The Get Up Kids
Encyclopedia
The Get Up Kids are an American
alternative rock
band from Kansas City, Missouri
. Formed in 1995, the band was a major player in the mid-90's 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
. 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
.
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. 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." Years later, guitarist Jim Suptic even apologized for having the influence they did on many of the modern third-wave emo bands, commenting that "[t]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.”
Due to some internal conflicts, the band broke up in 2005. In 2008 the band announced a 2009 reunion tour to support the tenth anniversary re-release of Something to Write Home About
, their most successful studio album. Soon after the reunion, the band entered the studio to write new material. In early 2010, the band released Simple Science
, their first release in six years. In 2011 they released their new album There Are Rules
.
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. 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'. The band was formed on October 14, 1995 on Suptic's 18th birthday.
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
. In 1995, Pryor, Suptic, and friend Kevin Zelko saved 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. 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
". Encouraged by interest stirred by the band's first 7-inch, they recorded their first EP, Woodson
. It was released as a 7-inch through Contrast Records, with Doghouse Records
releasing a CD-EP version which included the songs from both Woodson and A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts. After Woodson, Doghouse approached the band with a two-album contract, offering them $4,000 to record their first full-length album.
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. 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.
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
. 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".
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.
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. The Get Up Kids announcement to leave Doghouse Records brought interest from prominent record labels including Sub Pop
, Geffen
and Mojo Records
. 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. 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 [they could] write". 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.
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
incorporated a great deal of synthesizer keyboards, leading Pryor to ask Dewees to collaborate with The Get Up Kids on some new songs they were writing.
The next year, The Get Up Kids released Red Letter Day
, a five-track EP produced by Ed Rose to fulfill their two-record deal with Doghouse. It was Dewees' debut on a Get Up Kids record, although he was still credited as featured musician. The cleaner, more focused sound of the EP provided the chance to experiment with the inclusion of keyboards and is a bridge between the raw sound of Four Minute Mile and the more dynamic style of their next studio album.
After the release of Red Letter Day, Dewees joined the band full-time and 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. 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. Furthermore, the album single-handedly turned the struggling Vagrant label into one of the top indie label
s in the country, selling over 140,000 copies after its release. 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.
The Get Up Kids toured relentlessly for almost three years in promotion of the record. 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
. Their 2000 tour with The Anniversary and Koufax was sponsored by Napster
. 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. To capitalize on anticipation for the band's next album, Vagrant Records released a rarities compilation Eudora
in 2001. 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
.
and Gil Norton
with offers, although both declined. Finally, the band settled on Scott Litt
, best known for his work with R.E.M.
and Nirvana
. The band's third studio album, On a Wire
was released on May 14, 2002, debuting the band's new sound. Just as Something to Write Home About alienated fans with its more produced sound, On a Wire was criticized by fans who were disappointed with the album's softer musical direction. The reviewer for Alternative Press writing "Unfortunately, the visceral energy of their early days is lost in their newfound maturity."
While many fans were upset with this sudden change of direction, the album was generally well-received by mainstream publications. Entertainment Weekly
was highly positive, writing that "This is the group at their best." In his review of the album, Rolling Stone
writer Barry Walters wrote "On a Wire quivers with the anxieties that must have arisen as the Get Up Kids left behind what originally made them. Straining vocals, racing tempos and walls of distortion give way to softer singing, spacious guitars and prominent keyboards . . . The Get Up Kids dig deeper into themselves. What they find is often subtle, less visceral but far more tender." The poor public reception of the album had a larger impact on the band's popularity as a whole. The band embarked on a tour to promote the album in the late spring soon after the album was released, only to find that they had far less support from both their fans and their record label. Using the financial and critical success of Something to Write Home About, Vagrant signed several other headlining emo bands such as Alkaline Trio
, Dashboard Confessional
, and Saves the Day
. The Get Up Kids were no longer the label's top priority, and certainly not after the lukewarm reception of On a Wire. In an interview with Alternative Press, lead singer Matt Pryor considered the dramatic change in style on On a Wire seriously dented the momentum the band had built up since Something to Write Home About, allowing later bands such as Dashboard Confessional to take much of the fan base that The Get Up Kids had previously earned. In an interview, Pryor confessed that he didn't think that "anyone, including Vagrant, gave that record a chance". Even though they had avoided the term since its inception, it was at this point the band actively began trying to shed the term "emo", a word that had defined them for years but had come to mean something different. Pryor commented on the album, saying "We really didn’t give two shits if anyone liked the record or not, we were really confident that we were going to kill this ‘emo’ stigma that we had and take the people with open minds with us and leave everyone else in the dust.”
, a studio renovated and owned by the Pope brothers and producer Ed Rose. The writing process for the album was different than their past efforts, as most of the songs were written by only three of the band members. In the early stages of writing, Jim Suptic was on his honeymoon. James Dewees was involved in a difficult divorce, and much of his creative efforts inspired by those events went into the fourth Reggie and the Full Effect
album Songs Not to Get Married To
. While this led to a less collaborative effort than in the past, it gave the Pope brothers a more substantial role in writing than ever before. In an interview with Alternative Press, Pryor confirmed the song "Never Be Alone" was written by Rob Pope about his 2003 divorce from The Anniversary
keyboardist Adrianne Verhoeven.
This fractured approach to the writing process began to strain relationships in the band, at one point leading Suptic to consider quitting the band. Pryor drew lyrical inspiration from the lives of friends and people he knew, extracting stories of abuse, betrayal and guilt. The album's lyrics also delve into incidents of adultery ("Wouldn't Believe It", "How Long Is Too Long") and the album's first single "The One You Want" is said to be about a woman who Pryor says "Sucks the soul out of people".
In March 2004, the band released their fourth and final studio album Guilt Show
, produced by Ed Rose. Sonically, the album combined the more measured, sophisticated sound of On a Wire with the frenetic style of their earlier work. Guilt Show, which was titled after a misreading of a flier saying "Quilt show", was very well-received both critically and commercially. The more pop-driven tone of the album reunited the band with many fans who were disenchanted after On a Wire, while also staying close enough to the evolution of the last album to interest newer fans and critics. However, their return was overshadowed by the booming popularity of other contemporary emo bands such as Dashboard Confessional
, who invited the band to open for them on the 2004 Honda Civic Tour
.
