How do I write an Emo song?

Hello everyone. This past week has been full of a combination of comedy and nostalgia. While discussing typical chord progressions used in various levels of pop music, a few students and I ended up taking a little trip down into early 2000’s emo and pop punk territory. We ended up listening to and playing some Simple Plan and Taking Back Sunday and talked about some of the themes, styles, and progressions that were used in a lot of that kind of music.

The best way to describe my time playing Emo would be like in “The Other Guys” when Will Farrell says to Mark Wahlberg, “You learned to dance like that sarcastically?” after Mark’s character performs a little dance routine the scene prior. It was a sarcastic endeavour that made me find appreciation for the genre and locked in a few tricks to recreate it later on in life.

One big thing I noticed about the genre is that, more often than not, it was wealthy/privileged people (mostly white males) that wanted for nothing that ended up pretty deep in the Emo scene and bands. That kind of searching for things to be upset about – which is a very human thing – inspired the lyrics for this upcoming song and helped me to make a kind of comedy version of a typical Emo style song.

What chords did you use?

I chose the key that allows for the use of open strings on every chord and has been used multiple times by multiple bands to evoke an emotional response. Then I threw on some tongue in cheek lyrics that start out with instructions of how to play and then go on to be about the general topic on the most popular songs that made the biggest music videos.

The chords I used were C#m, A, E, B (see image for tab and notation)

You should notice that there’s the open B and E strings in every chord. This is deliberate. You can always replace both the B and E with a single D# on the B major chord, but that isn’t necessary in this style of playing.

I only use these chords and variations of them. You’ll hear strumming, single note plucking, and a little ostinato after each chorus that is all just based on those four chords.

Can we read the lyrics and get to the song?

Of course we can. Just remember, I put myself in a spoiled teenager’s shoes when I was writing these lyrics. They are meant as a fun joke based on a fictitious character and are not intended to target anybody.

Verse

Try to make your voice so you can’t stand it
Make the words line up just like you planned it
Play with open notes on the B and E strings
As you force them to listen to all of the things

Prechorus

That hurt your feelings
Like when people call you a jerk or
Anytime you’re chewed out, for being late for work

Chorus

I’m sorry Dad, I didn’t get a ride from Mom today
I’m sorry Dad, I don’t know what else you want me to say
I’m sorry Dad, I don’t have what it takes to fill your shoes
I know it’s not me you would choose

Verse 2 (turns into the 2nd prechorus)

Maybe if we could get along
There’d be no need to write this song
But how would I let them all know
How it is you make me feel

When I show up to work just to be
Reminded that I’m late

Chorus

I’m sorry Dad, I didn’t get a ride from Mom today
I’m sorry Dad, I don’t know what else you want me to say
I’m sorry Dad, I don’t have what it takes to fill your shoes
I know it’s not me you would choose

You would choose
I know it’s not me you would choose
That you would choose
I know it’s not me you would choose

Listen here:

With nothing more than the chords provided above you can make your own song based in this neck of the musical woods. I understand I’ve taken a genre that is close to a lot of people’s hearts and made a joke song out of it, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t enjoyed the music or that I am diminishing people’s rights to listen to what they want, feel how they want, and be how they want; I’m just doing the same thing in my own way. That’s one of the endless beauties of art; being able to interpret things however we want and being able to laugh at it or cry from it… or laugh at it until we cry from it. That leads us to the ending piece.

Parting thoughts

Being an individual who has struggled with anxiety and depression my whole life has forced me to find humour in whatever I can to try to lighten my own mood. I’m not always appropriate with my humour, but I do try not to offend and to keep things within reason. Just like our taste in art, our way of thought, and our very existence, we all have our own senses of humour and things we like. It’s important to respect and acknowledge that each person has their own perspective.

Sometimes we need a little guidance from time to time in seeing things from a different perspective, in learning about something new, or even in learning about something we have immense experience with and have lived with all or most of our lives. If music is something you’re interested in learning more about then I will do my best to provide some avenues of thought, practice, and harmony to help enhance your perspective to see some things perhaps you haven’t thought to look for on your own journey. You’re always free to contact me for lessons, to check out my services page, and to ask me questions or comment on these posts.

I hope this has been a fun experience for you where you got to learn a little and laugh a little. Thank you for your time and I hope you have yourself an amazing week.

All the best,

– Matt