American Football - American Football

With grunge and punk rock bands hitting the big time in the 1990s, a growing underground of emo rock was formulating, blossoming from the ragged sound of their punk forefathers. Enter American Football, a band that removes all stains from the hard-nosed rock aesthetic that defined emo for most of its life, and instead braids the genre’s trademark adolescent lyrics with a subtler, more technically-driven indie rock sound. This flavour would later collectivise as “Midwest emo”, and American Football are one of the most popular bands to come from this era. Newer bands such as Modern Baseball and The Hotelier, as well as labels like Run For Cover and Topshelf, borrow heavily from their math rock-influenced style, thanks in large part to their legendary eponymous debut album.

American Football’s opener, ‘Never Meant’, perfectly details the emotional characteristics of this record - how the snaking guitar lines intertwine like growing vines, how its para-melodies create sorcery, how the space and size of the music affirms that the narrative could be projected purely instrumentally. After clearing its throat, the song generates warmth through its guitars. The bridge ascends, increasing propulsion and space, for it to snap back into a twangy, eccentric breakdown, it implores reminiscence. With nominal, tear-stained lyrics, ‘Never Meant’ and company act as a high school journal written with nimble guitars and bossa nova drums.

In 2014, the band returned with their sophomore album, still self-titled. Upon release, the new record felt unoriginal, not because they were using the sound of new emo bands as a crutch, in fact, quite the opposite - they had found themselves in a world where bands were more adventurous, grown-up and refined. In other words, the world had just caught up with them.