Over the course of the tour with Dashboard Confessional
, relationships between the band members continued to decline. The band's live shows had deteriorated, and Rob and Suptic had both threatened to quit multiple times. Matt Pryor's wife had recently given birth to their first child, and being away from his family had made him irritable and standoffish. After the Honda Civic tour ended, the band embarked on their world tour, including stops throughout Europe, Japan and Australia. However, their live performance hit an all-time low, with Pryor at times refusing to even sing large portions of songs.
At one tour date in England, the tensions came to a head when Ryan Pope confronted Pryor over his recent despondence, leading to a band meeting where Pryor confessed his desire to reduce his commitment to the rest of the group. After some discussion, the band agreed that their hearts were no longer in it and at the end of the tour they would quietly end the band. Once the tour ended, the band went on an unofficial hiatus, not playing as a group until the next January, when they played a show at the Granada Theater
in Lawrence, Kansas
to celebrate the band's tenth anniversary. The show was recorded and released the following May as the band's first live album, Live! @ The Granada Theater.
On Tuesday, March 8, 2005, The Get Up Kids announced that after ten years, they were calling it quits. They embarked on a national farewell tour, ending the band after a sold-out show on July 2, 2005 in their hometown of Kansas City, Missouri at the Uptown Theater
.
. Rob was a founding member of Lawrence
, Kansas
group White Whale
before joining the indie rock group Spoon
.
Matt Pryor continued as part of The New Amsterdams, an acoustic alt-country group he formed in 2000. In 2007 he formed The Terrible Twos
, a children's band that has released two albums on Vagrant Records. In July 2008, he released Confidence Man
, his debut solo album.
Jim Suptic went on to form Blackpool Lights
with former members of Butterglory
and The Creature Comforts. He is also one of the co-founders of Curb Appeal Records
, a Kansas City-based record label that released Blackpool Lights' debut album This Town's Disaster
, plus albums by Smoking Popes
and The New Amsterdams.
James Dewees continued his side project Reggie and the Full Effect
. After the breakup of The Get Up Kids, Dewees toured with New Found Glory
as their touring keyboardist. After another brief tour opening for Hellogoodbye
in 2006, he joined My Chemical Romance
as touring keyboardist on their 2008 world tour. After returning home from the tour, he released the fifth Reggie and the Full Effect album on Vagrant Records, entitled Last Stop: Crappy Town
, followed by a brief tour of the United States.
In the meantime, Dewees continued to fuel speculation when he stated in an interview that he would be working on the reunion of a "band from the 90's and early 2000's". The reunion was finally confirmed by a post on the official music blog of The Kansas City Star
, confirming rumors that the band would be playing a surprise reunion show at The Record Bar in Kansas City on November 16, 2008. According to the article, the band had made the decision over the summer and had Dewees intentionally leak the information to fuel speculation.
The reunion show was officially announced on Friday, November 14, along with the official confirmation of the album re-release and a 2009 national tour. The tenth anniversary edition of the album includes a code to download bonus demo tracks from the original recording of Something To Write Home About from the Vagrant Records website, and a DVD containing a band retrospective and other content, including archive footage, and their live performance from March 13, 2009 at Liberty Hall
in Lawrence. The show took place Sunday, November 16, 2008 at the record bar in Kansas City. The band played their album Something To Write Home About from beginning to end, as well as a six song encore.
page showing the group in a recording studio, incurring speculation as to whether or not they were recording a new album. After embarking on the European leg of their reunion tour, the band confirmed that they were writing new material and would be playing at least one of the songs, entitled "Keith Case," on the tour. During a session with Daytrotter.com, the band reports that there is "a new album done and just waiting to be put out there sometime soon."http://www.daytrotter.com/dt/the-get-up-kids-concert/20030982-7400.html In an interview with Fret12.com, Pryor confirmed that they have recorded nine new songs, and will be recording another twelve to release on three 7-track EPs, most likely on limited-run 12" vinyl.
On February 15, 2010 the band announced that they would be self-releasing a new EP entitled Simple Science
, their first studio release in six years. The 4-song EP was released on 12" colored vinyl and CD in April.
On October 29, 2010, The Get Up Kids announced their fifth full-length studio album, There Are Rules
, to be released on January 25, 2011. They also confirmed that the album would not be released on Vagrant Records
, who had released their previous three albums, but on their own Quality Hill Records. The album was produced by longtime collaborator Ed Rose
and mixed by Bob Weston
, who produced the band's debut album. Several of the tracks were recorded during the same session as Simple Science, the track "Keith Case" appearing on both releases.
On April 1, 2011, The Get Up Kids announced a summer co-headlining tour with Saves The Day
.
bassist and singer Mark Hoppus
is a vocal fan, having proposed to his wife to The Get Up Kids song "I'll Catch You." They were also a major influence on the rest of the band, even at their peak popularity around the release of Take Off Your Pants and Jacket
. The members of Fall Out Boy
cite The Get Up Kids' influence, particularly Four Minute Mile. In a 2005 interview with Alternative Press, Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz stated that the band had a huge influence on him and the other members of Fall Out Boy. "There should be a How To Be a Pop-Punk Kid starter kit with bands like Get Up Kids, so kids would know whose shoulders bands like us are standing on. Fall Out Boy would not be a band if it were not for The Get Up Kids."
New Jersey based act Midtown
has stated in interviews that they were heavily influenced by The Get Up Kids, among other groups. The Early November band members were all fans, and influenced by, The Get Up Kids. The Early November song "Baby Blue" includes the line "I don't want you to love me anymore", a direct reference to the Get Up Kids song "No Love" both lyrically and melodically. The band Hellogoodbye
have been vocal fans of the band and while on tour with Reggie and the Full Effect in 2007, two years after the breakup of The Get Up Kids, Hellogoodbye invited James Dewees and Matt Pryor onstage with them, and proceeded to back them in a cover of The Get Up Kids' song "Action & Action
".
Despite their lasting influence on modern music, the band has attempted to disassociate themselves with many of the bands they inspired. Following the band's reformation, guitarist Jim Suptic
undertook an interview with website Drowned in Sound
, in which he said, "The punk scene we came out of and the punk scene now are completely different. It's like glam rock
now. We played the Bamboozle fests
this year and we felt really out of place... If this is the world we helped create, then I apologise." He went onto say they were grateful for the acknowledgements they have received, though explaining "the problem is most of [the bands they inspired] aren't very good."
