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Emo Revival: Community, DIY, and Rebirth in Post-Hardcore and Emo
The story of the reinvention of punk rock’s most misunderstood subgenre, featuring Algernon Cadwallader, Title Fight, Modern Baseball, and the dozens of other bands who saved emo from implosion.
Emo didn’t start with the rise of bands like Fall Out Boy and My Chemical Romance and it didn’t end with their turn-of-the-2010s drop-offs either. When emo faded from the mainstream, major players in the music industry were ready to move on. The genre looked like a fad that was passing. But it didn’t die; it went back to the basements and VFW halls that it began in decades earlier, fueled by a new crop of bands who kept emo alive when no one else would.
Andrew Sacher explores why and how these bands turned the fourth wave of emo into one of the most impactful underground rock movements of its time. Informed by over 80 original interviews, Sacher offers a deep dive into the generation of bands that restored the musical values and DIY ethos of emo’s past in order to shape its future.
Emo Revival is a story about countless great records and powerful live shows, but even more so than that, it’s a story about community. None of this would have happened without an influx of likeminded bands, record labels, show bookers, and fans who reinforced that “DIY” is really about doing it together.
Emo didn’t start with the rise of bands like Fall Out Boy and My Chemical Romance and it didn’t end with their turn-of-the-2010s drop-offs either. When emo faded from the mainstream, major players in the music industry were ready to move on. The genre looked like a fad that was passing. But it didn’t die; it went back to the basements and VFW halls that it began in decades earlier, fueled by a new crop of bands who kept emo alive when no one else would.
Andrew Sacher explores why and how these bands turned the fourth wave of emo into one of the most impactful underground rock movements of its time. Informed by over 80 original interviews, Sacher offers a deep dive into the generation of bands that restored the musical values and DIY ethos of emo’s past in order to shape its future.
Emo Revival is a story about countless great records and powerful live shows, but even more so than that, it’s a story about community. None of this would have happened without an influx of likeminded bands, record labels, show bookers, and fans who reinforced that “DIY” is really about doing it together.
- GenresMusicNonfiction
442 pages, Paperback
Published September 8, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
June 21, 2026
I was pleasantly surprised when I came across this book on NetGalley. It’s obvious that Andrew Sacher did an enormous amount of research for this novel. It truly paints a clear picture of the emo genre between pre-2008 to 2018. I can tell where this is where his passion lies and I’m grateful for it. I also had no idea that Title Fight was such an influence. Emo will never die. I’d love to see a follow-up book in the future.
September 17, 2026
Really solid and well written book. You could tell Sacher was deep in the scene as it was happening and also had a passion and enjoyment of all the bands he covered. It was a great trip down memory lane. I was very plugged into the scene and a fan of many of the bands highlighted. It was fun reliving the times and shows. It captures what that moment felt like very well. There’s also enough in here I didn’t know to keep me engaged.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
A comprehensive history of fourth wave emo, picking up where Where Are Your Boys Tonight?: The Oral History of Emo’s Mainstream Explosion 1999-2008 left off with third wave. I was sooo excited when I saw this book announced. Andrew Sacher is the perfect person to write this too, he's been on this beat for over a decade and clearly passionate about the music and I read BrooklynVegan all the time. Thank you to NetGalley and CLASH for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Oral history format music histories can be fun but I actually prefer this narrative format, it's much easier to keep track of who's who. I also like the organization and focus on local scenes/areas and record labels in addition to chronology/specific bands, because the scenes and labels were really driving factors. This was super detailed, well-researched, great interview quotes, and organized logically.
To be honest it can be hard reading music history books like this and feeling like the "golden age" of the scene is over: the internet isn't the same anymore, touring has gotten even more difficult and expensive, venues are under a monopoly or closing, the rise of streaming/algorithms/spotify/tiktok/AI have changed the music industry, etc. (although what has happened with hardcore the past few years has been interesting). This and personal factors have really fed into nostalgia capitalism, especially with third wave. And like obviously I was at Turnover's Peripheral Vision anniversary tour, the Hotelier/Foxing anniversary tour, Joyce Manor's Never Hungover Again anniversary tour, even Long Live the Black Parade. It's also cool for bands like American Football to be able to reunite and play shows and connect with audiences that they didn't have the chance to their first time around, which is described in the book. But for example when I saw Foxing tour the next year in support of their independently released self-titled the energy was 10x better (I can fully vouch for this review from the pit).
