Eric Grubbs

There are already a few books about when emo went mainstream, but Chris Payne’s 2023 oral history, Where Are Your Boys Tonight? The Oral History of Emo's Mainstream Explosion 1999-2008, really hits the nail on the head. Released through the Harper Collins imprint Dey Street, it’s told through the perspective of bands, labels, writers, managers, and fans – all from interviews Payne did over the past few years. I freely admit I had a lot of grievances about emo in the mainstream when it happened.

This year, there was one record I could not stop listening to, and it was by a young band from Connecticut called Anxious. Their debut LP, Little Green House, is a wonderful blend of emo, jangle pop, pop-punk, and hardcore. The record is super-short, but there is no filler here. Coming from a completely different field, I could not stop listening to the orchestral deathcore of Lorna Shore.

Electro-Rock Act NITE Released A New Angst-Filled, Trauma-Fueled Pop Banger And We Have the Pleasure Of Exclusively Premiering The Video. Welcome to Song of the Day, where we hip you to all the new local releases you should be caring about. By highlighting one new North Texas-sprung tune every week day, our hope is that you’ll find something new to love about the rich and abundant DFW music scene five days a week.