Former
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band from Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
. Formed in 1995, the band was a major player in the mid-90's emo
Emo
Emo is a style of rock music and its associated subcultureEmo may also refer to:- Businesses :* Emo , an Irish oil company and filling station chain* Emo Speedway, a racetrack in Emo, Ontario...
scene, otherwise known as the "second wave" of emo music. As they gained prominence, they began touring with bands such as Green Day
Green Day
Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
and Weezer
Weezer
Weezer is an American alternative rock band. The band currently consists of Rivers Cuomo , Patrick Wilson , Brian Bell , and Scott Shriner . The band has changed lineups three times since its formation in 1992...
before becoming headliners themselves, eventually embarking on international tours of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. They founded Heroes & Villains Records, an imprint of the successful indie rock label Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records is an indie rock label based in Los Angeles, California and is home to such artists as The Hold Steady, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, Active Child, PJ Harvey, Reptar, School of Seven Bells, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Thrice, James Vincent McMorrow, Placebo, and many...
. 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
Reggie and the Full Effect
Reggie and the Full Effect was a Kansas City indie rock band, the solo project for The Get Up Kids keyboardist James Dewees.-Early years, Greatest Hits 1984-1987, Promotional Copy and Under the Tray :...
.
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. 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." Years later, guitarist Jim Suptic even apologized for having the influence they did on many of the modern third-wave emo bands, commenting that "[t]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.”
Due to some internal conflicts, the band broke up in 2005. In 2008 the band announced a 2009 reunion tour to support the tenth anniversary re-release of Something to Write Home About
Something to Write Home About
Something to Write Home About is the second full-length studio album by American rock band The Get Up Kids, released on September 21, 1999. The album was produced by The Get Up Kids themselves, with co-producers Chad Blinman and Alex Brahl. Blinman also recorded and mixed the album, with Brahl...
, their most successful studio album. Soon after the reunion, the band entered the studio to write new material. In early 2010, the band released Simple Science
Simple Science
-Personnel:Band*Matt Pryor - Lead Vocals, Guitar*Jim Suptic - Guitar, Vocals*Rob Pope - Bass*Ryan Pope - Drums*James Dewees - Keyboards, VocalsProduction*Ed Rose - Production-Chart performance:...
, their first release in six years. In 2011 they released their new album There Are Rules
There Are Rules
There Are Rules is the fifth studio album by The Get Up Kids, the band's first full-length release since 2004's Guilt Show. After their initial reunion, the band decided to challenge themselves to write and record an album in only two weeks without using any digital technology...
.
Early years (1995–1997)
Rob Pope
-History:Rob Pope grew up in Olathe, Kansas. In the summer of 1994, he was in a band called "Kingpin" with his brother Ryan and future Get Up Kids bandmate Jim Suptic. After the band broke up due to internal conflicts, Rob and Jim re-formed with Matt Pryor, who had been playing with Secular Theme...
, and Jim Suptic
Jim Suptic
Jim Suptic is an American musician and entrepreneur, best known for being the guitarist for Kansas City, Missouri band The Get Up Kids.-The Get Up Kids:...
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. 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'. The band was formed on October 14, 1995 on Suptic's 18th birthday.
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
Kansas City Art Institute
The Kansas City Art Institute is a private, independent, four-year college of fine arts and design founded in 1885 in Kansas City, Missouri....
. In 1995, Pryor, Suptic, and friend Kevin Zelko saved 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. 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
Braid (band)
Braid is an influential emo/post-hardcore band from Illinois that formed in 1993. After forming, the band went through several line-up changes but eventually settled on: Bob Nanna on guitar/vocals, Todd Bell on bass, Chris Broach on guitar/vocals and, Roy Ewing on drums. Roy was replaced in 1997 by...
. After the "Shorty" 7-inch, the band released "A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts
A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts
"A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts" is the second single from Kansas City, Missouri band The Get Up Kids. The single, also commonly referred to as The Loveteller EP by fans, was released in 1997 on Contrast Records. The final pressing of the album was printed on Orange vinyl in a limited run of...
". Encouraged by interest stirred by the band's first 7-inch, they recorded their first EP, Woodson
Woodson (EP)
-Doghouse tracklist:Due to a distribution conflict, Doghouse Records released its own version of Woodson shortly after the Contrast release, combining the songs from the EP with the band's Loveteller EP...
. It was released as a 7-inch through Contrast Records, with Doghouse Records
Doghouse Records
Doghouse Records is a Toledo, Ohio based record label, now run out of the New York City office. Since 2004 Doghouse has been a part of the Warner Music Group....
releasing a CD-EP version which included the songs from both Woodson and A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts. After Woodson, Doghouse approached the band with a two-album contract, offering them $4,000 to record their first full-length album.
Four Minute Mile (1997–1998)
After signing to Doghouse, the band drove to Chicago to record their debut full-length album with producer Bob WestonBob Weston
Bob Weston is an American musician, producer, recording engineer, and record mastering engineer. Critic Jason Ankeny declares that "Weston's name and fingerprints are all over the American underground rock of the post-punk era, producing and engineering dates for a seemingly endless number of...
of Shellac
Shellac (band)
Shellac is an American group composed of Steve Albini , Bob Weston and Todd Trainer...
. 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. Two months after recording the album, the band embarked on their first national tour with Braid
Braid (band)
Braid is an influential emo/post-hardcore band from Illinois that formed in 1993. After forming, the band went through several line-up changes but eventually settled on: Bob Nanna on guitar/vocals, Todd Bell on bass, Chris Broach on guitar/vocals and, Roy Ewing on drums. Roy was replaced in 1997 by...
and Ethel Meserve with the first date of the tour taking place the day after Ryan's high school graduation.
It was on that tour that the band met James Dewees
James Dewees
James Dewees is an American musician who has been involved in many musical projects including Coalesce, The Get Up Kids, Reggie and the Full Effect, New Found Glory, My Chemical Romance, and, most recently, Leathermouth....
, the new drummer for Coalesce while the bands were playing together in Wilkes-Barre
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Wilkes-Barre is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, the county seat of Luzerne County. It is at the center of the Wyoming Valley area and is one of the principal cities in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area, which had a population of 563,631 as of the 2010 Census...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. After the show, the members of the two bands became close friends, eventually leading them to record a split 7-inch
Split album
A split album is a music album which includes tracks by two or more separate artists. There have been singles and EPs released in the same nature, which can be referred to as split singles and split EPs respectively...
produced by Ed Rose
Ed Rose
Ed Rose is an American sound engineer and record producer. He has worked extensively with groups in the modern emo and pop punk scenes. He also co-owns Black Lodge Recording with Rob Pope and his brother Ryan Pope.-History:...