I also really respect bands for exploring other genres or choosing to go on indefinite hiatus for their mental health or to pursue new music projects they're passionate about instead of reuniting for a check, and you can really feel the difference. "That is one of the precious elements of the indie/emo world, the fetishization of the thing. As music lovers and musicians, that mindset is antithetical to any kind of growth or change in art." We still have our old favorites to listen to whenever we want but keep finding and supporting new music.
When I watch the Title Fight Sellersville Barn video and even look at the cover of this book I'm like damn the energy is crazy and looks amazing but then I think actually I would not be having a good time in that crowd of all white men lmao. There are more dudes in this book named Jeff or Jeremy than there are women period; this isn't a fault of the book which actually addresses this theme well in Section 10 Chapters 2 and 4, but it is an issue with the scene at the time. I for one can't wait for the fifth wave emo book with more diverse interviewees.
Getting on my soapbox: buy physical media, cancel spotify, go to DIY shows, arrive early and watch openers or festival undercards (I'm sorry but can we finally acknowledge that Fest has been recycling the same headliners for 15 years and can only name one woman). There's still great music to come and plenty of like-minded people out there despite everything!!!! I think what this book does best is showing that the music scene is more about the community and ethos than it is about a specific genre or sound. "So many of these bands agree that what genre they're labeled matters so much less than the community they've fostered, and that community is an open-minded one that sticks with these bands and celebrates their growth."
I've also been in a bit of a music slump this year and reading this book really motivated me to seek out new music and get the itch for DIY shows. Anyway if anyone read this far drop your recommendations below for newer bands/albums!!!
and for good measure fuck live nation fuck r*nnie r*dke fuck brand new fuck WWWY and warped tour fuck AI and now FUCK VEEPS
Oral history format music histories can be fun but I actually prefer this narrative format, it's much easier to keep track of who's who. I also like the organization and focus on local scenes/areas and record labels in addition to chronology/specific bands, because the scenes and labels were really driving factors. This was super detailed, well-researched, great interview quotes, and organized logically.
To be honest it can be hard reading music history books like this and feeling like the "golden age" of the scene is over: the internet isn't the same anymore, touring has gotten even more difficult and expensive, venues are under a monopoly or closing, the rise of streaming/algorithms/spotify/tiktok/AI have changed the music industry, etc. (although what has happened with hardcore the past few years has been interesting). This and personal factors have really fed into nostalgia capitalism, especially with third wave. And like obviously I was at Turnover's Peripheral Vision anniversary tour, the Hotelier/Foxing anniversary tour, Joyce Manor's Never Hungover Again anniversary tour, even Long Live the Black Parade. It's also cool for bands like American Football to be able to reunite and play shows and connect with audiences that they didn't have the chance to their first time around, which is described in the book. But for example when I saw Foxing tour the next year in support of their independently released self-titled the energy was 10x better (I can fully vouch for this review from the pit).
I also really respect bands for exploring other genres or choosing to go on indefinite hiatus for their mental health or to pursue new music projects they're passionate about instead of reuniting for a check, and you can really feel the difference. "That is one of the precious elements of the indie/emo world, the fetishization of the thing. As music lovers and musicians, that mindset is antithetical to any kind of growth or change in art." We still have our old favorites to listen to whenever we want but keep finding and supporting new music.
When I watch the Title Fight Sellersville Barn video and even look at the cover of this book I'm like damn the energy is crazy and looks amazing but then I think actually I would not be having a good time in that crowd of all white men lmao. There are more dudes in this book named Jeff or Jeremy than there are women period; this isn't a fault of the book which actually addresses this theme well in Section 10 Chapters 2 and 4, but it is an issue with the scene at the time. I for one can't wait for the fifth wave emo book with more diverse interviewees.
Getting on my soapbox: buy physical media, cancel spotify, go to DIY shows, arrive early and watch openers or festival undercards (I'm sorry but can we finally acknowledge that Fest has been recycling the same headliners for 15 years and can only name one woman). There's still great music to come and plenty of like-minded people out there despite everything!!!! I think what this book does best is showing that the music scene is more about the community and ethos than it is about a specific genre or sound. "So many of these bands agree that what genre they're labeled matters so much less than the community they've fostered, and that community is an open-minded one that sticks with these bands and celebrates their growth."
I've also been in a bit of a music slump this year and reading this book really motivated me to seek out new music and get the itch for DIY shows. Anyway if anyone read this far drop your recommendations below for newer bands/albums!!!
and for good measure fuck live nation fuck r*nnie r*dke fuck brand new fuck WWWY and warped tour fuck AI and now FUCK VEEPS
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
What do you think of when you think of emo? If your default is My Chemical Romance, Brand New, or Thursday, then I will tell you there is so much more to the genre than you may be aware.
