Back When Neon Was Cool: The 2000s Alt Scene vs Today's Scene

Are you old enough to remember phones before the iPhone, when MySpace reigned supreme, or when you totally didn't put a virus on the family computer by using LimeWire? How does it feel to be old? At least in the TikTok hivemind's eyes, you are. You don't take that to heart, though. Those were the good days. Days you may or may not look upon fondly. A simpler time where you could wear neon leggings in public or cover your forehead with swoopy bangs, maybe you even attended Warped Tour when it was an actual tour. Before you get too far down the nostalgia rabbit hole, "unc," I want to reel you back in to say how I, and so many other Gen Zers, envy you! We are trying to bring back those styles, we are trying to chase that high you all had. But do WE even know why we do? Is it cause our scene sucks so bad that we have to "steal" yours? Maybe so.

This is where I list off the credentials I have, even to be discussing this topic. Being honest, I really don't have any. I was born right before 2005, yes. I remember playing with my oldest brother's PS2 and PSP. I remember burning CD's with my dad on the family computer so we could listen to Buckcherry, Seether, and Three Days Grace. But all that was just the surface of what the 2000s were all about.

I started thinking about this topic with my best friend in November last year while we were on the way to Warped Tour Orlando. We are both very much 2000s revivalists. We have Spacehey, collect physical media, and listen to almost every band's album from that time. He got it from his mom. She was a teen in the 2000s. She dressed up as Helena from My Chemical Romance's iconic music video of the same title when she was pregnant with him. We heard stories from her. Maybe that led to our love of this certain era. A time when the cost to live comfortably was at least somewhat achievable, or when social media wasn't so overstimulating, and let's admit it, the music was better (that's directed at AI "artists"). I see where the arguments lie between "elder emos" and people my age when it comes to which time was better. But it is not a good and solid debate AT ALL. Here's why:

The Style

The 2000s were filled with so many iconic style choices. Good and bad. The clunky belts that didn't do anything but sag your pants, layers upon layers, the spiked hair of the nu-metal freaks, and the sweeping straightened fringe of the scene and emo kids are just a few fashion choices of that time. But the key factor of all this is that it wasn't as individualistic as you thought it was. Maybe you found your clique in school and styled yourself like them cause it was "cool," or maybe you got that raccoon tail clip-in from Hot Topic cause you saw it on Myspace. You chose your subculture and stuck with it. Slowly but surely, your closet is filled with the things that one teen magazine told you Gerard Way wore or liked. Nothing wrong with it! But it wasn't what you chose for yourself.

Today, those things still happen, don't get me wrong. The term poser is still thrown around if you don't dress "emo enough" or "scene enough." Which is a problem all on its own, but today, you see more meshing of styles. You can pick and choose parts of different styles and put them together into one amazing outfit. You aren't confined to one thing.

Media

The 2000s had Myspace, magazines, MTV, and CDs. It was a time for the introduction to a digital world. The music, style, and news weren't catered towards you and spoonfed to your brain. You had to look for it or hear about it from a friend. You went to stores for that new album your favorite band released. Trends were slower to come into the light of day. You just can't get that today in the scene. Today, apps like TikTok and streaming platforms like Spotify drive trends. Thrusting them in our faces just for them to fall hard a few weeks later. Replaced by the next big and great thing.

The way we consume media today leaves us feeling disconnected. We didn't learn about this band through hard work or camp out at a store for the new CD. We clicked a button on this $2K little box during our daily toilet doom scroll. A few clicks and you know every little thing about this band. What the lead singer did back in 2014, who the drummer is dating, and what pills the bassist takes. It is exhausting. In the case of finding out what the lead singer did, it is a positive, but that is for another long, drawn-out article on separating the art from the artist.

Cultural Impact

The 2000s alt scene, at its core, was meant for the people who felt left out of the norm, but it quickly became something meant for people who fell into the suburban, white, male-dominated "misfit" category. Women were often pushed out of these circles and/or sexualized because of their style. It was a mirror to the times.

For a time that came and went so quickly, it is easy to wonder just why it was such a decade-defining "look." It all falls on the years and the events that happened. We went into 2000 with fear, some more than others, thanks to the Y2K scare of '99, but also hope for a new beginning. A new decade to start over. That was quickly stomped on by the tragedy of 9/11. Political turmoil and unrest filled the media, leading to a time of anger and people being unsure what the future held. This fueled the punk rock noise of that time. A voice, a message, saying what everyone was feeling at that time.

Sadly, we can still relate to this today.

The common denominator, the middle of this big Venn diagram I drew, trying to find which side of the argument to agree with, is right in front of us. Everything about today's alt scene stems from the seeds you, elder emos, planted. So many of us chase what you had. We listen to the artists you made big, shop at stores you kept open, and dress like how you did. We followed in your footsteps. So, it isn't this big argument or debate on which side is better. You gave us a blueprint, and we made it our own. Isn't that what being alternative really is about?

Despite my previous statements, I wouldn't trade the alternative scene today for even a second. I love living in a more inclusive time for this subculture. I love being able to discover these small, unknown bands and connecting with them more easily. I don't remember a time without the world at my hands, though. I grew up knowing people owned phones, Facebook was still a baby, but it was there, and I don't know a time without YouTube. I came up in a world that was accepting technology with slightly open arms.

Don't get me wrong, I wish I could have experienced at least a little bit of what it was like to grow up in the '90s-2000s, but that isn't cause it was better. You don't want to go back to it either. At least not for the music or the style of the times. You miss it. Miss when it was easier. Back when you didn't have as many responsibilities breathing down your neck, kids to take care of, a constant reminder that the world is falling apart, and back when your knees didn't hurt. It's that old friend nostalgia. The same one your parents had when they told you about their childhoods and how better it was then. I am sure I will be saying the same thing when I am in my 30's, telling my kids how much better the 2010s were. That is how we, as humans, work. We miss when things were easier for us. Why waste the time we have right now on arguing who did what better?