The Promise Ring
photo: eric schmuttenmaer · cc by-sa 2.0 ↗Formed in Milwaukee in 1995 by Davey von Bohlen (formerly of Cap'n Jazz), The Promise Ring became one of the leading bands of second-wave Midwest emo, turning the Washington, D.C. hardcore scene's melodic intensity into hooky, driving indie-pop on Nothing Feels Good (1997) and Very Emergency (1999).
Von Bohlen has said that discovering Washington, D.C.'s mid-1980s "Revolution Summer" scene — Rites of Spring foremost among it — is "when it started for me," recalling being floored by the band's raw emotional intensity as a teenager.
listen forRites of Spring's urgent, cathartic "Drink Deep" and The Promise Ring's own driving "Emergency! Emergency!" both channel hardcore's intensity into a melodic, almost desperate-sounding chorus.
The Promise Ring came up under the direct influence of Washington, D.C.'s Dischord Records scene that Fugazi anchored throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, absorbing its melodic post-hardcore intensity into their own more pop-facing songwriting.
listen forFugazi's tense, dynamic "Waiting Room" and The Promise Ring's own propulsive "Red & Blue Jeans" both build tension through a tightly wound, start-stop rhythm section.