Emo Revival brings an insightful, insider's view into fourth wave emo bands who took the genre back to its DIY roots. But listen, this book in particular is quite niche in it's subject matter. There will certainly be an appeal for elder millennials and Gen Xers whose formative musical years were rooted in the hardcore, punk, and DIY scenes - especially those centered in Southern California, Pennsylvania, or Illinois - of the 1990s and early 2000s, but it struggles with its execution.
Emo Revival is structured by year, rather than primarily by band, and here is perhaps where the text struggled the most. Sacher bounces around between bands, producers, band members, and record labels so often that the details overwhelm rather than narrate a cohesive musical trajectory. At times the chapter sections felt more like a mildly haphazard string of essays. But one common band that comes up again and again? The band Algernon Cadwallader, and until this book I had never heard of them. (Sidenote: I don't like Cap N Jazz, and they sound like them, so... that tracks.) Descriptions of the music of this era can lean toward hyperbole, which may be a natural consequence of the author being a fan or integrated into the scene while it was active. Taste is subjective, of course. I might dislike Algernon Cadwallader, but Joyce Manor and Touche Amore? Yes please!
Sacher walks through 2005-2020, gradually demonstrating how a particular group of fourth wave bands developed their sound, built their fanbases, and collaborated with other bands and musicians in the scene. Split 7" were common occurrences in a band's early days. Because what was better than putting out a record with your friends? In the era of the emerging internet, and newly established social networking site Myspace, bands welcomed file sharing mediums to help get their music into people's hands. In this same vein, taste making websites, most notably Pitchfork, and blogs of the era were growing in prominence as "arbiters of cool" and were able to give more weight to how these fourth wave bands were broadly received.
One thing I am disappointed in, but not surprised about, is the fact that lack of diversity within the genre is not addressed until 90% into the book. Neither are any scene allegations related to sexual assault, grooming, and lack of female safety at shows addressed until this point. Emo Revival favors the music, the producers, the labels, and the relationships built between bands over critically examining the intersectionality of what substantively these bands are writing about in their lyrics or how that was reflected in the scene itself. And as a female who was in the scene, it's quite telling. Emo was, and I think in some regards still is, very white, very male, very cisgender, very heterosexual when it comes to who is making the music, who is behind the scenes from a business perspective, who is booking the bands, who is running these venues, and how women are relegated to unnamed lyrical subjects causing pain and deserving of angsty condemnation. Sacher is quick to note that while many of these bands were writing fun songs in their early 20s, that this era was more emotionally intelligent and politically aware than their predecessors when it comes to the subject matter.
Emo Revival brings an insightful, insider's view into fourth wave emo bands who took the genre back to its DIY roots. But listen, this book in particular is quite niche in it's subject matter. There will certainly be an appeal for elder millennials and Gen Xers whose formative musical years were rooted in the hardcore, punk, and DIY scenes - especially those centered in Southern California, Pennsylvania, or Illinois - of the 1990s and early 2000s, but it struggles with its execution.
Emo Revival is structured by year, rather than primarily by band, and here is perhaps where the text struggled the most. Sacher bounces around between bands, producers, band members, and record labels so often that the details overwhelm rather than narrate a cohesive musical trajectory. At times the chapter sections felt more like a mildly haphazard string of essays. But one common band that comes up again and again? The band Algernon Cadwallader, and until this book I had never heard of them. (Sidenote: I don't like Cap N Jazz, and they sound like them, so... that tracks.) Descriptions of the music of this era can lean toward hyperbole, which may be a natural consequence of the author being a fan or integrated into the scene while it was active. Taste is subjective, of course. I might dislike Algernon Cadwallader, but Joyce Manor and Touche Amore? Yes please!
Sacher walks through 2005-2020, gradually demonstrating how a particular group of fourth wave bands developed their sound, built their fanbases, and collaborated with other bands and musicians in the scene. Split 7" were common occurrences in a band's early days. Because what was better than putting out a record with your friends? In the era of the emerging internet, and newly established social networking site Myspace, bands welcomed file sharing mediums to help get their music into people's hands. In this same vein, taste making websites, most notably Pitchfork, and blogs of the era were growing in prominence as "arbiters of cool" and were able to give more weight to how these fourth wave bands were broadly received.
