2024? Yikes, where did the past 20 years go? It seems like just yesterday I was driving in my '93 Honda Civic during my high school years screaming infidelities to Dashboard Confessional's "The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most" album. Now, I find myself grocery shopping in my parenting years still singing to these albums. Is there anything new that I’ve missed? How do I remain relevant?

There is an overwhelming amount of new talent, bands breaking it big that have been grinding for years, as well as a resurgence of the early waves of emo - 2024 is setting itself up to be the culmination of an emo scene nothing short of amazing!

Introducing 🥁 - the first emo setlist containing weekly discoveries to help you keep up with all things emo (and adjacent). The LINK at the end will take you to the specific discovery. The links within will provide you with shortcuts to the artists, creators, and music to more easily support and follow them. Enjoy!

Reminders 🗓️

1. Sign up for the Sleeping At Last presale to buy tickets on Jan. 8th for Ryan’s performance with the Chicago Philharmonic Orchestra on October 12, 2024. LINK

2. Sign up for Yellowcard's newsletter for big, upcoming news in 2024. They also have a very fan-focused, community Discord that I recommend and have enjoyed being a part of. LINK

Special Moments ✨

1. Sincere Engineer (Deanna) joined Justin Courtney Pierre on stage to sing "Everything is Alright" with Motion City Soundtrack at the sold-out Thalia Hall in Chicago. LINK

2. Movements pressed the Take Flight button at the Anaheim Ducks hockey game. LINK

Read 📚

1. "CNN - In Photos: The angsty era of emo music" is a must read article highlighting the resurgence of emo excitement with a focus on the emo masterpiece - "Negatives - A Photographic Archive of Emo (1996-2006)" by Amy Fleisher Madden as well as the success of Emo Nite founded by Morgan Freed and T.J. Petracca. LINK

2. Something Corporate played two New Year’s hometown shows in Anaheim. Oh how I wish I was there. Rock Cellar Magazine has provided a fantastic write-up of the show, making me shed even more emo tears for not being there. LINK

Merch 📦

1. Wildermiss still has 1st pressing vinyl (limited to 500) available for their latest LP release - "Levitate". Don't sleep on this one. You will regret not adding this fantastic album to your collection. LINK

2. This Wild Life has some sweet merch available right now including extra from their latest tour. Of course, I had to make a purchase in the middle of writing this. LINK

Shows/Tours 🎫

1. Story Of The Year has begun leg two of celebrating "20 years of page avenue" tour with dates through the rest of January. Make sure to get tickets for your nearest city. LINK

2. Thursday's "War All the Time" album celebration tour tickets are selling fast as the tour kicks off in a couple weeks. I was able to see this performance at the Riot Fest late show date in Chicago and you will regret not catching one of these shows. If anyone is going to the Columbus show, I will see you there! LINK

3. Emery announced cities and dates for an upcoming "Songs and Stories" tour celebrating 20 years of "The Weak’s End". I was fortunate to catch one of their first tours doing this when they passed through Indianapolis and it was a really one-of-a-kind experience that I can't wait to experience again. LINK

4. Motion City Soundtrack is close to wrapping up their “I am the Movie” 20th anniversary tour. Make sure to grab available tickets and drive to the nearest remaining city to catch them. I was able to see them this past Summer and missed capturing an iconic photo of a Jesse “Moogstand”. They are so good!

Celebrate 🎉

1. Spencer Chamberlain of Underoath celebrated a birthday on January 4th. LINK

Listen 🎧

1. The New Scene Pod kicks off 2024 with special guest Geoff Rickly of Thursday covering topics such as the band, Geoff’s book “Someone Who Isn’t Me”, and his participation in United Nations. LINK

Releases 🎶

1. sace6 provides a sneak peek of a new song - "Bury my head in my hands" (title not confirmed). If you have not checked out sace6's music, you are missing out. LINK

2. Sparrow Sleeps in collaboration with Further Seems Forever released a new lullaby album - "The Moon Is Up" and is a good fit for people who sleep, have kids that need to sleep, or like to relax with cool emo jams. LINK

3. Kuma's corner released their new burger of the month - Poison The Well. with an opportunity for anyone who eats it to win a test press album of "You Come Before You". I did not make it to Kuma’s yet to try it but am hoping to test it out and can provide an update next week. LINK

Positivity 🌻

1. Hawthorne Heights shared a Tweet that really resonated - "Most bands, companies, and public figures are sharing their top moments of 2023 in an attempt to pretend like life is a highlight reel. Let us remind you that it’s ok to experience low points, and that it’s all part of the life experience. Keep battling with us in 2024." LINK

Creators 🎨

1. Jonathan Mazaltov has unique artwork and nostalgic, cool vinyl videos with some recently released, limited edition New Year's prints that will sell out fast. LINK

Jobs/Search/Opportunities 🔎

1. Ethan Luck is an extremely talented musician and photographer and is available for touring in 2024. LINK

Capture of the week 📷

1. Kaila Turck captured these shots during The Early November’s tour celebrating 20 years of “The Room’s Too Cold” album. I particularly liked the 4th image of Dillon Wray 🍁. This tour was magical and I wish they would just tour continually for the rest of their lives with Armor for Sleep and The Spill Canvas because that lineup was 🔥. Kaila has an amazing portfolio and highly recommend following Kaila’s photography. LINK