American Football
The most iconic Midwest emo band, formed in Urbana in 1997 by Mike Kinsella, Steve Holmes, and Steve Lamos. Young students in a college town, a mix of jazz enthusiasts and DIY punk kids making intricate instrumentation with a scrappy, heart-on-sleeve dynamic. Their 1999 self-titled debut became the scene's defining document despite the band breaking up shortly after its release. They never even aimed to make a second album—college ended and they drifted apart. The album gained traction on file-sharing platform Limewire, finding audiences the band never knew existed. In 2014, they reunited and played to crowds ten times bigger than they ever had before; in 2016 and 2019, they released new albums that excitingly expanded on their original sound.
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American Football
The defining album of Midwest emo, featuring intricate guitar work and the iconic house cover that became a pilgrimage site for fans worldwide. Recorded in less than a week in a converted house in Urbana, tracked with natural room reverb that made you feel like you were there. The album gained traction on Limewire years after release, finding audiences the band never knew existed. In 2014, when Polyvinyl announced a deluxe reissue with ten additional demos and live recordings, reunion shows sold out immediately—crowds ten times bigger than the band ever played to originally.