Mineral (band)

Mineral is an American emo band founded in Houston, Texas and originating in Austin that was primarily active in the late 1990s. Despite being initially active for less than five years and releasing only two albums, Mineral is considered among the seminal bands in the emo genre.^[1][2] Its first album, The Power of Failing, has received critical acclaim as a "classic" in the genre.^[3]

Mineral
Origin	Austin, Texas, U.S.
Genres	Emo post-hardcore indie rock
Years active	1994–1998 2014-2025
Labels	Caulfield Crank! Interscope
Spinoffs	The Gloria Record Imbroco Kissing Chaos Pop Unknown Pretty the Quick Black Eyes Zookeeper Mountaintime
Members	Chris Simpson Scott McCarver Jeremy Gomez Gabriel Wiley
Website	http://www.officialmineral.com/

History

Mineral originated in the 1990s emo scene that also produced bands like The Promise Ring and Jimmy Eat World, both early collaborators.^[4][5] The band released The Power of Failing on Crank! Records in 1996, and it became a cult hit. Still, the band saw only modest success during its original run.^[6] While producing its second album, EndSerenading, the band signed to the major label Interscope Records, around the same time that emo genre peers like Jimmy Eat World earned major record deals. However, the band never released a record on Interscope, as they broke up shortly before EndSerenading, the band's final album for Crank!, was released.^[3][1] Though the band later reunited, EndSerenading remains its most recent album. Ex-members of the band worked on other musical projects after disbanding, including The Gloria Record, Pop Unknown, Zookeeper, and Mountaintime.

After a more than 15-year hiatus, Mineral announced a reunion tour on April 24, 2014.^[7][8] Simpson identified the resurgent popularity of the band's music among Millennials, around the time of the emo revival, as a major reason for its reunion.^[9] The band released remastered versions of its two albums around the same time, with these versions receiving a "classic" review from Pitchfork, with particular praise for The Power of Failing.^[3] For the reissue, the band changed the font on the cover of its first album, which had originally been Comic Sans, something Simpson identified as a regret.^[10] In 2014, Simpson admitted to feeling "unsure" about the quality of both of the band's releases during and following the group's heyday, but said he has come to appreciate them later.^[9] He has said that he chose not to return to the group before 2014 because he viewed it as a "step back" at that time.^[1]

In 2019, the band celebrated its 25th anniversary with two new songs titled "Aurora" and "Your Body Is The World", a retrospective book, and by announcing a world tour, which was ultimately cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic.^[11] On September 25, 2021, the band performed at Furnace Fest 2021 in Birmingham, Alabama. The group announced plans to disband for the second time in 2025, with a final show planned for the Best Friends Forever festival in Las Vegas.^[2]

Musical style and legacy

Mineral have mainly been described as being an emo band^{[12][13][14][15]} but incorporate elements of indie rock,^[16] post-rock,^[17] and alternative rock.^[18] In a Reddit AMA, Chris Simpson and Jeremy Gomez cited Mineral's main influences as Catherine Wheel, Sugar, Swervedriver, Buffalo Tom, Dinosaur Jr., Superchunk and Rocket from the Crypt.^[19] Though its origins are in the Southern United States rather than the Midwestern United States, Mineral has been identified with the Midwest emo movement, and has been said to take significant influence from another non-Midwestern band commonly associated with Midwest emo, Sunny Day Real Estate.^[20][3]

Lead singer and songwriter Chris Simpson has identified grappling with his Christian religious beliefs as a key theme of the band's music, and has admitted to worrying that he would be judged over centering religious themes in punk music.^[5][4] Critics have also identified family and romantic relationships and anxiety as common themes in the band's music.^[5][3]

The band has earned consistent critical acclaim. Ron DePasquale of AllMusic said "[Mineral's] shaping of the indie rock landscape cannot be overstated".^[21] Jeff Mezydlo of Yardbarker wrote, "When it comes to emo royalty, Austin, Texas' Mineral is sitting at the head table."^[22]

Members

• Chris Simpson – vocals and guitar
• Scott McCarver – guitar
• Jeremy Gomez – bass
• Gabriel Wiley – drums

Discography

Albums

• The Power of Failing (1996)
• EndSerenading (1998)

Singles and EPs

• Gloria (1994)
• February / M.D. (1996)
• Split with Jimmy Eat World and Sense Field (1997)
• &Serenading / Love My Way (1998)
• One Day When We Are Young (2019)

Compilations

• TheCompleteCollection (2010)
• 1994–1998: The Complete Collection (2014)