Nothing Feels Good

November 15, 2003
Greenwald's take on emo progresses the way one would expect when a senior contributing writer to SPIN magazine treats a musical subgenre. He grabs hold of its roots (in this case, the Washington, DC, 1980s hardcore scene and bands like Rites of Spring), walks readers through its stages (dropping the names of emo heroes like Sunny Day Real Estate and the Promise Ring), paints a vivid picture of contemporary darlings (mostly through Dashboard Confessional's Chris Carrabba), and ties the entire presentation together with critical analyses and the occasional first-person portrait. As this is the first book on the mostly underground emo movement, writing a simple history would have sufficed. But by diving into emo's fan culture of Internet alter egos, Greenwald makes a strong argument for emo's being more than a musical classification; it's a youth movement thriving under adult radar. One quibble: Greenwald barely mentions a key point-that nearly every band associated with the genre hates the word emo. For comprehensive music collections.-Robert Morast, "Argus Leader," Sioux Falls, SD

Copyright 2003 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2003
No one has ever gone broke underestimating the American teenager's capacity for angst--until now, perhaps, when, as Greenwald documents, the major commercial music purveyors pay scant attention to the youngsters buying hundreds of thousands of copies of albums by bands like Jimmy Eat World and Dashboard Destiny, even though the rest of the music industry is in the doldrums. Those bands create a sort of personal music, low on bombast and the antithesis of overproduced; they aren't boy bands and Britney Spears knockoffs. Emo, as their music is known, combines the thoughtfulness of folk with the sensibilities and DIY ethos of punk. Emo bands appeal with introspective lyrics rather than the "see my clothes, see my butt" treacle major labels promote. Sailing under the hype radar, emo is the current manifestation of music that is perfect for the young; that is, unknown and inaccessible to adults. A valuable resource for young listeners and adults who want to know their music; get it before emo goes the corporate way of "alternative" rock.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)