4 Albums That Defined the Emo Scene of the 2000s

The golden age of emo music has come and gone, as well as its resurgence in popularity in the 2000s. Still, we got a few excellent albums during that decade. Let’s take a look at four of the best emo albums from the 2000s!

1. ‘Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge’ by My Chemical Romance

My Chemical Romance’s second studio album changed the game. It was the album that pulled in a huge new pool of fans in 2004. And it makes sense why. This emo pop-punk record is loaded with hits and didn’t have much in the way of filler. 

There’s so much music on Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge that can be revisited regularly without getting old. Not many bands in the genre could manage that. The whole album is essential listening, but “I’m Not Okay (I Promise)” and “Hang ‘Em High” are must-listens.

2. ‘From Under The Cork Tree’ by Fall Out Boy

If you were in high school in 2005, you likely remember this album’s biggest single “Sugar We’re Goin’ Down”. From the almost nonsensical lyrics to that bizarre music video that started getting traction on a crazy new website called YouTube, this song (and the whole of From Under The Cork Tree) marked a sharp turn. 

That sharp turn was not only in emo music and pop-punk, but also in how young people consumed albums and music as a whole in the 2000s. “Dance, Dance” and “Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner” are a couple of other nostalgia powerhouses on this record.

3. ‘American Football’ by American Football

If you’re an emo snob who scoffed at the first couple of entries of this list, you’re probably glad to see American Football here. Their self-titled 1999 album is the definitive Midwest emo record that inspired countless bands in the decade that followed, and it’s still deeply loved today. 

We’d be bold enough to say that American Football is one of the most heartwrenching breakup albums ever written and produced… and not only in the Midwest emo genre.

4. ‘Bleed American’ by Jimmy Eat World

This emo-pop record was one of several albums that propelled emo band Jimmy Eat World into fam in the early 2000s, and it’s surprisingly aged pretty well. Bleed American went platinum in 2001, got an insane amount of play on MTV, and featured a chart-topping single. “Sweetness” and “The Middle” are must-listens, but the whole of the album is worth listening to again and again.

Not-so-fun fact: The album was renamed Jimmy Eat World after the 9/11 terrorist attacks for obvious reasons.

Photo by Carley Margolis/FilmMagic

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