The Get Up Kids are an American rock band from Kansas City, Missouri. Formed in 1995, the band was a major player in the mid-1990s emo scene, otherwise known as the "second wave" of emo music. As they gained prominence, they began touring with bands such as Green Day and Weezer before becoming headliners themselves, eventually embarking on international tours of Japan and Europe.[3][4] They founded Heroes & Villains Records, an imprint of the successful indie rock label Vagrant Records. While the imprint was started to release albums by The Get Up Kids, it served as a launching pad for several side-projects such as The New Amsterdams and Reggie and the Full Effect.[5]

The Get Up Kids were viewed throughout their existence as a prototypical emo band, having been major players in the Midwest emo movement of the mid-1990s.[6] Their second album Something to Write Home About remains their most widely acclaimed album, and is considered to be one of the quintessential albums of the second-wave emo movement.[7] However, like many early emo bands, The Get Up Kids sought to dissociate themselves with the term, as it was considered dismissive to be seen as an "emo band."[8] The band departed heavily from their established style with the release of their 2002 album On a Wire, which saw the band take on a much more layered, alternative rock sound. Years later, guitarist Jim Suptic even apologized for having the influence they did on many of the modern third-wave emo bands, commenting that "he punk scene we came out of and the punk scene now are completely different. It's like glam rock now ... If this is the world we helped create, then I apologize."[9]

Due to internal conflicts, the band broke up in 2005. Three years later, the band reunited to support the tenth anniversary re-release of Something to Write Home About, and soon afterward entered the studio to write new material.[10] In early 2010, the band released Simple Science, their first release in six years, followed in 2011 by the full-length There Are Rules.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Early years (1995–1997) 1.2 Four Minute Mile (1997–1998) 1.3 Something to Write Home About (1999–2001) 1.4 On a Wire (2002–2003) 1.5 Guilt Show (2003–2004) 1.6 Breakup and solo activity (2004–2008) 1.7 Reunion and There Are Rules (2008–present) 2 Influence 3 Band members 3.1 Timeline 4 Discography 5 References 6 External links History Early years (1995–1997) The Get Up Kids performing at Emo's in 1997

While in high school, Ryan Pope, Rob Pope, and Jim Suptic formed a short-lived band called Kingpin. Matt Pryor had been writing songs since he was a teenager, and was playing in a band called Secret Decoder Ring.[11] Following the demise of the two bands in 1995, The Get Up Kids were formed. The band originally planned on calling themselves "The Suburban Get Up Kids", until reasoning that there were fewer band names beginning with the letter 'G' than there are with the letter 'S', and that therefore they were more likely to be noticed in a record store if their name began with a 'G'.[4] The band was formed on October 14, 1995 on Suptic's 18th birthday.[12]

At the time the lineup consisted of Pryor on guitar and lead vocals, Suptic on guitar, Rob Pope on bass, and Thomas Becker on drums. However, Becker soon left for college in California, and was replaced by Nathan Shay, who was attending school with Suptic at the Kansas City Art Institute.[12] In 1995, Pryor, Suptic, and friend Kevin Zelko saved money to self-release "Shorty/The Breathing Method", their first 7-inch. However, due to an unwillingness to tour, Shay was replaced by Robert's younger brother Ryan in April 1996.[13] The band became increasingly popular in the burgeoning underground Midwestern music scene, forming strong relationships with bands such as Rocket Fuel Is The Key, Coalesce and Braid. After the "Shorty" 7-inch, the band released "A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts" on Contrast Records.[14] Encouraged by interest stirred by the band's first 7-inch, they recorded their first EP, Woodson. Two songs of which were released by Contrast Records as a 7-inch titled "A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts" or more commonly known as "The Loveteller 7", with Doghouse Records releasing a CD-EP version which included the songs from both Woodson and A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts[12] as well as the two song Woodson 7". After Woodson, Doghouse approached the band with a two-album contract, offering them $4,000 to record their first full-length album.[12]

Four Minute Mile (1997–1998)

After signing to Doghouse, the band drove to Chicago to record their debut full-length album with producer Bob Weston of Shellac. The album was recorded in only two days, with the band leaving on Friday after Ryan Pope got out of school and finishing in the early hours of Sunday morning.[13] Two months after recording the album, the band embarked on their first national tour with Braid and Ethel Meserve with the first date of the tour taking place the day after Ryan's high school graduation.[12]

It was on that tour that the band met James Dewees, the new drummer for Coalesce while the bands were playing together in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.[12] After the show, the members of the two bands became close friends, eventually leading them to record a split 7-inch produced by Ed Rose entitled "The Get Up Kids / Coalesce". For the split, each band covered one of the other's songs in their own style. Coalesce did a post-hardcore cover of "Second Place", and The Get Up Kids recorded a power-pop rendition of "Harvest of Maturity".[12]

A few months later, the band released their debut full-length record Four Minute Mile, bringing a great deal of attention from critics, fans and labels alike. The band was invited to join Braid on their 1998 tour of Europe and the band rapidly created an overseas fanbase.[12]

While the band was receiving rapidly increasing national and international attention, they became unhappy with Doghouse Records' ability to keep up with the increasing popularity of the band.[13] The Get Up Kids' announcement to leave Doghouse Records brought interest from prominent record labels including Sub Pop, Geffen and Mojo Records.[13] The band made a decision to sign to Mojo, but before the contracts were signed, they began to have second thoughts. The main issue was over the label's insistence on owning merchandising rights, a large source of the band's income.[12] Moreover, the band was insulted the label requested they re-record "Don't Hate Me" from Four Minute Mile for their next record, feeling that the label believed it was "the best that write".[13] Before the deal with Mojo was official, the band met Rich Egan, founder of Los Angeles-based Vagrant Records. He convinced the band to sign to Vagrant instead, offering them $50,000 to record a second album, as well as their own imprint, Heroes & Villains Records.[12]

Something to Write Home About (1999–2001) The Get Up Kids performing at the Bowery Ballroom in 2000

In 1998, James Dewees recorded his first solo album under the pseudonym Reggie and the Full Effect. While Dewees wrote the songs himself, he asked Matt Pryor and Rob Pope to help record some of the instrumentals. The resulting album, Greatest Hits 1984-1987 leaned heavily on the use of synthesizer keyboards for its sound. Their work together on the Reggie and the Full Effect album led Pryor to invite Dewees to collaborate with The Get Up Kids on Red Letter Day, a five-track EP produced by Ed Rose to fulfill their two-record deal with Doghouse. The cleaner, more focused sound of the EP provided the chance to experiment with the inclusion of keyboards and acts as a sonic bridge between the raw sound of Four Minute Mile and the more dynamic, produced style of their next studio album.[12]

After the release of Red Letter Day, Dewees became a full-time member as the band began recording their second studio album in Los Angeles in June 1999 with producer Alex Brahl. Before the album went into production, Vagrant Records co-owner John Cohen borrowed money from his parents, who had mortgaged their house in order to fund the production of the album. On September 21, 1999, the band released Something to Write Home About on Vagrant Records. The album's lyrics reflected the record label strife the band had experienced and their distance between friends and family back home after their move to Los Angeles.[12] Something to Write Home About has been singled out as the band's only 'true' emo album, as the album's aesthetic fit more into the contemporary definition of the genre.[15] Furthermore, the album single-handedly turned the struggling Vagrant label into one of the top indie labels in the country, selling over 140,000 copies after its release.[12][16] Not only did the album make The Get Up Kids the poster children for emo, but it also launched the genre into a public consciousness broader than the scattered local scenes that had previously embraced it. The album gave Vagrant Records the financial backing to grow and sign a string of other bands. At the same time, the addition of keyboards alienated some fans who thought it moved the band away from the contemporary punk scene's DIY ethic.[5][17]

The Get Up Kids toured relentlessly for almost three years in promotion of the record.[18] As well as touring Europe, Japan, and Australia, they shared bills with acts such as Green Day, The Anniversary, Koufax, Hot Rod Circuit, Jebediah, Weezer and Ozma.[19] Their 2000 tour with The Anniversary and Koufax was sponsored by Napster.[12] Their fanbase kept expanding through word of mouth. Venues booked months in advance could no longer hold the demand by the time the band arrived in town and fans were forced to stand outside to see them perform.[12] To capitalize on anticipation for the band's next album, Vagrant Records released a rarities compilation Eudora in 2001.[13] Eudora consisted of alternate takes, covers, and B-sides since the band's formation. Likewise, Doghouse released a re-mastered edition of Four Minute Mile and a compilation entitled The EPs: Woodson and Red Letter Day, combining the two Doghouse-owned EPs on one compact disc.

On a Wire (2002–2003)

After three years of touring for Something to Write Home About, the band was beginning to feel burned-out, and wished to depart from the upbeat power-pop sound with which they had become associated.[13] They also wanted to find a new producer to challenge them creatively, approaching Nigel Godrich and Gil Norton with offers, although both declined.[12] Finally, the band settled on Scott Litt, best known for his work with R.E.M. and Nirvana.[20] The band's third studio album, On a Wire was released on May 14, 2002, debuting a more measured, alternative style. Just as Something to Write Home About alienated some fans with its more produced sound, On a Wire was criticized by fans who were disappointed with the album's softer musical direction.[21] Specifically, the reviewer for Alternative Press wrote "Unfortunately, the visceral energy of their early days is lost in their newfound maturity."[22]

"Walking on a Wire" "Walking on a Wire", from On a Wire reflects the shift in tone and style from the band's previous works toward a more mature, alternative sound. Problems playing this file? See media help.