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".
A few months later, the band released their debut full-length record Four Minute Mile
Four Minute Mile
Four Minute Mile is the first full-length album released by Kansas City, Missouri emo band The Get Up Kids.-Recording:The album was recorded in April 1997 on a budget of $4,000. It was produced by Shellac bassist Bob Weston in Chicago over the course of two and a half days. It was released by...
, 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.
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. The Get Up Kids announcement to leave Doghouse Records brought interest from prominent record labels including Sub Pop
Sub Pop
Sub Pop is a record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman in Seattle, Washington. Sub Pop achieved fame in the late 1980s for first signing Nirvana, Soundgarden, Mudhoney and many other bands from the Seattle music scene...
, Geffen
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
and Mojo Records
Mojo Records
Mojo Records was a California-based record label founded in 1995 by producer Jay Rifkin. It became a joint venture with Universal Music Group in 1996 and then sold to the Zomba Group in 2001, who placed it under their subsidiary Jive Records...
. 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. 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 [they could] write". Before the deal with Mojo was official, the band met Rich Egan, founder of Los Angeles-based Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records is an indie rock label based in Los Angeles, California and is home to such artists as The Hold Steady, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, Active Child, PJ Harvey, Reptar, School of Seven Bells, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Thrice, James Vincent McMorrow, Placebo, and many...
. 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.
Something to Write Home About (1999–2001)
Reggie and the Full Effect
Reggie and the Full Effect was a Kansas City indie rock band, the solo project for The Get Up Kids keyboardist James Dewees.-Early years, Greatest Hits 1984-1987, Promotional Copy and Under the Tray :...
. 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
Greatest Hits 1984-1987
-Reissue bonus tracks:The album was re-released in 2004 and included 7 bonus previously unreleased tracks.-Personnel:*James Dewees - Vocals, Piano, Drums*Matt Pryor - Guitar, Backup Vocals*Rob Pope - Bass*Ed Rose - Production, Mixing...
incorporated a great deal of synthesizer keyboards, leading Pryor to ask Dewees to collaborate with The Get Up Kids on some new songs they were writing.
The next year, The Get Up Kids released Red Letter Day
Red Letter Day (EP)
-Additional Releases:*The entire EP was later combined with the band's other EP Woodson and re-released on one CD entitled The EPs: Red Letter Day and Woodson....
, a five-track EP produced by Ed Rose to fulfill their two-record deal with Doghouse. It was Dewees' debut on a Get Up Kids record, although he was still credited as featured musician. The cleaner, more focused sound of the EP provided the chance to experiment with the inclusion of keyboards and is a bridge between the raw sound of Four Minute Mile and the more dynamic style of their next studio album.
After the release of Red Letter Day, Dewees joined the band full-time and the band began recording their second studio album in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in June 1999 with producer Alex Brahl. Before the album went into production, Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records is an indie rock label based in Los Angeles, California and is home to such artists as The Hold Steady, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, Active Child, PJ Harvey, Reptar, School of Seven Bells, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Thrice, James Vincent McMorrow, Placebo, and many...
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
Something to Write Home About
Something to Write Home About is the second full-length studio album by American rock band The Get Up Kids, released on September 21, 1999. The album was produced by The Get Up Kids themselves, with co-producers Chad Blinman and Alex Brahl. Blinman also recorded and mixed the album, with Brahl...
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. 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. Furthermore, the album single-handedly turned the struggling Vagrant label into one of the top indie label
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
s in the country, selling over 140,000 copies after its release. 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.
The Get Up Kids toured relentlessly for almost three years in promotion of the record. As well as touring Europe, Japan, and Australia, they shared bills with acts such as Green Day
Green Day
Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
, The Anniversary
The Anniversary
The Anniversary was an American band formed in Lawrence, Kansas in 1997 by Josh Berwanger, James David, Christian Jankowski, Adrianne Verhoeven and Justin Roelofs. The Anniversary was the solidification of a line-up that had been in flux for a year...
, Koufax
Koufax (band)
Koufax are an indie rock band whose members are from mainly Toledo, Ohio. The band's self-titled debut EP was released in 1999 on independent label Doghouse Records, and got them noticed by The Get Up Kids, who signed them to their label, Vagrant Records subsidiary Heroes and Villains...
, Hot Rod Circuit
Hot Rod Circuit
Hot Rod Circuit is an American emo band from New Haven, Connecticut established in 1997.-Early years:The band was originally known as Antidote under which they released the album Mr. Glenboski, which won the group the award of Best Unsigned Band of 1998 by Musician Magazine...
, Jebediah
Jebediah
Jebediah is an Australian alternative rock band formed in 1994 in Perth, Western Australia. The group consists of vocalist and guitarist Kevin Mitchell, guitarist Chris Daymond, bassist Vanessa Thornton, and Kevin's brother Brett Mitchell on drums...
, Weezer
Weezer
Weezer is an American alternative rock band. The band currently consists of Rivers Cuomo , Patrick Wilson , Brian Bell , and Scott Shriner . The band has changed lineups three times since its formation in 1992...
and Ozma
Ozma (band)
Ozma is a rock band from Pasadena, California. The band's sound is a mix of new-wave–influenced power pop and Casiotone-driven melodies sustained by heavy guitar riffs. The complexity of Ozma's songs grew considerably during the band's initial nine-year history...
. Their 2000 tour with The Anniversary and Koufax was sponsored by Napster
Napster
Napster is an online music store and a Best Buy company. It was originally founded as a pioneering peer-to-peer file sharing Internet service that emphasized sharing audio files that were typically digitally encoded music as MP3 format files...
. 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. To capitalize on anticipation for the band's next album, Vagrant Records released a rarities compilation Eudora
Eudora (album)
Eudora is The Get Up Kids' third full-length CD/LP. Released on November 27, 2001, it is a collection of B-Sides, Rarities, and Covers released on Vagrant Records....
in 2001. 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
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
.
