A REAL REVIVAL & THE NOT JUST A PHASE TOP 10 ACTIVE SCREAMO BANDS OF OUR LAST DECADE
Photo Cred 📷 : @larvalungs
Let me start by saying I never wanted to write this or any “thinkpieces” regarding the Screamo community for many personal reasons but mainly because I don’t think I’m the right person to do it. I do however know a lot of the people that are the best representation of this counterculture and I feel that this community has been misrepresented at times throughout the recent, new resurgence of press the genre and its community have been receiving lately.
First off every music scene has its share of musicians and fans who aren’t perfect people (shocking, I know right?) and if you’re involved in Screamo you know what I’m talking about, this isn’t a gossip column and there’s no need to focus on those issues in almost every Screamo article I read lately, especially now that they’re being addressed and dealt with by the people that are directly involved in them. Secondly almost every article I read about Screamo states that we’re currently undergoing a big revival for the sound, which is true, but not exactly in the way I keep seeing it being portrayed. Yes, Jeromes Dream is back, as is Saetia and City Of Caterpillar and that's awesome, but that’s literally only three much older bands that have just very recently reunited and they are most certainly not responsible for reviving an entire genre whose community of musicians and fanbase are quite unlike any other music scene in all of the punk realms, no the real revival that needs to be talked about is the staggering amount of new Screamo bands that are popping up all over this crazy planet and who’s been supporting them. That’s right, Screamo is a worldwide phenomenon and a ton of new bands and names need to be mentioned and recognized for bringing more fans and listeners to this genre.
I’ll start with the labels, because without them the bands in this genre would still be releasing their DIY recordings to little online blogspots (and there’s nothing wrong with that, because what is Not Just A Phase if not just a glorified blogspot, so yeah, I’m just saying). Modern Screamo labels from literally all over the globe have been popping up and releasing great music on CDs, cassettes, vinyl and lathes. In Canada we have No Funeral Records and Zegema Beach Records (ZBR also operates in the US and ships internationally) and in the states we have Middleman Records, Larry Records, Illuminate My Heart (my darling) Records and the unfortunately soon-to-be-closing-their-doors, the infamous European label known as Dog Knight Records. These are widely considered the top labels in the Screamo / Screamo adjacent game, you should know all about them and every band in the game wants to be released by them.
They’ve been keeping DIY ethos alive throughout their means of releasing and promoting bands, it is their carrying of the torch that has shined light onto countless bands and many other fans of the genre all over the globe have followed in this same path releasing Screamo & Screamo adjacent bands.
In Europe the scene has Moment of Collapse Records, Iowa has RIP in Peace Records, Malaysia has Framecode Records, California has Self Versed Records, San Francisco has Dark Trail Records and Cliff Parade Records, France has Echo Canyon Records, North Carolina has Semi Collective Records, Japan has 3LA Records, Chile has Kaname Records, Germany has Dingleberry Records and moving back to the states yet again Los Angeles has Repeater Records and Pittsburgh has Jean Scene Creamers (my personal favorite ridiculous label name ever btw). That short list is nowhere near complete and our sound is constantly expanding with more DIY labels releasing real Screamo and keeping the sound alive. Without their hard work and dedication no one would know that Screamo is still alive in 2022 and I can’t speak for everyone in this scene but I know a lot of people are fine without Screamo being in the spotlight and don’t really care if a lot of people don't know what this is all about.
If you are new here though no worries, let me be the first to say WELCOME! Everyone in this community will be happy to embrace you and accept you for who you are. We’re all very open minded so as long as you believe in equality for all peoples and genders no one here is gonna call you a poser. Just come listen to some dramatic, screamy music with us and be whoever the fuck you wanna be.
Now we know the proper labels to thank for keeping the fans ears full of screamy goodness, we should also mention some newer bands that are currently writing and performing the heavenly and harrowing soundscapes of our beloved Screamo genre. There’s way too many to list in just one short article so we’ll just give you our Top 10 active Screamo bands from the last decade that Not Just A Phase would like to shine a spotlight on. Also let it be known that this caused an absolute war in the Not Just A Phase group chat which made this list take many hours to compile so we’re very sorry if you’re not on this list, we should’ve done a top 30..
Please know that this hurt us more than it could ever hurt you.
Seriously..
The following are listed in no particular order of preference, we love all these bands equally.
OJNE: Italy’s finest since 2011 that most say is one of the best to ever do it. Ojne’s brand of Screamo differs from the usual harsher sounds of the genre by featuring a much cleaner distortion tone with silky screamed vocals and riffs so melodic they’re dare I say, romantic? There’s no disputing they’ve earned a spot on every Screamo fan’s top 10 lists so this pick was a no brainer.
NAEDR: Singapore act Naedr is mixing classical music elements into their own blend of Screamo. From their unique composition methods to full use of violins and other orchestra associated instruments, no one's really doing it like Naedr. One perfect full length debut album titled “Past Is Prologue” and one flawless split with Crowning so far titled “Rayau”, this bands sound is as new as they are and we can’t wait to hear more from them as soon as possible.
