Emo Pioneers The Get Up Kids Celebrate 25 Years of a Beloved Classic

Nearly three decades into their career, emo pioneers The Get Up Kids have plenty to write home about at this point. Specifically, their current tour, which celebrates the 25 year anniversary of one of their breakout records. The tour will bring them to Milwaukee on Tuesday, October 8th, when they'll play The Rave with Smoking Popes opening for the band.

Reliving the Glory Days of Emo's Golden Era

The Enduring Legacy of "Something To Write Home About"

The Get Up Kids' 1999 album "Something To Write Home About" has become a beloved classic in the emo and alternative rock canon. As the band embarks on a tour to commemorate the record's 25th anniversary, guitarist Jim Suptic reflects on the profound impact it has had on their careers and the lives of their fans. Suptic acknowledges the sense of nostalgia and reminiscence that comes with revisiting this seminal work. "It's a lot of reminiscing and nostalgia, which is okay. I'm okay with nostalgia," he says. "You know, when you make a record, you hope people like it. It's crazy. It kind of changed all of our lives, and it's hard to believe 25 years later, we're out here doing the biggest tour that we've done in a while."The recording process for "Something To Write Home About" was a formative experience for the band, who were still relatively new to the music industry at the time. "It was kind of a crazy time," Suptic recalls. "Our band had a lot of hype behind us back then. We were getting courted by a lot of labels. We went out to Los Angeles to make it for almost two months, and I had never lived outside of the Kansas City area. We were kind of naive, and we just knew we had to make a good record that sounded right."The band's previous debut record had been recorded in a mere two and a half days, a remarkably short timeframe by today's standards. In contrast, "Something To Write Home About" benefited from a more leisurely and collaborative approach. "We demoed this record and we reissued it last year, and the reissue comes with all that. You can hear a lot of those demos. Our friend had a mobile digital unit for recording, which was a big deal at the time," Suptic explains. "It's interesting to listen back to it, how we changed parts. We did pre-production before, and Chad Blinman, who produced it, was involved. So we had the luxury of all the time that we needed, which is great."

Connecting with New Generations of Fans

The enduring popularity of "Something To Write Home About" has been a source of pride and amazement for the band. Suptic notes that they're seeing a wider range of fans at their shows, with parents who discovered the album in their youth now bringing their own children to experience the music live."There's parents that got into the record bringing their kids to the shows now. But I think the lyrics are very universal. Like, going from a teenager to growing up. That's what the album is about, you know, and I think it must have struck a chord with people, and that's awesome. That's all you can ever ask for," Suptic says.The band's live performances of the album's standout tracks continue to elicit enthusiastic reactions from the audience. Suptic singles out "I'm A Loner Dottie, A Rebel" as a personal favorite to play live, while the one-two punch of "Holiday" and "Action & Action" at the start of the set always sets the tone for an electrifying show.

Revisiting Milwaukee and The Rave's Haunted History

As The Get Up Kids prepare to bring their 25th anniversary tour to Milwaukee's The Rave, Suptic reflects on the band's past experiences in the city and the venue's storied haunted reputation."We played Milwaukee with The Promise Ring many, many years ago. I feel like we kind of skipped Milwaukee a lot because we always played Chicago, and I feel kind of bad about that," Suptic admits. "Last time we played, I think, was right before COVID. We were opening for Dashboard Confessional. It was a great show, and I'm hoping the next time we play it'll be lovely, too."The Rave's reputation as a haunted venue has not escaped the band's notice. "We played the big room twice in, like, six months. We opened for Green Day and then we opened for Weezer. So they told us about it," Suptic says with a laugh. He even recounts a spooky encounter with the venue's infamous haunted pool, saying, "Yes, and I don't need to go back down there ever again (laughs.) I think we went with Green Day on that tour to see the pool. I don't need to be back there."Despite the supernatural lore surrounding The Rave, Suptic and The Get Up Kids are eager to return to Milwaukee and reconnect with their loyal fans in the city. With the 25th anniversary of "Something To Write Home About" serving as the centerpiece of their current tour, the band is poised to deliver a nostalgic and electrifying performance that will cement their status as emo pioneers and solidify their enduring legacy.