Something Corporate
Formed on Orange County's Dana Hills High School campus in 1998, Something Corporate put piano at the center of Warped Tour pop-punk, with frontman Andrew McMahon's theatrical playing and raw, confessional lyrics turning "Konstantine" and "I Woke Up in a Car" into scene-defining anthems on 2002's Leaving Through the Window.
McMahon has said he was "into" The Get Up Kids while forming Something Corporate's sound — their emotionally direct, melodic take on emo gave McMahon's piano-driven songwriting a template beyond straight pop-punk.
listen forThe Get Up Kids' urgent, hook-forward "Action & Action" and Something Corporate's own driving "I Woke Up in a Car" both pair a fast, anxious verse with a huge, cathartic release.
McMahon has named Jimmy Eat World as a significant influence on Something Corporate's early years — their emo-pop balance of real emotional stakes and huge, radio-ready hooks shaped McMahon's own songwriting instincts.
listen forJimmy Eat World's "The Middle" and Something Corporate's own "If U C Jordan" both pair a plainspoken, conversational verse with a chorus built to fill an arena.
McMahon has cited Weezer among his core influences; their crunchy, hook-saturated power-pop guitar sound sits underneath Something Corporate's piano-led arrangements even when the piano is what people remember first.
listen forWeezer's fuzzed-out, hooky "Say It Ain't So" and Something Corporate's own big-riff "Punk Rock Princess" both build a whole song around one instantly singable power-pop guitar hook.