One thing I am disappointed in, but not surprised about, is the fact that lack of diversity within the genre is not addressed until 90% into the book. Neither are any scene allegations related to sexual assault, grooming, and lack of female safety at shows addressed until this point. Emo Revival favors the music, the producers, the labels, and the relationships built between bands over critically examining the intersectionality of what substantively these bands are writing about in their lyrics or how that was reflected in the scene itself. And as a female who was in the scene, it's quite telling. Emo was, and I think in some regards still is, very white, very male, very cisgender, very heterosexual when it comes to who is making the music, who is behind the scenes from a business perspective, who is booking the bands, who is running these venues, and how women are relegated to unnamed lyrical subjects causing pain and deserving of angsty condemnation. Sacher is quick to note that while many of these bands were writing fun songs in their early 20s, that this era was more emotionally intelligent and politically aware than their predecessors when it comes to the subject matter.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Emo Revival is a comprehensive history of what is essentially considered the 'fourth wave' of emo. Journalist Andrew Sacher rises to the challenge of depicting and documenting the DIY, community driven revival of this genre of music. What is emo music? What is the so-called 'emo revival'? It is through the story of this community that Sacher aims to provide answers.
Emo is a strange and often all-encompassing term and, living across the pond in the UK, I have found the term 'emo revival' to be stranger still. Sacher distinguishes this genre revival from the sounds that 'third wave' bands like My Chemical Romance popularised. Although embedding this book in the resurgence of an underground movement that began around 2008, Sacher takes a very broad definition and the history he presents stretches wide from the early days of those twinkly, math rock guitars all the way through to the post-hardcore of La Dispute and Touché Amoré, even bringing in references to mainstream breakthrough artists who sit adjacent to the emo scene such as Julien Baker and Phoebe Bridgers.
Ultimately, this is a fascinating read. I love this kind of book because I feel like it is telling parts of my own story, yet at the same time, it is educating me about aspects of a music scene that I love that I have missed out on due to geographical constraints. Sacher's style is rooted in signifcant research and in-depth interviews and should be applauded. With any journalistic endeavour, it would be easy to end up with facts and no heart, but Sacher captures the spirit and the excitement of an underground movement that ultimately transcended the places that it began and took fans on a journey to new and often electrifying places.
I particularly appreciated that Sacher takes time to discuss inclusivity and how male-dominated some of these music spaces were. It is rightly pointed out the lack of diversity and that this is something that has needed to be reckoned with. He also doesn't shy away from writing about the impact of the 'me too' movement on bands in emo spaces, including a section the sexual abuse and grooming. Although disappointing to read, it's important that these topics are not swept under the carpet.
I would argue that this book is perfect for fans of the genre (in the broadest sense of the term emo), those interested in music history and those interested in emo culture. For myself, this book stirred a depth of emotions because it's another story of the music that has shaped my life. We need more well researched books documenting these stories - this one is brilliant and I can see myself returning to it for a dose of nostalgia time and time again. A must read.
And now I have a huge list of bands I haven't heard of that I need to check out.
A copy of this book was provided for review by the publisher via NetGalley.
Emo is a strange and often all-encompassing term and, living across the pond in the UK, I have found the term 'emo revival' to be stranger still. Sacher distinguishes this genre revival from the sounds that 'third wave' bands like My Chemical Romance popularised. Although embedding this book in the resurgence of an underground movement that began around 2008, Sacher takes a very broad definition and the history he presents stretches wide from the early days of those twinkly, math rock guitars all the way through to the post-hardcore of La Dispute and Touché Amoré, even bringing in references to mainstream breakthrough artists who sit adjacent to the emo scene such as Julien Baker and Phoebe Bridgers.
Ultimately, this is a fascinating read. I love this kind of book because I feel like it is telling parts of my own story, yet at the same time, it is educating me about aspects of a music scene that I love that I have missed out on due to geographical constraints. Sacher's style is rooted in signifcant research and in-depth interviews and should be applauded. With any journalistic endeavour, it would be easy to end up with facts and no heart, but Sacher captures the spirit and the excitement of an underground movement that ultimately transcended the places that it began and took fans on a journey to new and often electrifying places.
I particularly appreciated that Sacher takes time to discuss inclusivity and how male-dominated some of these music spaces were. It is rightly pointed out the lack of diversity and that this is something that has needed to be reckoned with. He also doesn't shy away from writing about the impact of the 'me too' movement on bands in emo spaces, including a section the sexual abuse and grooming. Although disappointing to read, it's important that these topics are not swept under the carpet.
I would argue that this book is perfect for fans of the genre (in the broadest sense of the term emo), those interested in music history and those interested in emo culture. For myself, this book stirred a depth of emotions because it's another story of the music that has shaped my life. We need more well researched books documenting these stories - this one is brilliant and I can see myself returning to it for a dose of nostalgia time and time again. A must read.
