American Football (sometimes stylised in all lowercase as american football or americ anfootball) is an American
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band from
Urbana, Illinois
Urbana ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Champaign County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, Urbana had a population of 38,336. As of the 2010 United States Census, Urbana is the List of municipalities in Illinois, 38th-most pop ...
, originally active from 1997 until 2000, and again beginning with 2014 and onwards. The band was formed by guitarist/bassist and singer
Mike Kinsella
Mike Kinsella (born March 4, 1977) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. Having been involved in many Illinois-based bands, he is best known as the lead vocalist and guitarist of the emo band American Football.
Kinsella's first musical ...
(formerly of
Cap'n Jazz
Cap'n Jazz (sometimes stylised as caP'n Jazz) was an American emo band formed in Chicago in 1989 by brothers Tim and Mike Kinsella, who were joined by Sam Zurick and Victor Villarreal. After a number of name changes and the addition of guitaris ...
and
Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronati ...
and currently of
Owen
Owen may refer to:
Origin: The name Owen is of Irish and Welsh origin.
Its meanings range from noble, youthful, and well-born.
Gender: Owen is historically the masculine form of the name. Popular feminine variations include Eowyn and Owena. ...
), guitarist Steve Holmes (also a member of the Geese) and drummer and trumpet playe
Steve Lamos(formerly of the One Up Downstairs, one-time member of
the Firebird Band
Christopher Robert Broach (born September 5, 1976 in Madison, Wisconsin) is one of the guitarists/vocalists in the 1990s emo band Braid. Broach joined Braid in 1994, recording his guitar parts on the band's first 7-inch release a week later.
...
and Edward Burch & the Staunch Characters, and currently of the Geese and DMS), who has since left the band.
Despite the group's short initial lifespan, their
self-titled debut album became one of the most acclaimed
emo
Emo is a rock music genre characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of and hardcore punk from the Washington D.C. hardcore punk scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore and pioneered b ...
and
math rock
Math rock is a style of progressive and indie rock with roots in bands such as King Crimson and Rush as well as 20th-century minimal music composers such as Steve Reich. It is characterized by complex, atypical rhythmic structures (includi ...
records of its era. American Football reunited in 2014, with Kinsella's cousin
Nate Kinsella
Nate Kinsella (born March 19, 1980) is an American musician who currently resides in Brooklyn, New York. Nate's musical resumé is vast, including most notably projects such as American Football, Joan of Arc, Make Believe, Mata Hari and De ...
joining the band, and has since released two more albums, both bearing the same name as their debut: ''
American Football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
'' (2016) and ''
American Football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
'' (2019).
History
Mike Kinsella and Steve Holmes knew one another at an early age, as both were students at
Wheeling High School
Wheeling High School, or WHS, is a public four-year high school located in Wheeling, Illinois, a northwest suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of Township High School District 214, which also includes Buffalo Grove High ...
in
Wheeling, Illinois
Wheeling is a village in Cook County, Illinois, Cook and Lake County, Illinois, Lake counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it is primarily in Cook County, approximately northwest of downtown Chicago. Per the 2020 United Sta ...
, where Kinsella played drums for
Cap'n Jazz
Cap'n Jazz (sometimes stylised as caP'n Jazz) was an American emo band formed in Chicago in 1989 by brothers Tim and Mike Kinsella, who were joined by Sam Zurick and Victor Villarreal. After a number of name changes and the addition of guitaris ...
; Holmes played guitar in a variety of bands. Kinsella and Lamos began playing together with David Johnson and Allen Johnson in 1997 under the name the One Up Downstairs, in which Kinsella was exclusively a vocalist. Three songs were recorded under this name, with the intention of releasing them as a 7" record on
Polyvinyl Records
In polymer chemistry, vinyl polymers are a group of polymers derived from substituted vinyl () monomers. Their backbone is an extended alkane chain . In popular usage, "vinyl" refers only to polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
Examples
Vinyl polymers ar ...
