US Emo Heroes Mineral Announce First-Ever Aussie Tour

30 October 2014 | 3:13 pm | Staff Writer

The revived, seminal act will play three shows in February

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Today's about to get a lot better for Australian fans of seminal emo outfit Mineral, who are following up a wildly successful reunion tour of the United States with the announcement that they will be making their first-ever trip Down Under in February next year.

If you're unaware of why this is a big deal, Mineral — long considered to be an utterly indelible part of any listener's emo education — broke up back in the '90s, but over the past five years or so, a growing movement in the US has been reclaiming the term 'emo', separating itself from the army of black-clad teens who usurped it in the mid- to late 2000s, and ushering in a return to the more heartfelt, honest imperfection of the genre's midwestern second wave.

Above: emo.

As a result, a welcome side effect of the so-called emo revival has been the return to action of several elder statesmen of the genre, many of whom had long disbanded by the time we even knew Napster was a thing — Braid, American Football, Texas Is The Reason and, of course, Mineral, meaning that until now Australians have only been able to enjoy those acts in the most removed way possible.

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Aussies will have three chances to catch the Power Of Failing scribes in the flesh next year — they kick off their southern sojourn in Brisbane, at The Brightside, on Sunday, February 22, before heading down to Sydney's Oxford Art Factory on February 23 and wrapping up their whirlwind visit in Melbourne on February 24, at The Reverence Hotel.

They'll be joined at all shows by Garrett Klahn (why, yes, the same Garrett Klahn of Texas Is The Reason) and Brisbane-bred emo kids Arrows.

 

Mineral recently released 1994-1998: The Complete Collection, a two-disc compilation of their two full-length releases, the aforementioned The Power Of Failing (1997) and Endserenading (1998). They have added international dates in Europe and Japan to their growing reunion tour.

Frontman Chris Simpson is just about to release his solo LP Pink Chalk, under the Zookeeper moniker, via essential indie label Count Your Lucky Stars, having also recently lent guest vocals, along with Bob Nanna of Braid, to Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate)'s acclaimed sophomore full-length, You Will Eventually Be Forgotten. Arrows, too, have previously worked with Empire! Empire!, releasing a split with the Michigan outfit in 2012.

Tickets for Mineral's 2015 Australian tour go on sale from 9am tomorrow, October 31 (Brisbane/Sydney/Melbourne). See the Gig Guide or check The Music App for more information.