Torches To Rome, Silver Bearing, Please Inform The Captain This Is A Hijack, and more). In Bread And Circuits, she was also joined by Struggle, Swing Kids, and Yaphet Kotto drummer JOse Palafox. Lyrically, they leaned heavily on sociopolitical issues, playing with an intensely energetic sound that clanged angular, melodic guitars against dual shouted vocals. Their sole LP was an Ebullition release, and highly recommended if you're a fan of the previous bands listed. Enjoy.

Bread And Circuits (1999)

1. Trophy Room

2. Hampton's Floor Plan

3. The End Of History

4. Bread And Circuits

5. White Man

6. Statue Of Limitations

7. Bretton Woods

8. Letter From Chase

Bread And Circuits/Former Members Of Alfonsín (2003)

1. Bread And Circuits - Bloodbath

2. Bread And Circuits - Shameful Library

3. Bread And Circuits - Dying By Degrees

4. Bread And Circuits - Nuremberg Principles

5. Former Members Of Alfonsín - Kinetic

6. Former Members Of Alfonsín - Devil's Vocabulary Test

7. Former Members Of Alfonsín - Hurricane

8. Former Members Of Alfonsín - Magic Maker

Struggle

Struggle were a four-piece hardcore band from San Diego, California that were active from 1990 to 1994. Overtly political in their lyricism, they took influence from an emerging wave of dark, frantic, noisy, and abrasive hardcore bands including Downcast, Born Against, and Rorschach. They released one LP, one EP, a split and had one comp appearance, all through the now-legendary Ebullition Records while it was still in its infancy. In a way, they're like a precursor to Swing Kids, as three members of Struggle formed Swing Kids after they disbanded, including Justin Pearson, who later be best known as a member of The Locust, Some Girls, and a thousand other bands. Other members of Struggle would also later join Yaphet Kotto, Unbroken, Bread And Circuits, and tons of others. If you're looking for raw, angry political hardcore with early screamo leanings, Struggle is what you're looking for. It's perpelxing that it took this long to get around to them, but here they are. Included below is their discography release, which includes all their recorded material. Enjoy.

One Settler, One Bullet (1994)

1. Red, White, And You

2. Death of A Friend

3. Envy

4. Pigs On Fire

5. Tradition

6. Real Estate

7. Pain

8. Culture

9. Cement

10. The Untitled

11. Brain Tourniquet

12. War #1

13. Wait A Second

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Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start

Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start (they address it) were a five-piece emo/post-hardcore band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that were active from 1999 to 2008, with reunion shows occurring in 2013 and 2016. They released two full-lengths and a handful of EP's during their initial run. Sonically, they really were all over the place, so any description isn't going to do them any justice. It's a mesh of the angular, syncopated, mathy sound of Faraquet, the noodly arpeggios of Cap'n Jazz, and the melancholic indie anthems of Death Cab For Cutie. They pack a ton of variety into these relatively short songs, making both full-lengths incredibly engaging. Their final LP, the aptly titled Worst Band Name Ever is a little more subdued, so I do slightly prefer And Nothing Is #1, which is the suggested starting point. Even though they predate these bands, if you're into TWIABP, Cstvt, Everyone, Everywhere, Joie De Vivre, or Into It. Over It. (with Evan Weiss even being a member for a short period), I think this will appeal to you. Enjoy.

Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start (1999)

1. Song Competition

2. Working Title

3. I'm Holding Hands With Me

4. Action

5. Walked Out This Season

6. Real Philosophers vs. The Lovers Of Sights And Sounds

5 Songs (2001)

1. Here I Am Away

2. I've Just Seen The Best I'll Ever Be

3. Hopelessly In Like With Me

4. As Usual To Me

5. It Will Be The Month That I Have

And Nothing Is #1 (2003)

1. You Landed So Gracefully

2. I Know You'll Find Out That I'm A Geek

3. My Argument Precedes Me

4. As Usual

5. Help Me Fix My Bike

6. Is That A Terrible Thing To Say?

7. See You In A Month

8. Time Wastes No Time

9. Muscle, When Will I See It?

10. By Surprise

Perris, CA (2004)

1. Down To The Day

2. Come Away

3. Please Come To Me

4. Strike 2

5. Them All

The Internet EP (2005)

1. Are We Seeing This?

2. Dear Erica

3. I'm Growing Out

4. Out To Get Me

5. Track 5

Girls Names (2006)

1. Janet Bateman

2. Melanie Flury

3. Rachel Strayer

4. Robyn Fleshman

Worst Band Name Ever (2007)

1. Shawnee

2. Gas Station Hair

3. I'll Thank You Later

4. Am I A Cricket

5. I Am The Island

6. The Red Loop

7. Christmas Eve 1993

8. 128 Cayuga St

9. Maureen Kehoe

10. Boise

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