grace like gravity

Grace Like Gravity were a band from Denver, Colorado, active in the early 2000s and possibly before or after, as I'll get to. Last.FM claims they broke up shortly after the release of their EP, which implies they called it quits in 2005. They played a blend of pop punk, mainstream post-hardcore, and emo pop. While the era of their existence implies a certain connection to the strongest currents in emo at the time, they really have more of the 90s emo punk scene in them, which is to say these guys were closer to Eleventeen than Hawthorne Heights. They played with Midtown and Fall Out Boy, which gives you an idea of where they were coming from.

Their first album was in 2004, nothing we say leaves this room. Its combination of emo pop and post-hardcore works quite well, and the addition of some hardcore vocals give it an edge a lot of their contemporaries lacked. Album closer "liar campaign' is a real highlight. In 2005 they released an EP called No Sense of Urgency, which is aiming for something different. The band swerves towards the kind of pop punk/dance punk that one might expect from Panic! At The Disco. The EP lacks that extreme level of polish and doesn't fully commit to the change, retaining a lot of their previous characteristics, but it's still an indication that they might have been headed in a different sonic direction.

Their third release is where things get vague. The Eisenhower Plan is, theoretically, their second album. There are two problems with this. First off, they are supposed to have disbanded in 2005, and the album was released in 2016. Secondly, it sounds nothing like the EP. I don't know for sure what's going on and I haven't been able to find any information on the LP at all, it just appeared on streaming along with the rest of the band's discography; however, according to Spotify, it was added a year after the other two releases, which have a date of 2015.

I don't think this is really a second album; not one that was released in 2016, anyway. I think The Eisenhower Plan is either an unreleased second album, recorded before the band broke up, or it may be their actual first album. This theory is completely unsubstantiated, but I find it compelling based on the album's sound, which does not at all follow from the EP and even lacks so much of the 2000s emo influence from nothing we say leaves this room. Compared to that album, Eisenhower might as well be MxPx. That's an exaggeration, of course, but it illustrates the divide. The purer emo-pop punk of Eisenhower could be an indication of earlier work. Or, maybe the band really did get back together and drop a whole new album eleven years after their previous release, who knows.

Thanks to life.love.regret86 for pointing me in this band's direction.

grace like gravity

Dina

Dina were a band from Liverpool, active from the late 90s to what appears to be 2004, though their timeline is somewhat vague. Over the course of their career, their sound gradually shifted from midwest emo-adjacent emo pop to punk, though they never completely lost their emo leanings. Although they remained an emo band to a variable extent over the length of their existence, they were mostly associated with the UK punk scene of the time, at one point touring with Leatherface.

Their first release (that I have, that is; see below) was Grampus Eight Versus Dina, a split EP with another Liverpool band in 1999. Collective Zine described the production as "pretty rough," which is putting it mildly. I think my copy has been done no favors by CDr rot as well. 2001 saw two releases, and while I believe that the 7" split with The Atlantic Monthly was released first, I can't say that with complete confidence. It features the song 'Sea Murmur,' the lyrics of which provided the name for the band's first full-length; it's Dina's most midwest emo song, and unsurprisingly my favorite track from them. It also appeared on the Erdata Ishee compilation.

The second 2001 release was Electricity Gave Me A Heart Murmur, the first LP and the one most appreciated by the emo community. It's a blend of midwest emo, emo pop, and indie rock, with clear influences from the UK punk scene. It's a pretty laid back album and usually, though not purely, focused on mood rather than energy, which wouldn't be that notable if it weren't for their second album. In 2002 the band contributed an acoustic track to the Postcards From The Heartland compilation, and then 2003 saw their last release, their second full-length Work the Switch. Moving away from the sound of the first album, it's heavier, faster, and fits more neatly within the scene of their contemporaries. Think Hooton Three Car, Blocko, or Servo, and you're in the right ballpark.