On a Wire (2002–2003)
After three years of touring for Something to Write Home About, the band was beginning to feel burned-out on that material and was looking to experiment with a more mature sound. They also wanted to find a new producer to challenge them creatively, approaching Nigel GodrichNigel Godrich
Nigel Godrich, , is a recording engineer, record producer and musician. He is best known for his work with the English rock band Radiohead and is sometimes referred to as the "sixth member" of the band...
and Gil Norton
Gil Norton
Gil Norton is a British record producer known for his work with such bands as Pixies, Echo & the Bunnymen, Foo Fighters, Tribe, Jimmy Eat World, Dashboard Confessional, Feeder, The Distillers, Maxïmo Park, Counting Crows, Terrorvision, The Triffids, Del Amitri, James, The Feelers, The Beekeepers,...
with offers, although both declined. Finally, the band settled on Scott Litt
Scott Litt
Scott Litt is an American record producer who mostly works with artists in the alternative rock genre and is best known for producing six R.E.M. albums.-Biography:...
, best known for his work with R.E.M.
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...
and Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
. The band's third studio album, On a Wire
On a Wire
On a Wire is a 2002 album released by The Get Up Kids on Vagrant Records. The album was also released in two record versions: black 180 gram vinyl and Limited Edition picture disc.-Recording:...
was released on May 14, 2002, debuting the band's new sound. Just as Something to Write Home About alienated fans with its more produced sound, On a Wire was criticized by fans who were disappointed with the album's softer musical direction. The reviewer for Alternative Press writing "Unfortunately, the visceral energy of their early days is lost in their newfound maturity."
While many fans were upset with this sudden change of direction, the album was generally well-received by mainstream publications. Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
was highly positive, writing that "This is the group at their best." In his review of the album, Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
writer Barry Walters wrote "On a Wire quivers with the anxieties that must have arisen as the Get Up Kids left behind what originally made them. Straining vocals, racing tempos and walls of distortion give way to softer singing, spacious guitars and prominent keyboards . . . The Get Up Kids dig deeper into themselves. What they find is often subtle, less visceral but far more tender." The poor public reception of the album had a larger impact on the band's popularity as a whole. The band embarked on a tour to promote the album in the late spring soon after the album was released, only to find that they had far less support from both their fans and their record label. Using the financial and critical success of Something to Write Home About, Vagrant signed several other headlining emo bands such as Alkaline Trio
Alkaline Trio
Alkaline Trio is an American punk rock band that formed in McHenry, Illinois, in 1996. The band's line-up consists of Matt Skiba , Dan Andriano , and Derek Grant...
, Dashboard Confessional
Dashboard Confessional
Dashboard Confessional is an American rock band from Boca Raton, Florida, led by singer-songwriter Chris Carrabba. The name of the band is derived from the song "The Sharp Hint of New Tears" from the debut album The Swiss Army Romance....
, and Saves the Day
Saves the Day
Saves the Day is an American rock band from Princeton, New Jersey, formed in 1994. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Chris Conley, guitarist Arun Bali, bassist Rodrigo Palma, and drummer Claudio Rivera....
. The Get Up Kids were no longer the label's top priority, and certainly not after the lukewarm reception of On a Wire. In an interview with Alternative Press, lead singer Matt Pryor considered the dramatic change in style on On a Wire seriously dented the momentum the band had built up since Something to Write Home About, allowing later bands such as Dashboard Confessional to take much of the fan base that The Get Up Kids had previously earned. In an interview, Pryor confessed that he didn't think that "anyone, including Vagrant, gave that record a chance". Even though they had avoided the term since its inception, it was at this point the band actively began trying to shed the term "emo", a word that had defined them for years but had come to mean something different. Pryor commented on the album, saying "We really didn’t give two shits if anyone liked the record or not, we were really confident that we were going to kill this ‘emo’ stigma that we had and take the people with open minds with us and leave everyone else in the dust.”
Guilt Show (2003–2004)
In 2003 the band began recording their fourth studio album. The album would be the first recorded in Black Lodge Studios in Eudora, KansasEudora, Kansas
Eudora is a city in Douglas County, Kansas, United States. It is part of the Lawrence, Kansas Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city is located along the Kansas and Wakarusa Rivers. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 6,136.- History :...
, a studio renovated and owned by the Pope brothers and producer Ed Rose. The writing process for the album was different than their past efforts, as most of the songs were written by only three of the band members. In the early stages of writing, Jim Suptic was on his honeymoon. James Dewees was involved in a difficult divorce, and much of his creative efforts inspired by those events went into the fourth Reggie and the Full Effect
Reggie and the Full Effect
Reggie and the Full Effect was a Kansas City indie rock band, the solo project for The Get Up Kids keyboardist James Dewees.-Early years, Greatest Hits 1984-1987, Promotional Copy and Under the Tray :...
album Songs Not to Get Married To
Songs Not to Get Married To
-Personnel:*James Dewees - Vocals, Keyboard*Cory White - Guitar*Rob Pope - Bass*Ryan Pope - Drums*Ed Rose - Production, Mixing-Album Position:...
. While this led to a less collaborative effort than in the past, it gave the Pope brothers a more substantial role in writing than ever before. In an interview with Alternative Press, Pryor confirmed the song "Never Be Alone" was written by Rob Pope about his 2003 divorce from The Anniversary
The Anniversary
The Anniversary was an American band formed in Lawrence, Kansas in 1997 by Josh Berwanger, James David, Christian Jankowski, Adrianne Verhoeven and Justin Roelofs. The Anniversary was the solidification of a line-up that had been in flux for a year...
keyboardist Adrianne Verhoeven.
This fractured approach to the writing process began to strain relationships in the band, at one point leading Suptic to consider quitting the band. Pryor drew lyrical inspiration from the lives of friends and people he knew, extracting stories of abuse, betrayal and guilt. The album's lyrics also delve into incidents of adultery ("Wouldn't Believe It", "How Long Is Too Long") and the album's first single "The One You Want" is said to be about a woman who Pryor says "Sucks the soul out of people".
In March 2004, the band released their fourth and final studio album Guilt Show
Guilt Show
Guilt Show is the fourth studio album by The Get Up Kids. It was released on Vagrant Records on March 3, 2004.-Recording:The album was the first album to be recorded in Black Lodge Studios, the recording studio in Eudora, Kansas renovated and owned by The Get Up Kids and producer Ed Rose...