. However, the band splintered before the record could be pressed, and the songs were shelved. The three tracks recorded by the One Up Downstairs would finally be released in 2006 as a digital download EP and in 2009 as a 7" record through Polyvinyl.
David Johnson and Allen Johnson went on to form the band Very Secretary (and later Favorite Saints), while Kinsella and Lamos began working with Steve Holmes. American Football completed a total of two releases—a titular EP in 1998 and its
debut album in 1999, both through Polyvinyl Records. Though the band did not record bass on the EP, Kinsella played bass guitar on some songs for the LP.
Within a year of the release of its full-length, American Football became a studio project. Shortly thereafter, the band mutually decided to stop recording together. Still, American Football gained critical acclaim for that album, which merged the plain-spoken, confessional lyrics and the varying
time signature
The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...
s of
math rock
Math rock is a style of progressive and indie rock with roots in bands such as King Crimson and Rush as well as 20th-century minimal music composers such as Steve Reich. It is characterized by complex, atypical rhythmic structures (includi ...
with a softer musical sensibility. These characteristics carried on in Mike Kinsella's solo project
Owen
Owen may refer to:
Origin: The name Owen is of Irish and Welsh origin.
Its meanings range from noble, youthful, and well-born.
Gender: Owen is historically the masculine form of the name. Popular feminine variations include Eowyn and Owena. ...
, and Kinsella would later re-record "Never Meant" as Owen in 2004.
Reformation
In March 2014, Polyvinyl Records announced a deluxe re-issue of the band's eponymous debut album, including 10 additional unheard demos and live recordings. Live dates, in
Champaign
Champaign ( ) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 88,302 at the 2020 census. It is the tenth-most populous municipality in Illinois and the fourth most populous city in Illinois outside the Chicago metropo ...
and
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
, were announced the following month, all of which sold out. For these dates, Mike's cousin
Nate Kinsella
Nate Kinsella (born March 19, 1980) is an American musician who currently resides in Brooklyn, New York. Nate's musical resumé is vast, including most notably projects such as American Football, Joan of Arc, Make Believe, Mata Hari and De ...
joined the band on bass. further tour dates followed in the US, Canada, Spain, UK, Japan, and Australia.
Two years after reforming the band released their second album. Again eponymous, and again on Polyvinyl,
the album was released in October 2016, preceded by single "I've Been So Lost For So Long", which was made available for streaming through
SoundCloud
SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...
.
The album's cover featured the same house photographed on the band's first full-length. The "American Football House" became a landmark for emo music fans around the world, who would travel to Urbana, Illinois, to take photos outside of the home.
American Football's
third album
''Third Album'' is the third studio album released by the Jackson 5 on Motown Records, and the group's second LP released in 1970, on September 18.
''Third Album'' featured the group's fourth consecutive No. 1 single on the US pop charts, " I' ...
, once again eponymous, was released in March 2019, with the single "Silhouettes" made available upon announcement the preceding December.
Steve Lamos left the band in July 2021, citing a change of situation in his life. A single with the tracks "Rare Symmetry" and "
Fade Into You
"Fade into You" is a song by American alternative rock band Mazzy Star from their second studio album, '' So Tonight That I Might See'' (1993). The song was written by lyricist Hope Sandoval and composer David Roback, who also served as produ ...
" (a
Mazzy Star
Mazzy Star is an American alternative rock band formed in 1988 in Santa Monica, California, from remnants of the group Opal. Founding member David Roback's friend Hope Sandoval became the group's vocalist when Kendra Smith left Opal.
Mazzy Star ...
cover
Cover or covers may refer to:
Packaging
* Another name for a lid
* Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package
* Album cover, the front of the packaging
* Book cover or magazine cover
** Book design
** Back cover copy, part of co ...
), was released in December the same year.
