Seconds Separate the Days

Seconds Separate the Days were a band out of Little Chute, Wisconsin, active from the late 90s to around the turn of the millennium. They play a more pop-oriented version of 90s midwest emo, largely devoid of twinkling passages or the quiet\loud dynamic inherited from emo, though these elements are not entirely absent; the band retains at least one of the rougher elements of emo in the occasional screaming, and overall remind me of Strictly Ballroom or maybe Edaline.

Most of the band's discography is available through the great MKE Punk archive. Their history is a bit confusing, though, because the information on their 1998 release Ups, Downs & Long Distances states that the band broke up in the process of recording it. That's odd considering my copy of the band's self-titled album clearly says that it was recorded in 1999. I suppose it's possible that the band got back together or experienced a line up change. Besides those two releases, the band also put out a split 7" with The Transpire Ton and contributed a track to the great Reveal the Character compilation, though those songs were taken from Ups, Downs & Long Distances.

seconds separate the days

Caesura

Caesura were a UK band from Winchester, formed in 2005. They exist as yet more evidence that a miniature wave of post-rock\midwest emo hybrid bands rose up in the aughts, combing post-rock's vast soundscapes with midwest emo's twinkling ennui. Caesura follow that formula well, but they also bring something a bit different to the table in the form of post-punk influences, which makes sense given the time period. This puts them in the rare company of bands that mixed emo with the garage rock revival, such as The Diggs—but given Caesura's home turf, a more fitting comparison would be their fellow countrymen One Toy Soldier, who also sometimes sound a bit like Bloc Party.

Caesura put out their first release in the form of the Dear Light Outside EP in 2006. They also contributed a track to a compilation; during the same sessions, they recorded second track that went unreleased. I'm able to include it here thanks to one of the band members. In 2008, the band would change their name to On Histories of Rosenberg and release a final EP. 

Caesura Discography

ThinkingDayRally

Now here's something different: piano-led emo pop. ThinkingDayRally were from Tampa, active in the early 2000s. They stuck around long enough to release a single minialbum\EP, and that appears to be it. Their sound isn't too far from some of the gentler tracks off Something To Write Home About or similar works, save for that prominent piano, which drives the music instead of being an accent for it. In some ways this recalls the work of bands like Straylight Run, though ThinkingDayRally are less polished than that, and less interested in mainstream hooks; in delivery, these guys are often closer to Karate than Something Corporate. This is the easy-listening version of emo pop, and honestly, it does stretch the definition on its face. You have to really listen to the guitar and the song structure to realize that these are emo pop songs played as gently as possible—emo pop for the elevator, maybe.

The band's sole release is into the blue room, released in 2000. In 2002, one of the album's tracks would find its way onto The Emo Philips Diaries: From Tampa To Eternity compilation, which features some other Florida emo bands, including Pohgoh, Hankshaw, and The Maccabees.

into the blue room

The Osterman Weekend

The Osterman Weekend were a short-lived band from Derby, formed around 2000-2001 and ending in 2002. Over the course of a four-track EP, they do one of the better Christie Front Drive impressions I've heard—and I haven't heard many, because not many have tried. No one ever really sounded like Christie Front Drive, of course, but The Osterman Weekend do their best to scratch the same itch, and I think they largely succeed. Anyone who likes original-recipe midwest emo will find a lot to enjoy here. "milestone" is a highlight, as is the epic seven-minute album closer "iron on."

The self-titled EP is their only official release, put out in 2001 on IATDE Records. The band also recorded a four-song demo in anticipation of a 2003 CD that never saw release. One of the band members has since made it available on Soundcloud, and I've included in the download here; it finds the band incorporating more emo pop into their sound. There are also some live videos on the band's Youtube channel.

S/T EP + Demo

Rats Into Robots

Roaring out of Columbus, Ohio, Rats Into Robots were a screamo band active in the early 2000s. Their sound is a calamitous blast of screamo\hardcore buffered by long passages of eerie ambience. They're too melodic to be emoviolence, but they sure come close sometimes. This is aggressive, atonal screamo that's an assault on the senses, and I mean that in the best way. The album art does a great job of capturing the album's mood. Also, judging by the album title and at least one of the songs, someone in the band is a big fan of Dune.

The band doesn't have much of a discography. Their first release was a split with Textbook Traitors in 2003, followed by the 2004 album A Column of Smoke By Day, a Pillar of Fire By Night. That same year the band also contributed a track to the The Microwave Says To The Pacemaker compilation, which is a great bit of collected screamo.

Rats Into Robots Discography

Blue Shade Witness

Blue Shade Witness were a Chicago band, active in the early 2000s. They play very polished emo pop, though probably not the kind you're thinking of when I wrote 'early 2000s.' Blue Shade Witness are more indie rock than pop punk, and I have the feeling that if they stayed together long enough for more than a single release, anything else they put out wouldn't have fit within the parameters of this blog. I think these guys had Coldplay-type aspirations, and a full length probably would have shed the emo pop entirely.

Their only release is a self-titled EP, put out in 2003. They also contributed a track to a Smoking Popes cover compilation in the same year.

Blue Shade Witness + Compilation Track

Jejune

Originally formed at Berklee College in Boston, Jejune would thereafter setup shop in San Diego. The band is known in the emo scene primarily for their second album, the emo pop masterpiece This Afternoons Malady. Their other material, which ranges from their early midwest emo to a later sound even poppier than Afternoons, is far less heard. Not helping matters is the band's failure to make the jump to digital (save for, I believe, their posthumous final compilation and some comp tracks, which are\were on streaming at some point). Without either of their albums being made easily available through major platforms, This Afternoons Malady has been making the rounds in emo sharing circles for decades, while their first album is a bit harder to come by, depending where you look—it's a marked difference, however, from a decade ago when I can remember being unable to lay my hands on Junk no matter how hard I looked. Jejune also had some excellent split releases, their most well-known being a split 7" with Jimmy Eat World.

Jejune's sound was initially a chord-heavy version of midwest emo combined with emo pop, and this is the sound you'll hear on their first album, Junk. Normally, this would make that release my favorite. But This Afternoons Malady is just too good to be denied, a sweeping epic of emo pop with endless hooks and big choruses with midwest emo twinkling in the quiet spaces. It's their best work, the perfect midway point between their midwest emo roots and the pop sensibilities that would thereafter take over.

Jejune were prolific in contributions to compilations, but with only a few exceptions, most of those tracks appear on other releases, so I'm going to concentrate on the albums and splits. Jejune started out in 1996 with a split with Garden Variety. Junk was released the next year, along with the split with Jimmy Eat World. In 1998 they put out This Afternoons Malady, and in 1999 had a split with Lazycain. Their final release is the posthumous compilation RIP, which features demos from an unrealized third album and some remastered old songs.

Jejune Discography