My collection is sadly incomplete, and all attempts to contact former bandmembers have thus far failed (I can't even find a picture of them that isn't in the album art). Multiple releases remain unrecovered. There was a CDr called The Owl which had six songs, five of which made their way to Work The Switch, but that leaves one unaccounted for. There was also what appears to be an EP, Lenny the Lion MC, which featured "4 songs off our first demo," implying that there were more than four songs on that demo, and that demo might only be the first of an unknown number. The three songs from the split with Grampus Eight are also from that demo, so which tracks (if any) overlap and which are missing is anyone's guess.

Most confusing of all, there is a release listed as CANT SAY SPLIT 7". The song which the band supposedly contributed to this split is "??????????????" It is unclear if the split was called Can't Say or if it was a split with a band of that name, but it was to be released by Wallride Records. That label is based in Maryland, so it's possible this was planned as a split between Dina and Can't Say from Baltimore. Whatever the case, I don't think it ever came to be.

Partial Discography

Small Town Hero

Small Town Hero were a band from Connecticut, formed either in 1998 or sometime before that. Their website was first archived in 1999 but there is a video of them playing a show in 1998. By 2002 they had lost their lead singer and called it quits after that, though I can't say exactly when. Musically, they were a combination of pop punk, emocore, and melodic hardcore, with most of the emphasis being on the first two.

Their first official release was the and so it goes… EP in 1999, though considering their existence prior to that year it's possible there was a demo before the EP. The track listing on the artwork is comprised of four songs but there are actually six on the CD—I sourced the names for the last two songs by matching the lyrics from an archive of the band's 'songs' page. In 2000, the band released a split with A Voice of Reason on Triple Crown Records, Things to Do in Connecticut When You're Dead. This was their last release, but they did post two additional songs to their website that were intended to be on a forthcoming full LP release. Sadly, that album never came to be and the songs are not recoverable.

Small Town Hero

Otherwise

Otherwise originally formed in Rutland, UK, relocating to London following their first album and were active from May of 1999 to June of 2003. The band's musical output can be neatly divided into pre- and post-millennial styles. In 1999, Otherwise offered pop punk with skate punk leanings. In 2001 with the release of the September's Gone EP, they became an emo pop band. A compilation track from 2000 hints at this forthcoming change, sitting neatly in that musical divide. After that, though, the band embraced emo until they called it quits. Combining emo pop with strong influences from midwest emo, they sound quite a bit like their tourmates in Brandtson, or contemporaries Park.

The band's website makes mention of demos prior to the first album, at least some of which were put on compilations, but I expect there is missing material from the start of the band's life. In 1999 they released a split 7" with Travis Cut and their first album, First In Third. There were some compilation releases around this time as well that I haven't been able to find, and while most of the songs appear on later releases, I suspect they may be demo versions. In 2000 the band would put out a unique track on The Sound of Them's Good! compilation, which I have included. As mentioned, it splits the difference between the band's changing sound. In 2001 the band would switch genres with September's Gone, cementing the change a year later with dark adapted eye, their second and last album.

Otherwise

Halfway to Nowhere

Halfway to Nowhere were a band from San Rafael, California, active from 2001 to 2004. The four year duration is no coincidence; they were a high school band, formed in the summer before freshman year and going on a 'hiatus' that became permanent following graduation; a reunion show in 2006 didn't stick. Frontman Andy Capra would go on to form indie rock outfit Brave Citizens.

The band played the emo pop of the early millennium often called 'mall emo.' …Sort of. They experimented with a lot of different sounds, swinging from stuff that's sort of Get Up Kids-ish to a few moments that wouldn't sound too out of place on Coheed and Cambria's The Second Stage Turbine Blade. They're a little more pop punk than the usual emo pop sound of the time, at least on their first album, not really pulling all that much from post-hardcore. The same can't be said of their second album, which is much more in line with their mainstream contemporaries.

Halfway to Nowhere released two albums: 2003's anthem of the seasons and a follow-up in 2004, Beyond This City. Prior to the first album, they also put out two four-track demos, Abandoned and The Day After Never, as well as two other tracks which were recorded but I'm uncertain if they were released or saved for the album. I've been unable to find either of the demos, and can only make the albums available.

anthem of the seasons + Beyond This City