Musical style
Although they are usually described as an
emo
Emo is a rock music genre characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of and hardcore punk from the Washington D.C. hardcore punk scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore and pioneered b ...
band,
as one of the most important bands of the late 1990s
Midwestern emo
Midwest emo (or Midwestern emo) refers to the emo scene and/or subgenre that developed in 1990s Midwestern United States. Employing unconventional vocal stylings, distinct guitar riffs and arpeggiated melodies, Midwest emo bands shifted away fro ...
scene and subgenre,
American Football's musical style has been also described as
math rock
Math rock is a style of progressive and indie rock with roots in bands such as King Crimson and Rush as well as 20th-century minimal music composers such as Steve Reich. It is characterized by complex, atypical rhythmic structures (includi ...
,
and
post-rock
Post-rock is a form of experimental rock characterized by a focus on exploring textures and timbre over traditional rock song structures, chords, or riffs. Post-rock artists are often instrumental, typically combining rock instrumentation with ...
due to them having uncommon time signatures in their songs, which is a staple in both the
math rock
Math rock is a style of progressive and indie rock with roots in bands such as King Crimson and Rush as well as 20th-century minimal music composers such as Steve Reich. It is characterized by complex, atypical rhythmic structures (includi ...
and
post-rock
Post-rock is a form of experimental rock characterized by a focus on exploring textures and timbre over traditional rock song structures, chords, or riffs. Post-rock artists are often instrumental, typically combining rock instrumentation with ...
's sounds.
While their various works have been punctually described as
indie rock
Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...
,
dream pop
Dream pop (also typeset as dreampop) is a subgenre of alternative rock and neo-psychedelia that emphasizes atmosphere and sonic texture as much as pop melody. Common characteristics include breathy vocals, dense productions, and effects such as ...
, and
slowcore
Slowcore is a subgenre of alternative rock and indie rock. The music of slowcore artists is generally characterized by bleak lyrics, downbeat melodies, slower tempos and minimalist arrangements. Slowcore is often used interchangeably with the t ...
.
Talking about the group's sound, Tim Sendra of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
stated, "The trio spent almost a year coming up with a clean, melodic approach that blended the intimacy of emo with the empty space of
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
, while adding
pop hooks and jangling guitar interplay to the mix."
In their article about the math rock's history, specialized online magazine Fecking Bahamas described American Football as "a second-wave emo band rooted in unconventional melodic song structures as well as containing elements of math rock and slowcore."
Members
Current members
*
Mike Kinsella
Mike Kinsella (born March 4, 1977) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. Having been involved in many Illinois-based bands, he is best known as the lead vocalist and guitarist of the emo band American Football.
Kinsella's first musical ...
– lead vocals, guitar
(1997–2000, 2014–present), bass guitar
(1997–2000), drums, percussion
(2021–present)
*Steve Holmes – guitar
(1997–2000, 2014–present), keyboards
(1997–2000)
*
Nate Kinsella
Nate Kinsella (born March 19, 1980) is an American musician who currently resides in Brooklyn, New York. Nate's musical resumé is vast, including most notably projects such as American Football, Joan of Arc, Make Believe, Mata Hari and De ...
– bass guitar, backing vocals, vibraphone
(2014–present)
Former members
*Steve Lamos – drums, percussion, trumpet
(1997–2000, 2014–2021)
Touring musicians
*Mike Garzon – percussion, melodica
(2016–present)
*Cory Bracken – vibraphone
(2019–present)
*Sarah Versprille – backing vocals
(2019–present)
Timeline
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Discography
* ''
American Football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
'' (1999)
* ''
American Football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
'' (2016)
* ''
American Football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
'' (2019)
References
External links
American Footballat Polyvinyl Records
at joanfrc.com
at Epitonic
{{Authority control
Polyvinyl Record Co. artists
Musical groups established in 1997
Musical groups disestablished in 2000
Emo musical groups from Illinois
Indie rock musical groups from Illinois
Musical groups reestablished in 2014
Wichita Recordings artists
1997 establishments in Illinois
2000 disestablishments in Illinois
Family musical groups
Big Scary Monsters Recording Company artists