And now I have a huge list of bands I haven't heard of that I need to check out.
A copy of this book was provided for review by the publisher via NetGalley.
September 16, 2026
If you don’t listen to any of the bands or have that much interest in the subject matter, you’ll probably find this book very formulaic. Basically every paragraph is some alteration of “Teddy and Sandro got into alternative music through Blink 182, but then started expanding their tastes to more eclectic sources. They added Billy Bob as a drummer in their senior year of high school, and formed the band Mentos Aren’t Fresh. ‘The first few Mentos shows were incredible’ says Teddy ‘Just a bunch of kids like fully screaming the words’.” It’s literally like 400 pages of that.
I do listen to a lot of the bands mentioned in the book, and have seen Joyce Manor, the Wonder Years, Tigers Jaw and Balance and Composure this year, so I enjoyed the book. There were some interesting details about each band that I didn’t know, and I liked how the author Andrew Sacher profiled not just bands that succeeded, but some who failed as well. The chapter about Cymbals Eat Guitars did a great job highlighting the difference between the diy emo scene and bands that just get hyped by a magazine review.
I did personally like “Where Are Your Boys Tonight” by Chris Payne more than this book. Payne’s book is about third wave emo, and Sacher’s is fourth wave, so they actually go well together and you should probably read both. I thought Payne got more interesting quotes though, and dove into a lot more themes than Sacher. Sacher seems pretty hesitant to be very critical of anyone or anything in the book, and some of the details are a little surface level.
I thought Sacher did a good job contextualizing how important Title Fight was for example, but didn’t really get any kind of tidbit on why they broke up, which is obviously hard to do but you’d like to get something. Sacher also just sort of offloads the responsibility of describing which albums he liked the most, by describing most of them as great, unless a band member themselves gives a quote saying it wasn’t good, or Pitchfork said something negative about it. I know Sacher must have more opinions on this stuff and I would have liked to see him inject a bit more of that.
I do listen to a lot of the bands mentioned in the book, and have seen Joyce Manor, the Wonder Years, Tigers Jaw and Balance and Composure this year, so I enjoyed the book. There were some interesting details about each band that I didn’t know, and I liked how the author Andrew Sacher profiled not just bands that succeeded, but some who failed as well. The chapter about Cymbals Eat Guitars did a great job highlighting the difference between the diy emo scene and bands that just get hyped by a magazine review.
I did personally like “Where Are Your Boys Tonight” by Chris Payne more than this book. Payne’s book is about third wave emo, and Sacher’s is fourth wave, so they actually go well together and you should probably read both. I thought Payne got more interesting quotes though, and dove into a lot more themes than Sacher. Sacher seems pretty hesitant to be very critical of anyone or anything in the book, and some of the details are a little surface level.
I thought Sacher did a good job contextualizing how important Title Fight was for example, but didn’t really get any kind of tidbit on why they broke up, which is obviously hard to do but you’d like to get something. Sacher also just sort of offloads the responsibility of describing which albums he liked the most, by describing most of them as great, unless a band member themselves gives a quote saying it wasn’t good, or Pitchfork said something negative about it. I know Sacher must have more opinions on this stuff and I would have liked to see him inject a bit more of that.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Emo Revival is exactly the kind of music book I wish existed when I was a teenager sitting on my bedroom floor, refreshing Bandcamp pages, hunting down obscure splits, and convincing myself that a grainy YouTube upload of a basement show was a life-changing religious experience.
Andrew Sacher doesn’t just document the fourth wave of emo; he captures the spirit of it. Through dozens of interviews with musicians, label owners, promoters, and the people who kept these scenes alive, he paints a picture of a movement built not on chasing mainstream success but on community, passion, and the belief that making something meaningful with your friends was enough.
What makes this book so successful is its refusal to treat emo as a punchline or a phase that died when the Hot Topic era faded. Sacher carefully traces how bands like Algernon Cadwallader, Title Fight, Modern Baseball, and countless others took the genre back to its roots—VFW halls, DIY spaces, and sweaty basements—and transformed it into one of the most creative underground movements of the 2000s and 2010s.
Also, a very important scholarly observation: the playlist Sacher links in the prologue is absolutely b o m b. I made the mistake of putting it on while reading “just for background music,” and suddenly three hours had passed and I was knee-deep in old favorites, discovering bands I somehow missed, and feeling like I had been transported back into the best possible version of a basement show.
More than a history of a genre, Emo Revival is a love letter to a scene and the people who refused to let it disappear. Whether you lived through the revival era or are discovering these bands for the first time, this book is essential reading. It is passionate, incredibly well-researched, and written by someone who clearly understands why this music mattered so much to so many people.