, produced by Ed Rose. Sonically, the album combined the more measured, sophisticated sound of On a Wire with the frenetic style of their earlier work. Guilt Show, which was titled after a misreading of a flier saying "Quilt show", was very well-received both critically and commercially. The more pop-driven tone of the album reunited the band with many fans who were disenchanted after On a Wire, while also staying close enough to the evolution of the last album to interest newer fans and critics. However, their return was overshadowed by the booming popularity of other contemporary emo bands such as Dashboard Confessional
Dashboard Confessional
Dashboard Confessional is an American rock band from Boca Raton, Florida, led by singer-songwriter Chris Carrabba. The name of the band is derived from the song "The Sharp Hint of New Tears" from the debut album The Swiss Army Romance....
, who invited the band to open for them on the 2004 Honda Civic Tour
Honda Civic Tour
The Honda Civic Tour is an annual concert tour, sponsored by Honda Motor Company which began in 2001. Each year, the headlining band or bands customize a Honda Civic for concert patrons to win in a raffle.-First Half:*Headliner: blink-182...
.
Breakup (2004–2005)
Dashboard Confessional
Dashboard Confessional is an American rock band from Boca Raton, Florida, led by singer-songwriter Chris Carrabba. The name of the band is derived from the song "The Sharp Hint of New Tears" from the debut album The Swiss Army Romance....
, relationships between the band members continued to decline. The band's live shows had deteriorated, and Rob and Suptic had both threatened to quit multiple times. Matt Pryor's wife had recently given birth to their first child, and being away from his family had made him irritable and standoffish. After the Honda Civic tour ended, the band embarked on their world tour, including stops throughout Europe, Japan and Australia. However, their live performance hit an all-time low, with Pryor at times refusing to even sing large portions of songs.
At one tour date in England, the tensions came to a head when Ryan Pope confronted Pryor over his recent despondence, leading to a band meeting where Pryor confessed his desire to reduce his commitment to the rest of the group. After some discussion, the band agreed that their hearts were no longer in it and at the end of the tour they would quietly end the band. Once the tour ended, the band went on an unofficial hiatus, not playing as a group until the next January, when they played a show at the Granada Theater
Granada Theater (Lawrence, Kansas)
The Granada Theater is a historic theater and concert venue located in Lawrence, Kansas.-History:The Granada Theater was originally built in 1928 as a vaudeville theater in Lawrence, Kansas by the Boller Brothers. It was renovated in 1934 as a movie theater...
in Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County...
to celebrate the band's tenth anniversary. The show was recorded and released the following May as the band's first live album, Live! @ The Granada Theater.
On Tuesday, March 8, 2005, The Get Up Kids announced that after ten years, they were calling it quits. They embarked on a national farewell tour, ending the band after a sold-out show on July 2, 2005 in their hometown of Kansas City, Missouri at the Uptown Theater
Uptown Theater (Kansas City)
The Uptown Theater is a historic theater located at 3700 Broadway in the Valentine neighborhood in the Midtown area of Kansas City, Missouri. As Uptown Building and Theatre, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979....
.
After breakup (2005–2008)
After the band played their final show, the members continued to be involved in music in various ways. Rob and Ryan Pope have taken charge of Black Lodge Studios, the recording studio that the band formed with the recording of Guilt Show alongside limited stints playing with KoufaxKoufax (band)
Koufax are an indie rock band whose members are from mainly Toledo, Ohio. The band's self-titled debut EP was released in 1999 on independent label Doghouse Records, and got them noticed by The Get Up Kids, who signed them to their label, Vagrant Records subsidiary Heroes and Villains...
. Rob was a founding member of Lawrence
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
group White Whale
White Whale (band)
White Whale is a Lawrence, Kansas-based indie rock band composed of former members of Butterglory, The Get Up Kids, and Thee Higher Burning Fire...
before joining the indie rock group Spoon
Spoon (band)
Spoon is an American rock band formed in Austin, Texas. The band is composed of Britt Daniel ; Jim Eno ; Rob Pope and Eric Harvey .-History:...
.
Matt Pryor continued as part of The New Amsterdams, an acoustic alt-country group he formed in 2000. In 2007 he formed The Terrible Twos
The Terrible Twos
The Terrible Twos are an alternative Children's band from Lawrence, Kansas. They have the same line-up as The New Amsterdams.-History:In 2005 after The Get Up Kids split up, lead singer Matt Pryor turned his focus on his other band The New Amsterdams and, primarily, his children...
, a children's band that has released two albums on Vagrant Records. In July 2008, he released Confidence Man
Confidence Man (album)
Confidence Man is the first solo album by The New Amsterdams and Get Up Kids frontman Matt Pryor.-Recording:The album was written, produced, and recorded at Pryor's home studio in Lawrence, Kansas. The first single off the album, entitled "Lorelai" was made available on Pryor's Myspace page...
, his debut solo album.
Jim Suptic went on to form Blackpool Lights
Blackpool Lights
Blackpool Lights is an indie rock band founded in Kansas City, Missouri, by Get Up Kids guitarist Jim Suptic, bassist Brian Everard, and drummer Billy Brimblecom.-Formation and This Town's Disaster :...
with former members of Butterglory
Butterglory
Butterglory is an American indie-rock band from Lawrence, Kansas. Contemporaries of indie rock groups like Pavement and Archers of Loaf, the band helped explore similar musical territories and expand the genre...
and The Creature Comforts. He is also one of the co-founders of Curb Appeal Records
Curb Appeal Records
Curb Appeal Records is an American record label founded in Kansas City, Missouri by The Get Up Kids guitarist and Blackpool Lights frontman Jim Suptic.-History:In July 2005, The Get Up Kids split up, leaving the members to pursue their own side-projects...
, a Kansas City-based record label that released Blackpool Lights' debut album This Town's Disaster
This Town's Disaster
-Band:*Jim Suptic - Guitar, Vocals*J.D.Warnock - Guitar, Vocals, Keyboard*Billy Brimblecom - Drums*Brian Everard - Bass...
, plus albums by Smoking Popes
Smoking Popes
The Smoking Popes are an American pop punk from the northwest suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, formed in 1991. They play punk-influenced pop music with crooning vocals...
and The New Amsterdams.
James Dewees continued his side project Reggie and the Full Effect
Reggie and the Full Effect
Reggie and the Full Effect was a Kansas City indie rock band, the solo project for The Get Up Kids keyboardist James Dewees.-Early years, Greatest Hits 1984-1987, Promotional Copy and Under the Tray :...
