To all the scene kids who tried telling their parents that it wasn’t just a phase, this is the event for you.
New Brookland Tavern in Columbia, South Carolina, hosted Emo Night Columbia on September 15th. At just $3 for 21 and over, and $5 dollars for underage, this event gives us emo kids the opportunity to dance the night away with our fellow soldiers of “The Black Parade”, as our favorite pop punk anthems play. Don’t fret if you missed it; this event isn’t going anywhere.
Dig out your black eyeliner and high school band tees and pair them with your favorite mesh tights for the night. It’s perfectly acceptable.
The first thing I noticed entering the venue was the mass amount of people rocking their black clothing, and a huge projector playing pop punk music videos to die for. Yellowcard’s popular hit “Ocean Avenue” played as I was rushed to the dance floor. Maybe it was the amount of people already dancing that brought me there, or maybe it was the crowd going wild to get there. Five minutes in and this was already a night for the books.
People looked like they were living their best lives. It didn’t matter who was watching, people wanted to have fun and they wanted you to have fun with them. “This is definitely a good place to socialize and just be yourself,” says Samantha Torress-Sanchez, a teen who came from Florence, South Carolina, for the event. I couldn’t have said it better myself; this event was a judge free zone.
The pop punk anthems played at the event came from DJ, Blake Arambula. Arambula DJs at New Brookland Tavern once a month for karaoke night, and once every two to three months for this event. When asked if he would consider himself a pop punk kid, Arambula replied, “Oh yeah! All I knew was pop punk. I grew up in the pop punk scene.” Many of the songs played at Emo Night Columbia were requests taken via Facebook. Arambula would make a post on the Emo Night Facebook page asking for specific songs that people wanted to jam to. Don’t be mistaken; many of the songs were a part of his personal playlist.
The music wasn’t the only showstopper. This event also offers a special drink, The Black Parade Lemonade. The name was created from the hit My Chemical Romance song, “The Black Parade.” The drink is very popular among event goers, but only comes out for the night. Don’t worry, though our favorite band, MCR, has yet to make their well awaited return, The Black Parade Lemonade will be back next Emo Night, which will be in two to three months according to staffer Lewis McKenzie.
All pop punk listeners in the area should experience emo night at least once. I asked event goer Kristen Greene if she would be making an appearance at the next Emo Night, “Absolutely! It gives people the chance to relive some of the worst times of their lives in the best way possible.”
Don’t hesitate. Go grab your emo friends and combat boots for the night, and come join The Black Parade.
