Six Bands Bringing Respect Back to ‘Screamo’ Vocals

Phillip Morgan ’18 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer

For most of the 2000s, “screamo” became a catch-all term for a lot of disdain among music fans. Many who had no idea what it was simply used it to describe pretty much every kind of heavy music imaginable, from post hardcore to metal core and death metal to even nu metal. (Yes, a girl once referred to Korn as a screamo band and itwas disturbing.) Screamo’s connotation within indie music circles was just as degrading, as it also has been a go-to term for referencing the “scene kid” metal-core bands (see: Attack! Attack!, Of Mice and Men, A Skylit Drive) that continue to plague the alternative music community with lack of style and excessive breakdowns. As a result, most music fans have no idea what “screamo” actually refers to, which is why this meme from the internet helps to put it in the simplest terms:

You heard Dwight. Screamo isn’t actually a music genre. It’s just a method of vocalizing used among various practitioners of heavy music, and NOT a catch-all term for such bands. However, the recent resurgence in quality emo and post hardcore bands in the late 2000s and early 2010s came a sort of renaissance for bands with screamo vocals. They don’t all sound like squealing pigs or grumpy bears, and you can actually understand the lyrics. So if you’re still thinking, “This can’t be good music if there’s not actual singing right?” here are the six best bands to start with if you’re still scared of screamo.

6. Xerxes (Louisville, KY / No Sleep Records)

Equal parts post-hardcore and new wave/post-punk, this quartet from Kentucky have carved a name for themselves by not being fearful in the slightest of being perceived as “the weird band.” With guitar melodies that sound straight off an album from The Cure or The Replacements, complemented by the brash yet intelligible howl of Calvin Philley, Xerxes has become a force to be reckoned as well as a breath of fresh air within the post-hardcore community. Their sophomore LP Collision Blonde releases on Oct. 21 via No Sleep Records.

Check out the first single “Chestnut Street”:

5. Frameworks (Gainesville, FL / Topshelf Records)

This five-some from Florida is not afraid to push boundaries, especially in a literal sense. Blending influences ranging from hardcore, post-punk, emo, dream-pop, and even surf rock, this band is known for making music with equal doses of aggression, creativity, and sometimes just plain random, but even with sudden shifts in music, the wails of vocalist Luke Pate are in constant supply. They released their debut LP Loom via Topshelf Records earlier this year, and with an off-kilter and borderline insane live performance, it’s doubtful the band or the record will go unnoticed.

Check out the music video for title track “Loom”:

4. Pianos Become the Teeth (Baltimore, MD / Epitaph Records)

Some might argue that PBTT doesn’t deserve to be on a list like this anymore following a single in 2013 with nearly all clean vocals, along with the recent announcement that their upcoming LP Keep You will feature almost entirely clean vocals, but so what? Pianos, a band who mixes a traditional, post-hardcore feel with elements of post-rock (imagine Explosions in the Sky but with screaming vocals), is still as ferocious of a band as ever. Vocalist Kyle Durfey may be taking a break from his trademark howl on this LP, but there are still two albums worth of screaming to keep everyone happy. Plus, the rest of the band is just as intense as ever, and it’s doubtful that Durfey will be able to resist shrieking out lyrics here and there in future performances. Keep You releases Oct. 28 via Epitaph Records, and incidentally, they will be playing in Cambridge, MA at The Middle East that same day along with Frameworks (previously mentioned).

Check out their newest single “Repine”:

Also, if you want to hear what Pianos sounds like with primarily screaming vocals, check out the music video for “I’ll be Damned” off of their 2011 LP The Lack Long After Here:

3. Defeater (Boston, MA / Bridge Nine Records)

Boston’s very own Defeater is one of the heaviest bands in the new school of post-hardcore on two very different fronts. On the one hand is there music, taking cues from thrash metal, prog-metal, and traditional hardcore punk in order to churn gut-splattering riffs with expert proficiency, and just the right amount of melody sprinkled on top. On the other hand is their narrative prowess, as they have now three full interlocking concept albums. Amidst thunderous guitars and drums, vocalist Derek Archambault roars the story of a broken post-war American family and the unfathomable sorrow and pain each member goes through. As he takes on a different character’s perspective in each album, he doesn’t just explain their suffering to you, but he makes you feel it.

Check out the music video for “Bastards” off of their 2013 LP Letters Home:

2. La Dispute (Grand Rapids, MI / Better Living Records)

While vocalist Jordan Dreyer may rely more on his spoken word chops to carry out his long-winded lyrical duties, when he barks, he barks loud. It doesn’t get much more talented than this Michigan five-piece, who enrich their post-hardcore outfit with bits of spoken word, blues, 70s hard rock, and even jazz. La Dispute is also a concept-focused band, but instead of interlocking every album, they’ve spent the past few years crafting LPs that are individually epic. Their March 2014 record Rooms of the House, which details the intense breakup of a couple in a small Michigan town amidst a devastating storm after years together and the consequences that unfold, is an emotional powerhouse that showcases Dreyer’s ability to deliver massive soliloquies while constantly shifting between his most subdued whisper and his most unhinged howl, with the band’s intricate music on pace with him every step of the way. With the recent formation of their own label Better Living Records, and no plans of slowing down, La Dispute stands poised to stand tall above the indie music community for years to come.

Check out their lead single “Stay Happy There”:

1. Touché Amoré (Los Angeles, CA / Deathwish Inc.)

Almost as long as they’ve been a band, Touché Amoré has just about defined what it means to be a post-hardcore band of this generation. Wearing their influences proudly on their sleeves, which span The Replacements, At the Drive-In, Minor Threat, and everything in between, TA’s mix of old school indie rock melodies and odd chord structure with hardcore punk’s energy has enabled them to blaze their own trail as a band. Meanwhile, vocalist Jeremy Bolm’s yelp is almost impossible not to recognize after the first listen, as the sound of a man shouting his personal demons into the void while making sure every word is heard is tough to forget. The band also has a reputation for self-aware and brutally honest lyrics, and their most recent LP, 2013’s Is Survived By, certainly proved that point with subjects ranging from losing touch with loved ones over time to Bolm dealing with the rapid growth of his own fame and the pressure that comes with it. So acclaimed is the band’s punk prowess they are currently on tour opening for punk heavyweights Rise Against, with whom they’ll be playing the House of Blues in Boston on Sept. 29.

Check out their video for the song “Harbor” off Is Survived By: