Old fart asks: What is EMO Culture?

[Rik E Boy]

A new word has entered REB lexicon and as yet I do not have an answer to what it actually means becuase I went over the hill years ago. Could anyone on this site who is too young to remember mulletts and tight jeans being in style please tell me what EMO is? Is it sort of like Goth?

One confused old dude....yes, I said dude.

regards,

REB

[Thiele]

not the only one Confused i think it is like Goth

BTW only Guessing

[magpie in the 80's]

Emo is a somewhat ambiguous, controversial slang term most frequently used to describe a fashion or subculture which is usually defined to have its roots in punk fashion and subculture, as well as some attributes of gothic fashion and subculture.

Music
Main article: Emo (music)
The term emo originated in the 1980s to describe a genre of music stemming from the hardcore punk music scene in Washington, D.C. Early bands labeled emo (or sometimes emocore) in this scene included Rites of Spring, Embrace, and Fugazi.[2][3][4] The term emo as a music genre has become broader and broader with time, and now is loosely understood to mean "rock music with emotionally-based lyrics or effect," which could be used to describe a broadly and poorly defined group of nearly every popular (or unpopular) rock band. The term is so loosely defined because its definition is still the subject of debate.[1][2][3] Emo now often refers to a person's fashion, personality, or both, as well as the music genre.


Fashion
Emo fashion is usually defined to have roots in punk fashion as well as gothic fashion. By almost all current definitions, emo clothing is characterized by tight jeans on males and females alike, long fringe (bangs) often brushed to one side of the face, dyed black, straightened hair, tight t-shirts which often bear the names of rock bands, studded belts, belt buckles, Chuck Taylor All-Stars, skate shoes, or other black shoes—often old and beaten up—and thick, black-rimmed glasses.[1][2][5][6][7][8] Emo fashion has changed with time; early trends included haircuts similar to those worn by the Romulans and Vulcans in Star Trek, tightly fitting sweaters, button-down shirts, and work jackets (often called gas station jackets). This has fallen out of fashion nowadays.

[Rik E Boy]

Oh, I get it..it's just a new(ish) term for the same old shit...rebellion and identity seeking. Thanks for doing the research that I was too lazy to do.

regards,

REB

[magpie in the 80's]

happy to help one old fart to another

[Dissident]

Emo, from what I thought was short for emotional... and particularly emotionally based music/lyrics.

In short - Goths for the 21st century.

[bay_girl23]

Emo, from what I thought was short for emotional... and particularly emotionally based music/lyrics.

In short - Goths for the 21st century.

yeah... pretty much. this is amusing...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nRNYG_xM2U

[heater31]

Emo's those little bastards that dress in black clothes, have more holes in their body than is naturally possible and hairstyles that should never be seen in public. The lot of them are a complete waste of space although I have seen one wearing cricket whites go figure.



They also have a convention once a year I believe its called the Big Day Out

[the tractor]

My kids just adore him.
Especially when he does the chicken dance.

[zipzap]

It's Goth-lite. At least being a Goth used to consume a complete lifestyle and required some considerable dedication. Emo is more of a fashion thing - like those wallies who tease up a faux-hawk on the weekend before the Monday morning comb-over when they go to work at the bank.

[therisingblues]

Emo is an ant-acid that makes one fart without following through after eating too much.
Goths were scary people.
I held a job as a gardener when I was a lad. One very early, foggy morning in the late 80's, just as the sun was climbing above the Mt Lofty ranges, I saw some weird people wandering like they were in some sort of trance, through the East parklands. They were all moving in a different direction, yet all originating from the same point. I passed one of them , a woman, and saw her up close; her face was all whited out, and though I passed her line of vision her eyes showed no acknowledgement that I was there, she may as well have been in a pitch black room for the lack of movement in her eyes, and how wide they were held. She looked as though she were a ghost.
As you can imagine, the scene unfolding before my eyes was having quite an impact, given that I was only 17, I was in the middle of the parklands, it was foggy, and there were no other people about except for what looked like some strange disciples of some ancient cult. But there was more to come.
My first job of the day was to check everywhere for rubbish, do a general clean up, so of course I was to pass whatever spot the "ghost people" had been gathered at. And there, behind a large garden bed, shielded by shrubs, I found the entrails of some animal, maybe a possum judging from the size. What was strange though, was the way the entrails had been left. They were laying on the ground in exactly the position they'd naturally be arranged had they still been inside whatever animal they were taken from. It was as though an animal had simply disintegrated, save for its vital organs, left behind without any blood, and looking completely fresh, exactly as they had been when in use.
To this day, having repeated this story many times, I am yet to hear a "normal" explanation as to how those insides had come to lay as they were, so perfectly. And what purpose did those "goth-like" figures have in that secluded area, before the sun had risen?

[BenchedEagle]

My sister is very much an Emo

I sumise them as punks who have "emotions" and arent afraid to express them. They write crappy poems and like to cut themselves for pleasure (this is no joke). A lot of them are into the macabre and bands like my chemical romance. I dont see the point but who am i to judge. I wore my fair share of ripped jeans and flannelette, which my dad complained about. My dad wore his flares and bell bottoms, which my grandad complained about. Just another new generation for us old farts to complain about. Could be worse they could be "homies"!

[Punk Rooster]

emo's are your "new" punks, as punk is out of fashion again, for the middle class Gen Y; these kids need an outlet for their middle class angst. Fighting with peers over who had a better private school background gives way to soppy poetry & limp-wristed music, which is shoe polish- all shine & no substance.
The only real pain Emo's experience, is when they argue with their parents over whether their piercings are acceptable at the ski resort lodge, on their annual holidays.

[Rik E Boy]

Emo is an ant-acid that makes one fart without following through after eating too much.
Goths were scary people.
I held a job as a gardener when I was a lad. One very early, foggy morning in the late 80's, just as the sun was climbing above the Mt Lofty ranges, I saw some weird people wandering like they were in some sort of trance, through the East parklands. They were all moving in a different direction, yet all originating from the same point. I passed one of them , a woman, and saw her up close; her face was all whited out, and though I passed her line of vision her eyes showed no acknowledgement that I was there, she may as well have been in a pitch black room for the lack of movement in her eyes, and how wide they were held. She looked as though she were a ghost.
As you can imagine, the scene unfolding before my eyes was having quite an impact, given that I was only 17, I was in the middle of the parklands, it was foggy, and there were no other people about except for what looked like some strange disciples of some ancient cult. But there was more to come.
My first job of the day was to check everywhere for rubbish, do a general clean up, so of course I was to pass whatever spot the "ghost people" had been gathered at. And there, behind a large garden bed, shielded by shrubs, I found the entrails of some animal, maybe a possum judging from the size. What was strange though, was the way the entrails had been left. They were laying on the ground in exactly the position they'd naturally be arranged had they still been inside whatever animal they were taken from. It was as though an animal had simply disintegrated, save for its vital organs, left behind without any blood, and looking completely fresh, exactly as they had been when in use.
To this day, having repeated this story many times, I am yet to hear a "normal" explanation as to how those insides had come to lay as they were, so perfectly. And what purpose did those "goth-like" figures have in that secluded area, before the sun had risen?

Sturt supporters? Heh heh.

regards,

REB

[RustyCage]

How many emo's does it take to change a lightbulb?
None, they'd rather sit in the dark and cry about it.

How many emo kids does it take to paint a wall?
Depends on how hard you throw them

how do you get a emo kid out of a tree:?
cut the rope

is emo cake so good?
it cuts itself

What did the emo kid say when he broke up with his girlfriend?
TRICK QUESTION! Emos dont have girlfriends

Why did the emo cross the road?
To get a box of tissues

What do you call a bunch of emos at the bottom of the ocean?
A good start!

what do you say to an emo in a cue?
no cutting

I wish my lawn was emo, so it would cut itself

how many emo kids does it take to screw in a light bulb?
3. One to replace it, & two to write a poem about how they miss the old one.

How do you kill an emo?
Give it a knife.

What do you call a crap female emo?
A man.

(To the tune of "if you're happy and you know it...")
"If you're emo and you know it, slit your wrists!"

What's an emo's favourite Divinyls song?
"When I Think About You I Cut Myself"

When is the only time you wink at an emo?
When you're staring at him through a sniper scope.

What do you call a dead emo?
A good start.

Two people are walking down a street, suddenly an emo is shot and dies as the other emo runs off crying. The first person says "Oh my god, someone just shot that emo! Did you see?", the second person replies "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention, I was too busy reloading my gun".

What do you say to a crippled emo?
Nothing, you already told him once.

What do you call a dead 16 year old emo?
A delayed miracle

What's the best thing about beating up an emo?
Watching him cry about it to his boyfriend afterwards

do you think the word emo would be accepted in scrabble?
Of course not. Emos are never accepted anywhere.

If you don't have stupid floppy hair and you're not miserable all the time then you're not an emo.

An emo walks into a pub.
It sees people having fun and laughing, starts crying and goes home

[McAlmanac]

emo's are your "new" punks, as punk is out of fashion again, for the middle class Gen Y; these kids need an outlet for their middle class angst. Fighting with peers over who had a better private school background gives way to soppy poetry & limp-wristed music, which is shoe polish- all shine & no substance.
The only real pain Emo's experience, is when they argue with their parents over whether their piercings are acceptable at the ski resort lodge, on their annual holidays.

Hard to argue with that. It is most definitely middle class. Affluent enough to go to the Hi-Fi Bar; affluent enough to buy the merchandise.

[heater31]

absolute GOLD PAFC

[Booney]

In summary "emo" culture is another form of attention seeking by way of assuming your self imposed misery will compell people to heap sympathy upon you,which in turn gives you reason to feel miserable.

A certain vein of music allows,and feeds this misery.

I read:

"Emo's are people who wish to kill themselves but dont have the guts to do it."

[Leaping Lindner]

emo's are your "new" punks, as punk is out of fashion again, for the middle class Gen Y; these kids need an outlet for their middle class angst. Fighting with peers over who had a better private school background gives way to soppy poetry & limp-wristed music, which is shoe polish- all shine & no substance.
The only real pain Emo's experience, is when they argue with their parents over whether their piercings are acceptable at the ski resort lodge, on their annual holidays.

Define "punk". There are some that believe punk died with the Frankenchrist Trial and anything since has been a pale imitation.

[Lunchcutter]

i know a couple, i reckon in my day they were known as Mods or something like that, listen to madness, specials etc