1997

With influences drawn from Mineral and the Promise Ring, the Chicago quintet 1997 clearly positioned itself within a particular strand of emo through both its moniker and its sound. The group took shape in October 2005 after its members—previously active in local acts such as Constance, Funeral Etiquette, and October Fall—began convening in a Lombard attic apartment. There, vocalist Kevin Thomas, drummer Nick Coleman, guitarist Caleb Pepp, singer/keyboardist Kerri Mack, and bassist Alan Goffinski worked with acoustic guitars and a keyboard, developing material over several months before booking shows throughout the city. Their performances soon attracted Victory Records, leading to a contract signed just twelve months after the band’s formation. The label issued 1997’s first full-length, A Better View of the Rising Moon, in April 2007, at which point Alida Marroni had already taken Mack’s place in the lineup. One year later the group returned with its second album, On the Run.