Washed Up Emo

Today we welcome Tonie Joy from Moss Icon. Moss Icon were around for only four years but impacted two genres and countless bands after their short time together. They are an icon in this scene and it was absolutely fascinating to hear Tonie’s perspective on DIY and the music scene from his vantage point of being in this band from 1987-1991. We talk about how he met Jonathan Vance, finding punk and...

Today, we welcome a legend, Conor Mullen Oberst to the podcast. No, I didn’t just add my last name to his name, that’s his actual middle name and we talk about it and no, we discussed it. We are not related.  Mr Oberst was very gracious with his time while having some work done on his house, which you’ll hear at times during the podcast. It was an honor to discuss such life changing events as seei...

Today on the podcast is Gared O’Donnell from Planes Mistaken for Stars. Gared and I recently connected after he heard an earlier podcast, episode 110 to be exact, with writer Jason Heller about the impact of Planes Mistaken for Stars and the untimely death of band member Matt Bellinger. Gared hadn’t heard this episode until recently and reached out to me after he listened. We ended up talking a bi...

Today on the podcast we welcome Thomas Barnett from Strike Anywhere. A legend in the punk scene and someone that I’ve been following since 1999 when I first heard Strike Anywhere and their brand of political punk from Richmond, VA.  When Thomas from Strike Anywhere first jumped on the phone with me said he was shy and not really a good talker. Well, he was completely wrong and I just sat back for...

Today we welcome Jon Marburger from I Hate Myself. I Hate Myself were a three piece emo band from Gainesville, Florida and were around for only a short time from 1997-1998 and then reunited in 2003 and 2005. Not the longest career but to me, a cornerstone and trailblazer for the music we all love that followed. If you have any interest in the history of this genre and I Hate Myself hasn’t come int...

Alex Dunham, singer and guitarist for the band and I connected in NYC right before the pandemic took hold in early March. It's crazy to hear our conversation have zero of the weight of conversations happening with our friends and family today. A time capsule for what was before this insanity we’re all in now. It’s also the last time I did an interview in my apartment in NYC. I insanely miss doing...

So great to have Chris Simpson back on the podcast. Since we last spoke all the back for episode 15 of this podcast, Mineral wasn’t even reunited yet. We had a lot to catch up on. We talked about the Mineral 25th anniversary and how it was different from the reunion in 2014, the two new songs they wrote for the 25th anniversary book, and The Gloria Record’s reissue of A Lull in Traffic. I also con...

Today, we welcome Danny Pound from Vitreous Humor and The Regrets. In this podcast, I’ve tried to go back and find the origin, the meaning, and the stories behind this genre. In this episode, we go back to the start with Danny Pound. Danny’s band Vitreous Humor in the late 80s was the first band signed to Crank! Records and also their first release in 1994. Along with Boys Life, they were some of...

When I look back on my life and what albums had an immediate impact on me from the 90s, one jumps out that I felt never got their due. The band was M.I.J and the singer of that band, Jeff Hanson. Jeff tragically died in 2009 and left a wealth of material from three solo albums on Kill Rock Stars to an album and EP on the legendary Caulfield Records. I wanted to find a couple of folks to talk about...

Today, we welcome Whitmer Thomas. You’re saying, who is Whitmer? Whitmer is a comedian that recently had a 1-hour comedy special on HBO called The Golden One.  It’s also an album of music with the same name that you can listen to on our favorite DSP. Whit was a musician before a comedian and has quite the extensive knowledge of punk, hardcore, and emo from his days playing in emo and screamo bands...

Today, we welcome a legend. Guy Picciotto from Rites of Spring and Fugazi. You may also know him from Happy Go Licky or One Last Wish. Insert another obscure band to tweet at me later.  In my years of doing this podcast, I never expected to have such legends of the genre. I’m glad I waited because Guy speaks about his feelings about the word emo and how it’s changed over the years. Really eye open...

Today we welcome Matt Saincome, Bill Conway and Krissy Howard from The Hard Times! The world famous satirical site stopped by Washed Up Emo on their recent book tour to talk about how the site started, how they come up with all the funny headlines, some regrets they’ve had, and I challenge them to come up with some emo headlines on the spot. A truly inspiring tale of finding something you love and...

Today we welcome drummer, William Goldsmith from Sunny Day Real Estate. You may also know him from The Fire Theft, Foo Fighters or his new band called Assertion.  William and I had an amazing discussion about how he got into music, meeting Jeremy Enigk, the formation of Sunny Day Real Estate, and the lasting impact of the band. We also talk about how he met his close friend and bandmate in Asserti...

