Camping In Alaska

Camping in Alaska is an American Midwest emo band from Huntsville, Alabama, founded in 2012, and credited with having had a significant influence on the emo revival genre.

History

Band members Austin Davis and Jacob Stewart met when they were 11 at a taekwondo class. They initially bonded through a shared disinterest in the class and interest in punk music. The two began writing music together at the age of 15. After developing their sound in Davis's parents' garage, the band began playing DIY shows in northern Alabama with the addition of Ben Cape and Jacob Hill. In 2013, the band released their debut album, ''Please Be Nice'' (stylized with all lowercase), which became a hit with the 2010s Midwest emo scene after the song "C U in da Ballpit" (also stylized with all lowercase) gained significant traction on YouTube. The demo was originally recorded in Davis's mom's garage before the band rented out a studio space for several hours to record the album more professionally. The band has stated that despite the success of "C U in da Ballpit", they all hate it. The song was not originally meant to be on the album; it was written in two hours after the band realized they had overestimated the studio time needed to record the other songs, so they used the opportunity to write and record one more.

Cape left shortly after the release of ''Please Be Nice'' and the band put out their sophomore album''Bathe'' (stylized with all caps)in 2014; the album was picked up by Broken World Media shortly thereafter and it was re-released on cassette with the label in 2015. In 2016, the band released ''Welcome Home Son'' (also stylized with all caps), which took a darker and more serious tone than previous releases; the album is primarily concerned with the themes of addiction, homelessness, and loss, as all of the band members have experiences battling addiction. The darker tone contrasts with ''Please Be Nice'', which focuses on themes of skating, being in high school, and hanging out in parking lots.

A hiatus caused by the band's drug use followed the release of ''Welcome Home Son'', but in 2022with the addition of Dani Fandre, Davis's partnerthe band released ''Lost and Found'', a collection of acoustic demos recorded between 2017 and 2018. In 2023, the band released ''Hollow Eyes'' (again stylized with all caps) which was followed by a tenth-anniversary tour for ''Please Be Nice''. The band announced their album entitled ''Eggbeater Jesus'', named after a local landmark mural on a church in Huntsville; the name was chosen because, during his bout with homelessness, Davis had slept outside of the church in below-freezing weather.

Influence

Camping in Alaska has been considered influential to Midwest emo and the emo revival movement, particularly its debut album, which has been described as a cult classic. The band has cited Sunny Day Real Estate, Modest Mouse, Fugazi, Pavement, and Jawbreaker as influences.

Members

Current members
* Austin Davis – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
* Jacob Stewart – drums
* Jacob Hill – rhythm guitar, bass
* Eli Long – bass , lead guitar
* Dani Fandre – bass

Former members
* Ben Cape – guitar, vocals
* Robin – drums (?)

Discography

* ''please be nice'' (2013)
* ''BATHE'' (2014)
* ''WELCOME HOME SON'' (2016)
* ''Lost and Found'' (2022)
* ''HOLLOW EYES'' (2023)
* ''Eggbeater Jesus'' (2024)

References

Notes

Citations

Sources

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External links

Camping in Alaska – Bandcamp

Musical groups established in 2012
Indie rock musical groups from Alabama
2012 establishments in Alabama
2010s in music
2020s in music