An emo album from the ’90s featuring Warrant’s Jani Lane is receiving renewed attention nearly 30 years after its release.
This is the same Warrant known for “Cherry Pie.”
How Did Jani Lane Appear on an Emo Album?
The intersection of glam metal and emo seems minimal, with little in common between the two genres.
Yet, Lane found his way onto an emo album in 1998.
By then, Warrant’s popularity had waned. Although “Cherry Pie” was a major hit, the band struggled to replicate that success with subsequent singles.
Warrant ended the ’90s facing various lineup changes, including Lane’s departure to pursue a solo career. He later rejoined Warrant but continued to explore other projects.
jani lane of warrant performs on stage.
One of those projects involved recording background vocals for the San Francisco-based emo/alternative rock band Crumb.
Who Is Crumb?
Crumb was active for a brief period in the late ’90s but made a significant impact during their existence.
The band toured extensively with Jimmy Eat World in 1996 and 1998 and secured a spot on the Indie Stage at Lollapalooza in 1996.
During this time, Crumb released the notable album, Seconds>Minutes>Hours, which effectively blends late-’90s emo with established alternative rock elements from earlier in the decade.
While not an exact replica of Jimmy Eat World’s sound, enough similarities exist to explain their shared concert lineups.
Crumb featured various artists during the recording of Seconds>Minutes>Hours, including Lane, whose backing vocals are present on three of the album’s eleven tracks.
Crumb (featuring Jani Lane), ‘Exhibit A’
Other Notable Contributors on Crumb’s Album
Lane was not the only well-known artist credited as a contributing musician for Seconds>Minutes>Hours.
Current Nine Inch Nails drummer Josh Freese played drums on nine tracks, while Jimmy Eat World guitarist and vocalist Jim Adkins contributed guitar to six songs.
Former members of Los Angeles indie rock band that dog., Rachel and Petra Haden, provided backing vocals alongside Lane.
The former Warrant singer passed away in 2011 at the age of 47.
Social Media Ignites Renewed Interest in Crumb
Crumb has maintained modest listenership on Spotify over the years, with just under 3,500 monthly listeners reported by the platform.
Only one track from Seconds>Minutes>Hours, “Tonight,” has exceeded 8,000 total listens. Their most popular song remains “Celebrity Judges” from 1996’s Romance is a Slow Dance, which has just under 200,000 listens overall.
Crumb, ‘Celebrity Judge’
Recently, several emo and alt-rock musicians have shared social media posts expressing appreciation for Crumb.
Brett Detar and Joshua Fiedler of The Juliana Theory posted an Instagram video praising Crumb that quickly garnered over 43,000 views.
brett detar of the juliana theory
“They created an incredibly catchy record in the late ’90s that you might not have heard,” Detar remarked to his followers.
He discovered Crumb’s music after receiving a promo copy of Seconds>Minutes>Hours at a showcase featuring some of emo’s biggest bands at that time. Notably, Crumb was not part of that lineup.
READ MORE: 11 Underrated Early 2000s Emo Albums Everyone Needs on Vinyl
“I played that CD in my 1992 Subaru Impreza, and it sounded fantastic,” Detar recalled.
A moment later, Fielder appears holding a copy of Seconds>Minutes>Hours, calling it “the most underrated record of our scene.”
“Crumb’s Seconds>Minutes>Hours is one of the best scene records ever made.”
If you enjoy Crumb, consider exploring these additional 11 emo albums from the 1990s that you should listen to.
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