Long live emo. It never died.
Andrew Sacher doesn’t just document the fourth wave of emo; he captures the spirit of it. Through dozens of interviews with musicians, label owners, promoters, and the people who kept these scenes alive, he paints a picture of a movement built not on chasing mainstream success but on community, passion, and the belief that making something meaningful with your friends was enough.
What makes this book so successful is its refusal to treat emo as a punchline or a phase that died when the Hot Topic era faded. Sacher carefully traces how bands like Algernon Cadwallader, Title Fight, Modern Baseball, and countless others took the genre back to its roots—VFW halls, DIY spaces, and sweaty basements—and transformed it into one of the most creative underground movements of the 2000s and 2010s.
Also, a very important scholarly observation: the playlist Sacher links in the prologue is absolutely b o m b. I made the mistake of putting it on while reading “just for background music,” and suddenly three hours had passed and I was knee-deep in old favorites, discovering bands I somehow missed, and feeling like I had been transported back into the best possible version of a basement show.
More than a history of a genre, Emo Revival is a love letter to a scene and the people who refused to let it disappear. Whether you lived through the revival era or are discovering these bands for the first time, this book is essential reading. It is passionate, incredibly well-researched, and written by someone who clearly understands why this music mattered so much to so many people.
Long live emo. It never died.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley and Andrew Sacher for the opportunity to read an ARC of Emo Revival in exchange for an honest review!
Wow. Sacher is incredibly knowledgeable and thorough. He sure managed to cram A LOT into 427 pages. While reading, I found myself keeping track of the bands I already knew, taking plenty of trips down memory lane because ✨nostalgia✨, and looking up some of the bands I hadn't heard of along the way.
I also really enjoyed the photos, flyers, and posters scattered throughout the book. Between those and the sheer amount of music history packed into these pages, this feels like it would make such a cool addition to a coffee table. Definitely something you could keep picking up, flipping through, and revisiting.
I especially appreciated the emotional rawness in some of the chapters. Reading about Modern Baseball and Brendan Lukens' struggles with mental health immediately sent me to listen to "Just Another Face," a song Lukens wrote about confronting mental illness, depression, and that overwhelming feeling of losing control over your own life. Moments like that made the book feel like more than just a history of a music scene.
The discussion of the allegations against Jesse Lacey hit differently, too. That one still absolutely kills me as someone who was a huge Brand New fan throughout high school and my early college years. Oof.
I will say, I had a hard time consistently picking this one up, not because it wasn't good, but because there is SO much information packed into it. This wasn't a book I could sit down and devour in a couple of days. But once I picked it back up, I always enjoyed learning more about the emo revival, revisiting bands I loved, and discovering parts of the scene I hadn't known about before.
Definitely one for emo fans, music history nerds, and anyone who enjoys a healthy dose of nostalgia. 🖤
Wow. Sacher is incredibly knowledgeable and thorough. He sure managed to cram A LOT into 427 pages. While reading, I found myself keeping track of the bands I already knew, taking plenty of trips down memory lane because ✨nostalgia✨, and looking up some of the bands I hadn't heard of along the way.
I also really enjoyed the photos, flyers, and posters scattered throughout the book. Between those and the sheer amount of music history packed into these pages, this feels like it would make such a cool addition to a coffee table. Definitely something you could keep picking up, flipping through, and revisiting.
I especially appreciated the emotional rawness in some of the chapters. Reading about Modern Baseball and Brendan Lukens' struggles with mental health immediately sent me to listen to "Just Another Face," a song Lukens wrote about confronting mental illness, depression, and that overwhelming feeling of losing control over your own life. Moments like that made the book feel like more than just a history of a music scene.
The discussion of the allegations against Jesse Lacey hit differently, too. That one still absolutely kills me as someone who was a huge Brand New fan throughout high school and my early college years. Oof.
I will say, I had a hard time consistently picking this one up, not because it wasn't good, but because there is SO much information packed into it. This wasn't a book I could sit down and devour in a couple of days. But once I picked it back up, I always enjoyed learning more about the emo revival, revisiting bands I loved, and discovering parts of the scene I hadn't known about before.
Definitely one for emo fans, music history nerds, and anyone who enjoys a healthy dose of nostalgia. 🖤
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Strong essay style writing filled with nostalgia mixed with new details. Members of the emo scene, music lovers, and those who love to learn will all have something to rave about after reading Emo Revival. The way that music, bands and lyrics take inspiration from one another, from past to current, really is something to respect. Music is for everyone. Take a little bit from everywhere to form what you love and hope that you will find your crowd. There is something for everyone, no matter what you do.
