As the weather gets worse and the end of the semester quickly approaches it, can be a stressful time of year for a lot of students.
There are few better ways to let out some of that stress and negative emotions than to put on some throwback music to take you back to that teenage angst phase of life. Fall Out Boy, Panic! At The Disco, Green Day, My Chemical Romance, A Day To Remember and a lot of similar bands helped countless people through the rough, puberty-fueled emotional swings of being a teenager. They’re great to revisit when times get rough or simply for the nostalgia.
Here are some of my favorite songs from my emo phase.
Time to Dance – Panic! At The Disco
We’re bringing it back all the way to 2005 with Panic’s debut album when then P!ATD guitarist Ryan Ross was still writing all the songs. “Time to Dance” is perfect mix of angst and upbeat melody. The song’s dark lyrics about a bride committing murder on her wedding day are masked by Brendan Urie’s vocals and the overall pace of the song. Like the majority of the “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out” album, the song is fun to sing along with and is a nice trip back to classic P!ATD.
Favorite lyric: “When I say ‘shotgun,’ you say ‘wedding.’ Shotgun wedding! Shotgun wedding!”
Mama – My Chemical Romance
Even though this is relatively popular song, I still find it to be one of MCR’s most underrated. The multiple buildups throughout the song make it fun to rock out to and the lyrics about a soldier unsuccessfully trying to fix his relationship with his mother as death is imminent get pretty dark. You can’t get much more teenage angst than a song about death and fighting with your parents.
Favorite lyric: “Mama, we’re all full of lies. Mama, we’re meant for the flies. And right now they’re building a coffin your size. Mama, we’re all full of lies.”
Misery Business – Paramore
Between “Misery Business” and “crushcrushcrush” Paramore’s “RIOT!” album has some all-timers in the teenage angst department. Hayley Williams has the voice of an angel and pairs it with lyrics about stealing someone boyfriend and to add insult to injury, attacks the ex-girlfriend personally. There are a lot of teenage emotions coming out in the song, which is fitting, considering Williams was 17 when she wrote it.
Favorite lyric: “Whoa, it was never my intention to brag, to steal it all away from you now. But God does it feel so good ‘cause I got him where I want him right now.”
All Signs Point to Lauderdale – A Day To Remember
Like all the other bands included in this, it’s hard to narrow it down to one song from ADTR. “All Signs Point to Lauderdale” is one that I feel is easy to connect to at any age. Hating where you’re living, having friends who don’t understand you and trying to fit in can be a lifelong struggle, which makes this a great angsty song to revisit as a college student who’s likely living away from home and making new friends. It’s also one of the lighter ADTR songs, so those who can’t get into the screaming can still enjoy this song.
Favorite lyric: “I hate this town, it’s so washed up, and all my friends don’t give a f—.”
Fat Lip – Sum 41
Simultaneously a loser anthem and a classic rebellious song, it would be inexcusable to not include “Fat Lip” on this list. The whole song talks about not conforming to societal norms. It has a theme that is just as relevant as young adults preparing for the workforce and the rest of their lives as it was as teenagers trying to find who they are in middle and high school. Between the rebellious lyrics and the how upbeat the song is, this one always gets me pumped up.
Favorite lyric: “I don’t want to waste my time, become another causality of society. I’ll never fall in line, become another victim of your conformity and back down.”