Hard to Do
Neil Sedaka got it right when he sang “Breaking up is Hard to Do” in 1962. It seems that the best songs throughout time have been sad bastard hits about love, and from the early 2000s emerged an entire genre dedicated to matters of the heart: emo.
Thanks to MTV, emo has become a hodgepodge of mainstream crap for teenaged recluses with the popularity of such bands as Dashboard Confessional and Fall Out Boy. However, I still have a soft spot for the heart-wrenching whiny guitars and screeching voices that belt out lyrics of loves lost.
So with that said, in the spirit of one of my favorite films "High Fidelity," here are my all-time top five indie emo breakup albums:
5. “Something to Write Home About,” The Get Up Kids (1999) – These guys may not have written this album with breaking up in mind, but every time the wailing guitars blare out the intro of the first track and front man Matthew Pryor swoons “say goodnight, mean goodbye,” I immediately feel heartbreak. The album keeps up the low spirit with songs like “Valentine” and “I’ll Catch You.”
4. “XO,” Elliott Smith (1998) – I love this musician, but listen with caution. A breakup is never a happy experience, but Elliott Smith can cause depression of a very clinical kind. With Smith’s sweet soft voice and his clean acoustic guitar, this album is guaranteed to leave you curled in a ball, sobbing in your bed for days. Don’t say I didn’t warn you first.
3. “Dilate,” Ani Difranco (1996) – OK, so this isn’t really an emo selection, but it’s indie! No one can string lyrics as real and poetically as Difranco, and Dilate defines every sour breakup moment you can imagine. The song “Adam and Eve” taps into the rawest of emotion and defines what happens when two people finally give up on each other after countless efforts to make it work.
2. “Rock and Roll Part Three,” Ozma (2001) – “I’ve been cheating on you ever since we broke up,” sings California-based Ozma in their song “The Ups and Downs.” The whole album combined is one big love ballad dedicated to that crush in your fifth grade class or even that special someone on the silver screen. Either way, it’s all about the heartache.
1. “You Are Free,” Cat Power (2003) – When singer/songwriter Chan Marshall declares acceptance in the song “Good Woman” with her unparalleled somber tone, you can’t help but feel the defeat. The album takes its listeners through heart-sunken regret to tranquil understanding of having love and losing love, and she does it with graceful prose, crisp piano chords and bold guitar riffs.
Thanks to MTV, emo has become a hodgepodge of mainstream crap for teenaged recluses with the popularity of such bands as Dashboard Confessional and Fall Out Boy. However, I still have a soft spot for the heart-wrenching whiny guitars and screeching voices that belt out lyrics of loves lost.
So with that said, in the spirit of one of my favorite films "High Fidelity," here are my all-time top five indie emo breakup albums:
5. “Something to Write Home About,” The Get Up Kids (1999) – These guys may not have written this album with breaking up in mind, but every time the wailing guitars blare out the intro of the first track and front man Matthew Pryor swoons “say goodnight, mean goodbye,” I immediately feel heartbreak. The album keeps up the low spirit with songs like “Valentine” and “I’ll Catch You.”
4. “XO,” Elliott Smith (1998) – I love this musician, but listen with caution. A breakup is never a happy experience, but Elliott Smith can cause depression of a very clinical kind. With Smith’s sweet soft voice and his clean acoustic guitar, this album is guaranteed to leave you curled in a ball, sobbing in your bed for days. Don’t say I didn’t warn you first.
3. “Dilate,” Ani Difranco (1996) – OK, so this isn’t really an emo selection, but it’s indie! No one can string lyrics as real and poetically as Difranco, and Dilate defines every sour breakup moment you can imagine. The song “Adam and Eve” taps into the rawest of emotion and defines what happens when two people finally give up on each other after countless efforts to make it work.
2. “Rock and Roll Part Three,” Ozma (2001) – “I’ve been cheating on you ever since we broke up,” sings California-based Ozma in their song “The Ups and Downs.” The whole album combined is one big love ballad dedicated to that crush in your fifth grade class or even that special someone on the silver screen. Either way, it’s all about the heartache.
1. “You Are Free,” Cat Power (2003) – When singer/songwriter Chan Marshall declares acceptance in the song “Good Woman” with her unparalleled somber tone, you can’t help but feel the defeat. The album takes its listeners through heart-sunken regret to tranquil understanding of having love and losing love, and she does it with graceful prose, crisp piano chords and bold guitar riffs.
posted by Mandy G at 8:48 PM
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