. After the breakup of The Get Up Kids, Dewees toured with New Found Glory
New Found Glory
New Found Glory is an American rock band from Coral Springs, Florida. Formed in the summer of 1997, founding members were lead vocalist Jordan Pundik, guitarists Chad Gilbert and Steve Klein, bassist Ian Grushka and drummer Joe Marino...
as their touring keyboardist. After another brief tour opening for Hellogoodbye
Hellogoodbye
Hellogoodbye is a power pop band that was formed in Huntington Beach, California in 2001 by singer Forrest Kline. They were signed to Drive-Thru Records and released their first full-length album Zombies! Aliens! Vampires! Dinosaurs! in 2006, in addition to their previously released EP Hellogoodbye...
in 2006, he joined My Chemical Romance
My Chemical Romance
My Chemical Romance is an American alternative rock band from New Jersey, formed in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist Gerard Way, guitarists Ray Toro and Frank Iero, and bassist Mikey Way and have a diverse sound incorporating elements of punk, emo, glam metal, and progressive rock...
as touring keyboardist on their 2008 world tour. After returning home from the tour, he released the fifth Reggie and the Full Effect album on Vagrant Records, entitled Last Stop: Crappy Town
Last Stop: Crappy Town
-Personnel:*James Dewees - Vocals, Keyboard*Billy Johnson - Drums*Paul Gray - Bass*Cory White - Guitar*Sean Beavan - Producer-Album Position:-External links:* *...
, followed by a brief tour of the United States.
Reunion (2008–2009)
In late August and September 2008, while Dewees was touring with Reggie and the Full Effect, reports began to surface that he was hinting at a Get Up Kids reunion tour to commemorate the ten-year anniversary of the band's second album Something to Write Home About. According to reports, Dewees also confirmed that the band would be re-releasing the album.The Kansas City Star
The Kansas City Star is a McClatchy newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri, in the United States. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes...
, confirming rumors that the band would be playing a surprise reunion show at The Record Bar in Kansas City on November 16, 2008. According to the article, the band had made the decision over the summer and had Dewees intentionally leak the information to fuel speculation.
The reunion show was officially announced on Friday, November 14, along with the official confirmation of the album re-release and a 2009 national tour. The tenth anniversary edition of the album includes a code to download bonus demo tracks from the original recording of Something To Write Home About from the Vagrant Records website, and a DVD containing a band retrospective and other content, including archive footage, and their live performance from March 13, 2009 at Liberty Hall
Liberty Hall
Liberty Hall , in Dublin, Ireland is the headquarters of the Services, Industrial, Professional, and Technical Union...
in Lawrence. The show took place Sunday, November 16, 2008 at the record bar in Kansas City. The band played their album Something To Write Home About from beginning to end, as well as a six song encore.
Simple Science & There Are Rules (2009–present)
In the summer of 2009, the band posted photos on their TwitterTwitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
page showing the group in a recording studio, incurring speculation as to whether or not they were recording a new album. After embarking on the European leg of their reunion tour, the band confirmed that they were writing new material and would be playing at least one of the songs, entitled "Keith Case," on the tour. During a session with Daytrotter.com, the band reports that there is "a new album done and just waiting to be put out there sometime soon."http://www.daytrotter.com/dt/the-get-up-kids-concert/20030982-7400.html In an interview with Fret12.com, Pryor confirmed that they have recorded nine new songs, and will be recording another twelve to release on three 7-track EPs, most likely on limited-run 12" vinyl.
On February 15, 2010 the band announced that they would be self-releasing a new EP entitled Simple Science
Simple Science
-Personnel:Band*Matt Pryor - Lead Vocals, Guitar*Jim Suptic - Guitar, Vocals*Rob Pope - Bass*Ryan Pope - Drums*James Dewees - Keyboards, VocalsProduction*Ed Rose - Production-Chart performance:...
, their first studio release in six years. The 4-song EP was released on 12" colored vinyl and CD in April.
On October 29, 2010, The Get Up Kids announced their fifth full-length studio album, There Are Rules
There Are Rules
There Are Rules is the fifth studio album by The Get Up Kids, the band's first full-length release since 2004's Guilt Show. After their initial reunion, the band decided to challenge themselves to write and record an album in only two weeks without using any digital technology...
, to be released on January 25, 2011. They also confirmed that the album would not be released on Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records is an indie rock label based in Los Angeles, California and is home to such artists as The Hold Steady, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, Active Child, PJ Harvey, Reptar, School of Seven Bells, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Thrice, James Vincent McMorrow, Placebo, and many...
, who had released their previous three albums, but on their own Quality Hill Records. The album was produced by longtime collaborator Ed Rose
Ed Rose
Ed Rose is an American sound engineer and record producer. He has worked extensively with groups in the modern emo and pop punk scenes. He also co-owns Black Lodge Recording with Rob Pope and his brother Ryan Pope.-History:...
and mixed by Bob Weston
Bob Weston
Bob Weston is an American musician, producer, recording engineer, and record mastering engineer. Critic Jason Ankeny declares that "Weston's name and fingerprints are all over the American underground rock of the post-punk era, producing and engineering dates for a seemingly endless number of...
, who produced the band's debut album. Several of the tracks were recorded during the same session as Simple Science, the track "Keith Case" appearing on both releases.
On April 1, 2011, The Get Up Kids announced a summer co-headlining tour with Saves The Day
Saves the Day
Saves the Day is an American rock band from Princeton, New Jersey, formed in 1994. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Chris Conley, guitarist Arun Bali, bassist Rodrigo Palma, and drummer Claudio Rivera....
.
Influence
The Get Up Kids have had a lasting impact on the music scene, having been cited as inspirations to several prominent bands and artists. Blink-182Blink-182
Blink-182 is an American rock band consisting of vocalist and bass guitarist Mark Hoppus, vocalist and guitarist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker. They have sold over 27 million albums worldwide since forming in Poway, California in 1992...
bassist and singer Mark Hoppus
Mark Hoppus
Mark Allan Hoppus is an American musician, record producer, and television host. He is the bass guitarist and one of the two lead vocalists of the pop punk band Blink-182, as well as the bass guitarist and lead vocalist of the alternative rock band +44. He is a co-founder of both bands...
is a vocal fan, having proposed to his wife to The Get Up Kids song "I'll Catch You." They were also a major influence on the rest of the band, even at their peak popularity around the release of Take Off Your Pants and Jacket
Take off Your Pants and Jacket
Take Off Your Pants and Jacket is the fourth studio album by the American pop punk band Blink-182. Produced by Jerry Finn, the album was released on June 12, 2001 through MCA Records. Blink-182, after the massive commercial success of their previous album, Enema of the State, entered the studio in...