Today we welcome Steve Pedersen from such bands as Cursive, The White Octave, Slowdown Virginia, and Criteria. The boys in Criteria, after 15 years, have a new album entitled “Years,” coming out on 15 Passenger Records next month and Steve was kind enough to spend some time with Washed Up to talk about it. If you’re listening to this in the future, it’s out now on streaming services. In this episo...

Today we welcome Jimmy LaValle from The Album Leaf. Jimmy and I met up in Los Angeles to talk about his early days from the 90s in San Diego being exposed to DIY and screamo to touring with bands like The Get Up Kids, Piebald, and Jimmy Eat World. We also dive into The Album Leaf project, how he met Sigur Rós, the Sub Pop Records days, and how he’s now busy with film scoring. It all makes sense an...

We welcome again on the podcast for a 3rd time, Matt Pryor from The Get Up Kids. In this episode we discuss at length, the 20th anniversary of their album "Something to Write Home About." Matt and I discuss the making of the record, we go track by track on stories and lyrics behind the songs and the release of the record on Vagrant. We also dive into the aftermath after it’s release and boom of em...

Today we welcome singer, guitarist and lyricist, Scott Hobart from Giants Chair. Giants Chair are a midwest band that in the early 90s influenced many in the scene we know today. Starting out on the legendary Caulfield Records, Giants Chair have been off and on over the years and continued to be talked about when this genre and era is mentioned. Now they’re about to release their new album “Prefab...

Today we welcome Tracy Wilson from Dahlia Seed. You may also know her from her other bands Souvenir, Ringfinger or Positive No. If it is a no, let me explain. Tracy is an icon in the emo scene because she made her own path and her own rules on how to make it in the scene. Tracy and I talk about her many bands, jobs and stories over the years that intertwine the icons of the scene and little known...

Today we welcome Casey James Prestwood from Hot Rod Circuit. Casey and I talk through the history of Hot Rod Circuit and his current endeavors with country music and his band The Burning Angels. Casey recently released a 7” out with fellow friend Josh Berwanger on Lost Broadcast Records that’s worth checking out. If you ever wanted to know the ins and outs of what went down in the early 2000s, Hot...

We welcome back Dan Didier from The Promise Ring to talk about the album “Very Emergency.” Why do you ask? Because today, September 28th, 2019 is the 20th anniversary of this album’s release on Jade Tree Records!  To that, I wanted to find a fun way to celebrate and talk about the album. So Dan and I connected earlier this week to discuss many things including the inspiration of the album artwork,...

Today we welcome Tim Kinsella. You may know Tim from such bands as Cap’n Jazz, Owls, Make Believe, and Joan of Arc. He’s currently playing music with his wife in Good Fuck. Tim and I spent time talking about his work ethic, the word emo, and the podcast interview starts with us discussing the recent Joan of Arc documentary and where they got the footage and stuff for it and Tim’s thoughts on savin...

Today we welcome Jamie Stillman from EarthQuaker Devices, an effects pedal company out of Akron, Ohio. Jamie was also in bands you may have heard of like The Party of Helicopters, Fringe Candidate, Relaxer (his current band,) and my favorite, Harriet the Spy. Harriet the Spy was a band out of Kent, Ohio that was around from 1993-1998 and was an actual screamo band. They were one of the first screa...

Jade and I connected early on during the first album, "Real Stories Of True People Who Looked Kind Of Like Monsters." I was a huge fan and supporter. Following that debut, it was great to see the mainstream press take a liking to him after the amazing follow-up, "The Yunahon Mixtape." Now the album coming out August 16th, "Basking in the Glow," should propel him to another level. It’s that good. O...

Today, we welcome Chris Crisci from The Appleseed Cast. Chris has been on my list for the entire 8 years of this podcast’s existence. I am honored to finally have him on the podcast. I loved Chris’ appreciation for the scene, constantly challenging himself, and not resting while making the band work alongside his day job, family and life. The band’s discography is one of my favorites in all of my...

A few months ago, I asked a couple of prior podcast guests Brian Lowit from Lovitt Records and now Dischord Records and John Davis from Q and Not U, if they thought an in-person interview could happen. Through their help and a little timing of a personal wedding in DC set this plan in motion.  As this podcast gets into its 8th year with no signs of slowing down, I thought it was time to have the p...