The interview style is refreshing. It was nice to hear it from band members. We can assume how they feel when they are creating and playing, but to actually get the true emotions make the impact of Andrew Sacher's writing stronger. It feels like this is something the author believes in, which in turn, makes me believe in it as well. You will have moments of nostalgia, but also add new bands to your playlist. Speaking of playlists, the one linked in the book is so well curated and is smooth on the ear.
One negative I do have is in relation to the playlist. If this book is downloaded as an ebook, the QR code for the playlist isn't going to do much good. Most people read on their phones, so how are they expected to scan the code that is on their screen of the same device meant to scan it? Sure, it can be searched but why give me an "easy" option only to not be usable for everyone.
The interview style is refreshing. It was nice to hear it from band members. We can assume how they feel when they are creating and playing, but to actually get the true emotions make the impact of Andrew Sacher's writing stronger. It feels like this is something the author believes in, which in turn, makes me believe in it as well. You will have moments of nostalgia, but also add new bands to your playlist. Speaking of playlists, the one linked in the book is so well curated and is smooth on the ear.
One negative I do have is in relation to the playlist. If this book is downloaded as an ebook, the QR code for the playlist isn't going to do much good. Most people read on their phones, so how are they expected to scan the code that is on their screen of the same device meant to scan it? Sure, it can be searched but why give me an "easy" option only to not be usable for everyone.
July 31, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!
I was always on the fringe of emo. My early teen years with my best friends, who were firmly in the emo camp, always had me floating on the fringes from my goth bubble. That said, it was an education, and so many of the bands in this book (this meticulously researched book, might I add) brought up intense nostalgia for me.
This book is an essential education in emo. It’s a fascinating look at so many of the influences around the mainstream, and it’s a very sharp U.S. focus, but it needs to be. The bands in here are a mixture of better known and slightly smaller, but all of them are interwoven, and the narrative just flows.
If you’re looking for mainstream emo, it’s important to note you won’t find it here. This is a love letter to the scene that grows out of the cracks, and it’s a beautiful one.
I do wish there was a little more about some of the other things that fed into the scene culturally, but the chapter addressing ‘Me Too’ and Brand New specifically was really well done. There’s a lot to be learnt from the scene and where it’s been, but all in all, this is a triumphant novel that proves that the scene may not quite be dead (long live the scene).
I was always on the fringe of emo. My early teen years with my best friends, who were firmly in the emo camp, always had me floating on the fringes from my goth bubble. That said, it was an education, and so many of the bands in this book (this meticulously researched book, might I add) brought up intense nostalgia for me.
This book is an essential education in emo. It’s a fascinating look at so many of the influences around the mainstream, and it’s a very sharp U.S. focus, but it needs to be. The bands in here are a mixture of better known and slightly smaller, but all of them are interwoven, and the narrative just flows.
If you’re looking for mainstream emo, it’s important to note you won’t find it here. This is a love letter to the scene that grows out of the cracks, and it’s a beautiful one.
I do wish there was a little more about some of the other things that fed into the scene culturally, but the chapter addressing ‘Me Too’ and Brand New specifically was really well done. There’s a lot to be learnt from the scene and where it’s been, but all in all, this is a triumphant novel that proves that the scene may not quite be dead (long live the scene).
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Emo: Revival is THE book on emo for both new and existing fans. The book delves into the roots of the genre, making you feel like you were actually there in those American Legions where the bands played. The book chronicles this through the interviews of band members, which leads to a very interesting read. The books follows emo into its rise into mainstream popularity and how the genre reinvented itself after. Well, not so much reinvented but went back to the underground movement it originally was. You can tell the author is a fan and feels passionately about the subject. Much care has been made to make sure the reader gets a true glimpse of what it was like and how it felt to be there. An excellent book that any fan will immensely enjoy.
I was given an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I was given an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
As a grown-up emo kid who's heavily involved in the music scene, there was literally no way for me not to be taken in by this book. I loved the deep dives into all the eras, and how in-depth they were. Emo is an ever-changing genre of music, and I also appreciated that some of the big names that maybe aren't quite as big of names today had their time to shine in their respective eras. It was fun getting to see quotes from band members I've grown up listening to and admiring, and I think it brought the book together well as not just informative but truly showing that these people are a major part of the scene. The inclusion of old tour flyers was nice, and it's fun to see the stylistic way they've changed over the years as things modernize. If you've got an emo friend, this would be a great addition to their coffee table.
