Ah Emo Nite, how you have came up in popularity the past few years. Getting a bunch of kids (adults) together to jam to their favorite teen songs. Go to a club with some friends, have a DJ throw on some tunes, and jam out for the night. On the surface, this sounds like a great event to listen to some awesome music. But digging a little under the surface, this event should not be supported by the scene, if anything it should be utterly rejected.
I will preface this by saying that I have not attended one of these events, and I don’t plan too. I think this is fair to say right from the get go.
First off this takes away from the local scene. Since Emo Nite has a tendency to occur in major cities, there probably is an emo/pop-punk scene in your area or at least a band or two. This is a voting with your dollars moment. Imagine there is a new up and coming local pop punk band that’s playing the same night as Emo Nite. Choosing Emo Nite over your local scene gives the newer bands less of an opportunity for exposure, and they will make less money due to the power of nostalgia. Thus this could actually be hurting your local scene.
Second, most of the bands that they play during Emo Nite are still touring. My Chemical Romance has made their come back, Paramore is going strong, Hawthorn Heights is still kicking. If you want to relive the old bands, go and see them. It’s not like they’re dropping off left and right. You still have the opportunity to go and see the bands you grew up listening to. Hell some of these bands play at festivals so you can actually go and hear multiple songs you loved as a teen live, by those bands on the same day.
Third, you could host one of these events for practically free. I’m not personally big on house parties, but you could have one where people bring their favorites CDs, Vinyl, etc… and just jam out. This is a far less cost than going to Emo Nite and holds up more so in the spirit of the scene than going to a Club to hear DJ choose the tracks. If you want to stream music too, you can but there is an argument to be had for physical media.
Fourth, if you are dead set in the mood to go out and listen to your favorite songs as a teen, you could support an event that has live music. There is an event more in the spirit of the scene than Emo Nite, called, Myspace Emo Prom. You get a band covering the old favorites, and judging by the pictures, people who are still in the scene.
Fifth, they tried to trademark emo. That’s right, Emo Nite once attempted to trademark “Emo.” This is one of the ultimate acts against the scene Emo Nite has done. Trying to lay claim to a subculture like this is one of the slimmest things these people could do. I understand you have to pay the bills, but this goes against alternative culture to its core.
With all of this said, I hope you are convinced not to support these people. Instead, support your local scene, go see your favorite bands, attend an event with live music, or throw a party with your friend jamming to your favorite songs. Emo Nite is a wolf in sheep’s clothing planting the nostalgia flag while going against the scene. Emo Nite, we dub thee posers.
Don’t Go To Emo Nite is marked with CC0 1.0
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