BLIND GIRLS: From the gold coast of Australia, Blind Girls came tearing onto the scene in 2013 with their “Solace” EP but I feel like their wildfire really started to spread with their groundbreaking debut album “Residue” in 2018. Just this year they dropped all our jaws again releasing their follow up LP “The Weight Of Everything”. Their blend of speed, aggression and sadistic melodies will give you goosebumps every time. When they came through Canada to New Friends Fest there wasn’t a single person in that crowd who wasn’t absolutely hyped to see them and not a single one of them left disappointed. This is definitely a must see band for live performances and they’re already a household name in the game so of course they’re in our top 10. They’re in everybody’s top 10.
RESPIRE: They’re from Canada eh? Respire are like the Toronto Maple Leafs of Screamo.. No wait, that's a terrible analogy.. They are from Toronto though and they’re well loved by all of Canada as well as the rest of the Screamo world. Their black metal influence matched up with their horn and string section make for some of the most unique Screamo you’ll ever hear and it absolutely needs to be heard live to get the full experience of their work. Their guitarists and vocalists (Egin & Rohan) also play a big part in New Friends Fest, which is one of the largest Screamo festivals in the world that's been hosted in Toronto since 2018. If anyone’s helping this so-called Screamo revival happen it’s definitely this group of beautiful people who have been writing some of the best Screamo material while also booking the best names in the game.
SNAG: For the last 5 years Milwaukee’s eco-conscious power trio Snag have been making music that’s just as important as their message. Snag’s music is urgent, yet inviting to the listener and when the day comes that our world is collapsing, I’ll gladly starve with water in my lungs screaming Snag lyrics as loud as possible. Snag has one of one the most uniquely, their-own style in the game. Easy pick. Thanks for the banana and beers!
MASSA NERA: New Jersey's Massa Nera do melodic and jazzy like no other band and they often jam it out onto a beautiful wall of sound that once finally formed, instantly races towards car crash tempos showcasing the sheer aggression they’d been harboring and gathering towards from the very first opening notes of their conception. The experimentation with their sound knows no bounds either, their constantly changing soundscapes have even crossed paths with violins and I can only imagine they’ll be yet again breaking new grounds with their next full length album “Derramar | Querer | Borrar” releasing December 2nd through Zegema Beach Records and the Screamo wizard David Norman has said that this one may be his AOTY pick.
GILLIAN CARTER: Orlando based Screamo veterans Gillian Carter have been a band composing innovative Screamo sounds for seventeen (soon to be eighteen) entire years. By 2024 the band will be legal drinking age here in Canada. That’s an absolutely insane amount of time to be a band, especially in this genre known for having bands come and go very quickly. Despite being the second longest running Screamo band of all time, next to Envy, Gillian Carter also do whatever the hell they want sonically from album to album their styles change and evolve freely while they flawlessly incorporate a blending of so many genres that it’s impossible to put them in a box. Their most recent release was exceptionally aggressive compared to their previous work, the album titled “Salvation Through Misery” is another masterpiece in their vast collection that you need to listen to and purchase at Skeletal Lightning.
TO BE GENTLE: Eve is a Screamo machine. Name one band that has put out more Screamo songs in the last decade than To Be Gentle. You absolutely can't. Every damn track is a good one too, no filler and seemingly no end in sight, To Be Gentle is on a warpath to continue releasing absurdly good Screamo. Their latest album “It Always Hurts and One Day It Will Win” is now available through Zegema Beach Records currently and I’m guessing we’ll have another new release from To Be Gentle coming up again very soon.
NUVOLASCURA: Based in Los Angeles California and previously known as Vril, Nuvolascura have been creating one of the most chaotic, free verse forms of Screamo anyone has ever heard. In a genre that’s always pushing boundaries Nuvolascura is actually melting them. One of the most innovative bands in the game that will no doubt go down as one the best to ever do it. “As We Suffer From Memory & Imagination '' only came out two years ago but it feels like a literal lifetime ago. I know you can't rush art but I need some new Nuvolascura asap. We all do.
PIET ONTHEL: The one man Skramz Mashine from Malaysia (his name is Mashi so please forgive my pun, that typo was very intentional). Mashi is the sole owner of the brains behind the Malaysian Emoviolence act known as Piet Onthel. Often Emoviolence bands rip breakneck speeds too fast to capture a proper melody. Don’t get me wrong I love a mean trem-picked octave scale but Mashi is capturing insanely creative melodies that this subgenre is often sprinting past in order to keep up the aggression. Insanely good music made by an insanely good dude who also happens to be in about 15 other bands, no joke, Mashi is literally made of music.
Check out more Screamo bands here: “Real” Screamo (Make Screamo Real Again)
Photo Cred 📷 : @larvalungs
Writer : @just_reidz
Editor : @letsgetpivotal
10/23/22
