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Two genres, side by side. The ratings are editorial judgements on a ten-point scale, not measurements. Where they come out level, the difference is in the prose underneath them.

First genre

Emo revival2010

Second genre

Emo1985

Head to headEmo revival vs Emo
Emo revival: heaviness 3, melody 9, speed 5. Emo: heaviness 3, melody 9, speed 5. The two ratings are identical, so the shapes coincide.Heaviness3 / 3Melody9 / 9Speed5 / 5
Identical on all three meters. Whatever separates these two is not in the ratings.

The difference, by ear

Emo proper is post-hardcore's inward turn in 1985. The revival is a return to the 1990s branch of that, not to the 2000s commercial wave.

Emo is part sung, part screamed where emo revival is sung cleanly, at much the same pace, around 110 to 170 bpm. To hear the difference, play The World Is a Beautiful Place... next to Rites of Spring. Emo revival grew out of emo, 25 years later.

Put together from each genre's vocals, tempo, song length, key acts and place in the tree.

In figures

Heaviness
Emo revival3
Emo3
level
Speed
Emo revival5
Emo5
level
Melody
Emo revival9
Emo9
level

Emo revival

2010 · USA

Where it sits

Rock › Punk rock › Hardcore punk › Post-hardcore › Emo › Emo revival

In short

A new generation rediscovers the Midwest sound, this time with Bandcamp instead of fanzines.

How it sounds

  • Home-recorded production with clean guitars and unprocessed vocals.
  • Structures borrowed from Midwest emo, with tapping and open tunings.
  • Long, nearly prose-like lyrics about anxiety and small towns.

Key acts

  • The World Is a Beautiful Place...
  • Modern Baseball
  • Algernon Cadwallader

Start here

The pickAlgernon Cadwallader - Some Kind of Cadwallader. Cap'n Jazz reincarnated, unapologetically.

Full page →

Emo

1985 · Washington DC, USA · 4 subgenres

Where it sits

Rock › Punk rock › Hardcore punk › Post-hardcore › Emo

In short

Hardcore in which the lyrics turn confessional and the voice cracks. The term started as an insult and became an entire decade of fashion.

How it sounds

  • Quiet-to-loud dynamics, with the voice cracking at peak intensity.
  • Open tunings and arpeggios instead of full chords.
  • First-person confessional lyrics, sometimes embarrassingly sincere on purpose.

Key acts

  • Rites of Spring
  • Sunny Day Real Estate
  • American Football

Start here

The pickSunny Day Real Estate - Diary. The bridge between DC hardcore and everything that followed.

Full page →