. The members of Fall Out Boy
Fall Out Boy
Fall Out Boy is an American rock band from Wilmette, Illinois, formed in 2001. The band consists of vocalist, guitarist and composer Patrick Stump, bassist and lyricist Pete Wentz, guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer Andy Hurley. The band released five studio albums from 2003–2008...
cite The Get Up Kids' influence, particularly Four Minute Mile. In a 2005 interview with Alternative Press, Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz stated that the band had a huge influence on him and the other members of Fall Out Boy. "There should be a How To Be a Pop-Punk Kid starter kit with bands like Get Up Kids, so kids would know whose shoulders bands like us are standing on. Fall Out Boy would not be a band if it were not for The Get Up Kids."
New Jersey based act Midtown
Midtown (band)
Midtown was an American pop punk band from Springfield, New Jersey. Midtown was formed in November 1998 by three Rutgers University students, but soon became a quartet. The band took advantage of the fertile New Jersey punk scene to develop a sound that combined elements of pop punk and punk rock...
has stated in interviews that they were heavily influenced by The Get Up Kids, among other groups. The Early November band members were all fans, and influenced by, The Get Up Kids. The Early November song "Baby Blue" includes the line "I don't want you to love me anymore", a direct reference to the Get Up Kids song "No Love" both lyrically and melodically. The band Hellogoodbye
Hellogoodbye
Hellogoodbye is a power pop band that was formed in Huntington Beach, California in 2001 by singer Forrest Kline. They were signed to Drive-Thru Records and released their first full-length album Zombies! Aliens! Vampires! Dinosaurs! in 2006, in addition to their previously released EP Hellogoodbye...
have been vocal fans of the band and while on tour with Reggie and the Full Effect in 2007, two years after the breakup of The Get Up Kids, Hellogoodbye invited James Dewees and Matt Pryor onstage with them, and proceeded to back them in a cover of The Get Up Kids' song "Action & Action
Action & Action
Action & Action is the second single from Kansas City, Missouri band The Get Up Kids' album Something to Write Home About. The single was only released in Europe, and is the first Get Up Kids single released on Compact Disc on March 24, 2000 in North America and November 24 elsewhere.-Track...
".
Despite their lasting influence on modern music, the band has attempted to disassociate themselves with many of the bands they inspired. Following the band's reformation, guitarist Jim Suptic
Jim Suptic
Jim Suptic is an American musician and entrepreneur, best known for being the guitarist for Kansas City, Missouri band The Get Up Kids.-The Get Up Kids:...
undertook an interview with website Drowned in Sound
Drowned in Sound
DrownedinSound.com or DiS is a UK based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway . The site is an editorially independent music website.-History:...
, in which he said, "The punk scene we came out of and the punk scene now are completely different. It's like glam rock
Glam rock
Glam rock is a style of rock and pop music that developed in the UK in the early 1970s, which was performed by singers and musicians who wore outrageous clothes, makeup and hairstyles, particularly platform-soled boots and glitter...
now. We played the Bamboozle fests
The Bamboozle
The Bamboozle is an annual rain-or-shine, three-day music festival held in New Jersey. Every year, new bands compete for spots during the two days. The event evolved out of the Skate and Surf Festival.- The Characters:...
this year and we felt really out of place... If this is the world we helped create, then I apologise." He went onto say they were grateful for the acknowledgements they have received, though explaining "the problem is most of [the bands they inspired] aren't very good."
Band members
Current- Matt Pryor – lead vocals, rhythm guitars
- Jim SupticJim SupticJim Suptic is an American musician and entrepreneur, best known for being the guitarist for Kansas City, Missouri band The Get Up Kids.-The Get Up Kids:...
– lead guitars, backing vocals - Rob PopeRob Pope-History:Rob Pope grew up in Olathe, Kansas. In the summer of 1994, he was in a band called "Kingpin" with his brother Ryan and future Get Up Kids bandmate Jim Suptic. After the band broke up due to internal conflicts, Rob and Jim re-formed with Matt Pryor, who had been playing with Secular Theme...
– bass - Ryan Pope – drums, percussion (since 1996)
- James DeweesJames DeweesJames Dewees is an American musician who has been involved in many musical projects including Coalesce, The Get Up Kids, Reggie and the Full Effect, New Found Glory, My Chemical Romance, and, most recently, Leathermouth....
– keyboards, backing vocals (since 1999)
Former
- Thomas Becker – drums, percussion (1995)
- Nathan Shay – drums, percussion (1996)
Discography
- Four Minute MileFour Minute MileFour Minute Mile is the first full-length album released by Kansas City, Missouri emo band The Get Up Kids.-Recording:The album was recorded in April 1997 on a budget of $4,000. It was produced by Shellac bassist Bob Weston in Chicago over the course of two and a half days. It was released by...
(1997) - Something to Write Home AboutSomething to Write Home AboutSomething to Write Home About is the second full-length studio album by American rock band The Get Up Kids, released on September 21, 1999. The album was produced by The Get Up Kids themselves, with co-producers Chad Blinman and Alex Brahl. Blinman also recorded and mixed the album, with Brahl...
(1999) - On a WireOn a WireOn a Wire is a 2002 album released by The Get Up Kids on Vagrant Records. The album was also released in two record versions: black 180 gram vinyl and Limited Edition picture disc.-Recording:...
(2002) - Guilt ShowGuilt ShowGuilt Show is the fourth studio album by The Get Up Kids. It was released on Vagrant Records on March 3, 2004.-Recording:The album was the first album to be recorded in Black Lodge Studios, the recording studio in Eudora, Kansas renovated and owned by The Get Up Kids and producer Ed Rose...
(2004) - There Are RulesThere Are RulesThere Are Rules is the fifth studio album by The Get Up Kids, the band's first full-length release since 2004's Guilt Show. After their initial reunion, the band decided to challenge themselves to write and record an album in only two weeks without using any digital technology...
(2011)
Further reading
- Grubbs, Eric (2008). POST: A Look at the Influence of Post-Hardcore-1985-2007. iUniverse, Inc. ISBN 0-595-51835-4