Review of advance copy
God I loved this book but then again it feels like it was written for me. I’ve read most of the books surrounding emo music and so many focus on the early explosion in the 2000s thanks to darlings like Dashboard Confessional and bands like My Chemical Romance blowing up.
Those that of us that really got into emo via the neon pop punk phase but quickly discovered this emo revival was happening around the time we were old enough to go to shows and drive to the closest big city will find a lot to love in here (damn that’s a long sentence).
It helped fill in the gaps of my knowledge of emo bands and really took me back to what it felt like seeing bands like Foxing in 2014 or the first time we heard January 10th and it blew our minds.
Great book and recommend to anyone with interest in niche music scenes or emo music in general.
Those that of us that really got into emo via the neon pop punk phase but quickly discovered this emo revival was happening around the time we were old enough to go to shows and drive to the closest big city will find a lot to love in here (damn that’s a long sentence).
It helped fill in the gaps of my knowledge of emo bands and really took me back to what it felt like seeing bands like Foxing in 2014 or the first time we heard January 10th and it blew our minds.
Great book and recommend to anyone with interest in niche music scenes or emo music in general.
September 17, 2026
neatly fits into the crop of underground punk/diy books with our band could be your life, nothing feels good, and post. while i do think those books benefitted from basically having each chapter function as a long form profile of each band, this one breaks away from that to instead paint the scene as a whole through each year, focusing on geographical scenes, labels, and the movement as a whole. kinda crazy to me that glocca morra isnt more prominently featured, or the seeming erasure of bands like marietta and free throw, but something as personal as this is obviously gonna be met with me being like “well what about these bands huh?” so i cant really actually critique it for that. great read, a tome of seminal importance for me.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
3.5 out of 5 stars.
A great coffee table book for the “elder emo” crowd. It took me a while to read this book as non-fiction is not normally my go to but at the mention of Modern Baseball I was drawn in. It is clear how enthusiastic the author is about the history of emo music and its impact. This made it a compelling read to dip in and out of.
The only thing that could have improved this book for me would have been more pictures.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting my wish and providing an advance copy of the ebook in exchange for my honest review.
All opinions are my own.
A great coffee table book for the “elder emo” crowd. It took me a while to read this book as non-fiction is not normally my go to but at the mention of Modern Baseball I was drawn in. It is clear how enthusiastic the author is about the history of emo music and its impact. This made it a compelling read to dip in and out of.
The only thing that could have improved this book for me would have been more pictures.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting my wish and providing an advance copy of the ebook in exchange for my honest review.
All opinions are my own.
September 8, 2026
3.75/5
As someone who never grew out of their emo phase, I just had to read this.
I liked getting a history on both past emo and present emo. I learned a lot of things that I didn't know. And I liked the personal insight.
I also really liked that there were poster designs included. I liked seeing those and how they changed over time. I think the graphic design emos will appreciate that addition.
I just wish that more bands were mentioned. I did feel like it was a rather limited pool that was talked about.
Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!
As someone who never grew out of their emo phase, I just had to read this.
I liked getting a history on both past emo and present emo. I learned a lot of things that I didn't know. And I liked the personal insight.
I also really liked that there were poster designs included. I liked seeing those and how they changed over time. I think the graphic design emos will appreciate that addition.
I just wish that more bands were mentioned. I did feel like it was a rather limited pool that was talked about.
Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!
Read
September 17, 2026As someone who has been immersed in this exact sub-genre of a sub-genre of music for the last decade plus, this book was made for me. You start to notice things about the bands, like the fact that so many hail from the Philly/Scranton era, but I never knew just how intertwined the stories of all these bands were. Also blew my mind with how big the emo spider web is, because what do you mean the Michelle Zauner was in an emo band, and also her first songs released under the Japanese Breakfast moniker were on a split with Foxing?!? What do you MEAN Phoebe Bridgers did vocals on a Joyce Manor track a year before her debut album came out?!??
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
A fantastic music history of the early 00s emo scene in Pennsylvania, and how it turned into a revival for the emo genre. Lots of great interviews and artifacts, and I may have used my fiancee to double check some of the knowledge because he was in the area and the scene around the time. Especially love the Touche Amore interviews here. Highly recommended this fall.
September 14, 2026
Will post more detailed thoughts soon, but a great summation of the one thing I have spent the most time in my life thinking about and listening to. A love letter to my community and the people who made it special.
Review of advance copy received from Author
4.5 / 5 stars. A truly fantastic look at the Emo Revival scene and an in-depth history of the era.
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