Screamo

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Screamo
Stylistic origins:	Emocore, Post-hardcore, Hardcore emo
Cultural origins:	1990s
Typical instruments:	Drums, Bass, Guitar, Vocals
Mainstream popularity:	Has gained much popularity in recent years
Other topics
List of Screamo groups

Screamo is a musical genre which evolved from emo, post-hardcore, more specifically hardcore emo in the early 1990s. Characteristic of the genre are screaming vocals, harmonized guitars, and fast-paced riffs. Breakdowns in screamo songs are often slower and more melodic than in other genres, less of a "beatdown" and more of an opportunity for introspection (and rest for the musicians). Other than that, it is fairly hard to classify (particularly since the rule about screaming vocals is bent fairly often). In addition to that, screamo has significant overlap with other genres like grindcore and even post rock.

[edit] History

In California in the early 1990s, Gravity Records from San Diego released many defining records of this style. Significant emo bands from this time include Heroin, Angel Hair, Antioch Arrow, Universal Order of Armageddon, Swing Kids, and Mohinder. In the New York/New Jersey area, bands such as Native Nod, Merel, 1.6 Band, Rye Coalition and Rorschach were feeling the same impulse. The labels Gern Blandsten Records and Troubleman Records released many of the influential records from that region and era. Many of these bands were involved with the ABC No Rio club scene in New York, itself a response to the violence and stagnation in the scene and with the bands that played at CBGBs, the only other small venue for hardcore in New York at the time.

There was an explosion of bands, some who influenced this were: Indian Summer, Ordination of Aaron, Evergreen, Current, Shotmaker, Portraits of Past, and Julia. These bands eventually became what is known as emo, a style which intensified the dramatic aspects of vocal performances in order to achieve a cathartic breakthrough with the audience. Their music backgrounds differ, Julia and Evergreen both produced some of the richest emo sounds, while Shotmaker railed off hardcore and incorporated math rock elements.

In recent years, the internet has helped spread word of screamo. A major factor in the rise of screamo to a more notable genre was the creation of Napster along with the file sharing programs that came after. What once had been obscure was now available to anyone with an internet connection. MySpace, which offers free music profiles, includes screamo in its list of genres. At this writing it is actually listed on the top half of the "top genres" with a count of 46,356 artists. However, not many of these bands actually play screamo music. There is a common misconception that different styles such as metalcore or pop punk are screamo, where in fact they bear little resemblance. There is also a tendency by many people to think of any screaming music as screamo, which is incorrect. Screamo is generally slower than hardcore or punk and the vocal parts alternate between screamed and sung, similar to early emo music. Screamo bands also tend to bury the vocals in with the other instruments and use more arpeggiated progressions, dynamic and time changes.

Easier access to the music through file sharing lead to an increased interest in owning the original copies of the music. With the demise of Skylab Commerce many fans of the genre have turned to eBay to expand their collections of rare and out-of-print records. This leads to very high prices on records that often cost a meager $10 or less when they were first released. Some members of bands who have broken up have expressed displeasure in these high prices and urge fans not to buy them, or buy a posthumously released discography instead. There are alternatives to eBay including vivalavinyl.org, a website dedicated to trading and selling hardcore records, and providing accurate pressing information on releases. In recent years, the term screamo has been very commonly used to describe emo, post-punk, alternative rock, metalcore, or hardcore bands with emo influences.[1]

Screamo has spread from its start in North America all over the world. The European scene is now almost, if not, as big as the one in North America. Countries such as Japan and Australia have notable scenes as well and bands have even started in less likely countries such as South Africa, Chile, and the United Arab Emirates.