“Dancing on the corpse's ashes”: Analyzing the emotional use of music and genre by At the Drive In and how it communicates border identity
Abstract
Music has the ability to communicate various facets through the use of lyrics, dissonance and melody. At the Drive In, an emo, post-hardcore band from El Paso, TX won worldwide fame with their last album, Relationship of Command (2000). The band was active from 1993–2001. Throughout their time as a band they were able to communicate their life experiences, as well as the varied cultures that make-up the band. The band was able to communicate through their music, identity. The band was from the U.S.-Mexico border. The U.S.-Mexico border extends nearly 2,000 miles from San Diego, CA to Brownsville, TX. El Paso, TX, now the sixth largest city in Texas is located on this border located directly across from Ciudad Juárez in Mexico. Currently, El Paso has a population of 649,121, however together the two cities have a combined population of 2 million. This study seeks to analyze the lyrics and interviews produced by the band when they were most active between the years of 1993–2001. The analysis was conducted by identifying the word usage, borrowed words from the Spanish language that is used in Mexico that were used in a purposeful manner by the band to convey to their audience, negative connotation, as well as bring to light certain leftist political movements. Also identified were the references to location and certain persons and events that are found in both lyrics and interviews as the band sought to communicate these events and experiences to their audience.
Subject Area
Music|Communication
Recommended Citation
Robert-Segura, Crystal A, "“Dancing on the corpse's ashes”: Analyzing the emotional use of music and genre by At the Drive In and how it communicates border identity" (2011). ETD Collection for University of Texas, El Paso. AAI1494493.
https://scholarworks.utep.edu/dissertations/AAI1494493