American Football is one of the defining bands of Champaign-Urbana and a landmark of the Midwest emo genre. Its 1999 debut album “American Football” spent years as a cult favorite before being recognized as a pivotal work of the genre, creating a long-lasting legacy that continues today.
In an interview with The Daily Illini, American Football’s guitarist and lead singer Mike Kinsella talked about the role C-U played in the formation of the band, the creation of its first album and its musical evolution and legacy.
The origins of American Football trace back to when Kinsella and guitarist Steve Holmes roomed together as freshmen at the University. By sophomore year, they began playing music together with Steve Lamos, forming a trio that Kinsella remembers as being “music dorks.”
Kinsella explained that the group was more introverted and wasn’t involved in the frat scene or partying — instead they chose to spend Friday nights at Lamos’ house, rehearsing and writing songs.
“It was being in such a petri dish of social activity and feeling awkward existing in it … that inspired us to be creative in other ways,” Kinsella said.
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Initially, the group didn’t intend to become a real band but was simply trying to stay entertained amid the sprawling cornfields of C-U.
“If it was Friday night and we had band practice, the goal was at the end of practice to get a tape recording of ‘Oh my God, we did it. Okay, cool,’” Kinsella said.
Just as the band wasn’t focused on becoming famous, they also weren’t actively looking for a record label. Polyvinyl was just three years old at the time, and Kinsella had become friends with its founders by attending house shows and being part of the local music scene.
“We weren’t seeking a record label; we just happened to be friends with the coolest record label ever,” Kinsella said. “They were putting out records by bands we liked already and we felt nothing but lucky to be associated with them … We couldn’t exist without them.”
Kinsella reflected that the themes of “American Football” were deeply rooted in his teenage experiences. At the time, he kept journals filled with lines that he thought sounded cool, even though they weren’t fully formed lyrics.
“It’s just young love and moving around, and life transitions at the time seem like the biggest deal ever,” Kinsella said. “And they’re not, not a big deal because up until that point, it is the biggest thing ever.”
The band never planned to continue beyond college, and after the release of “American Football,” it quickly disbanded.
It wasn’t until 15 years later, when they reunited for a brief series of sold-out shows in Urbana and New York, that the band realized the full extent of its popularity.
Kinsella is still coming to terms with the cultural impact of their debut album and the enduring influence it holds on Midwest emo, admitting that he “hasn’t accepted it or believed it yet.”
“I think people appreciate that it sounds nice,” Kinsella said. “It’s not hitting anybody over the head in any way, like musically or lyrically. It’s not just a bunch of dudes jumping around trying to prove how cool or fun we are.”
Though American Football is an important part of the legacy of Midwest emo, Kinsella said the band might be growing apart from the scene — partly due to being a generation older, and partly due to the more rock-oriented direction the genre is heading in.
“The stuff we’re going towards now is a little more moodier,” Kinsella said. “We’re not trying to punch anybody in the face with tough guy s—. That’s sort of my impression of this new thing — it’s so screaming.”
Kinsella describes the band as “poster boys for being cool because they’re not cool,” and he believes the symbolic white house on the cover of “American Football” embodies that same idea.
“We’ve tried to figure out why this one house has become iconic,” Kinsella said. “It’s so generic, it’s lacking in any sort of personality that you can bring in whatever you want. You can inject whatever you’re feeling at that time and be like, ‘Oh man this empty house really gets it.’ It’s sort of a blank canvas that people seem to take in as their own.”
The essence of what makes the American Football house so popular is the same thing Kinsella believes makes the music resonate: Both serve as a space where people can reflect on their own feelings.
At the same time, the house and the music capture the feeling of the small Midwestern town where American Football originated, translating the spirit of C-U to listeners everywhere.
“When we go around the world, I think people know that it comes from this small town, small kind of vibe,” Kinsella said. “When people come to shows, they can let their guard down and not have to be cool, which is cool.”
