Long Island, NY · emo · alt-rock · post-hardcore

Taking Back Sunday

4 upcoming festivals

Long Island emo royalty — mic-swinging catharsis, twenty-plus years deep, 'MakeDamnSure' still a communal throat-shred, and yes, the mic still swings.

Taking Back Sunday formed on Long Island in 1999 and became one of the defining bands of early-2000s American emo. Their debut, Tell All Your Friends, established the template: interlocking dual vocals from Adam Lazzara and John Nolan, call-and-response lines that pile on top of each other, and lyrics pitched somewhere between accusation and confession.

The band's lineup has shifted repeatedly over the years, with Nolan departing and later returning, but Lazzara has remained the constant. Louder Now brought them their widest audience and produced "MakeDamnSure," still the song most crowds are waiting for. Live, they remain a loud, sweaty, sing-along proposition.

emoalt-rockpost-hardcore