Get Up Kids

Call it emo. Call it post-hardcore. Call it pre-millennial angst-driven pop-core. Call it whatever. Don't, however, waste time coining genre names for the Get Up Kids; its valuable time better spent diving into the depths of the band's latest, Something to Write Home About. The band's sound has a way of resolving itself far better than elusive catch phrases, generic descriptions and genre labels could ever hope for, anyway.

With the release of Something to Write Home About, the Kids take their sound to new levels, with driving arrangements only hinted at on their previous albums. Still using the turquoise guitar tones of their earlier albums, the

Kids also find time to throw in ragged guitars, bigger beats and production to make your head swirl. Where Joe Emo is ready to back down, play discordant guitar riffs and whine all night long, the Get Ups once again prove their ability to pack a punch with vibrant songwriting on this album.

Dodging the rosters of big-name labels, The Get Up Kids inked a contract with Vagrant Records and established their latest stab at a record company imprint, Heroes & Villains. "In the indie spirit, we started our own label and signed a deal with Vagrant Records to pretty much run the show." - says singer Matt Pryor.

Though crops of emo-esque combos seem to be springing up faster than drunks at a St. Patty's Day parade, the Get Ups have been throwing down their sound for nearly five years. Coming together in the suburbs of Kansas City, MO the Kids formed from the ruins of Kingpin and Secret Decoder Ring, a pair of K.C.-based acts causing a stir on the local scene. After a self-financed debut 7-inch, "Shorty," released on Huey Proudhon Records, the band began turning heads.

Growing out of the attention garnered from their debut 7-inch, the band released a string of singles for Contrast and Doghouse Records, all the while precariously balancing the band?s output against their drummer's high school career. The band's 7-inch collection would blossom into both an EP and the band?s first full-length, Four Minute Mile; both were released on the Doghouse label with Four Minute Mile's sales now reaching over the 40,000 mark.

The Kids soon found themselves hitting the road pretty hard, touring in support of acts such as Braid, Jimmy Eat World, Mineral, and MxPx, among others. After crisscrossing both the United States and Europe, meeting up with acts like Rocket From the Crypt and Sleater Kinney, as well as making an appearance at Austin's fabled South By Southwest, the Kids finally had their share of the road -- playing more than 200 shows in a year will do that. After catching their breath, the band settled back in Kansas City, spending their time fleshing out a heap of new songs for Something To Write Home About. Soon after, they relocated to Los Angeles, CA to record the new full length with Chad Blinman (Face To Face, Dishwalla, No Motiv) at the Los Feliz, CA based studio Mad Hatter.

In addition to the band's beefed up sound on Something to Write Home About, the Get Ups' latest album also features an addition to the band, with James Dewees, former tom-tom hurler extraordinaire of Coalesce, on keyboards. "We're pretty excited because we now look more like Duran Duran with a full-fledged keyboard player," joked Jim Suptic.

With a new member, a new album and a new label, the Kids are set to launch a new chapter of their history. With tours scheduled to support their most compelling album to date, the Get Ups are positioned to take their swirling tunes to new levels with Something to Write Home About.

March 2000 sees the 'official' European release on Epitaph Europe, with 2 previously unreleased extra tracks exclusive for this release.