Song Review: "Don't Hate Me” by The Get Up Kids

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Rowdy, frenetic, and unpolished are the best words I can find to describe The Get Up Kids’ debut record Four Minute Mile. Often overlooked thanks to their follow up, Something to Write Home About, Four Minute Mile does an adequate job of introducing the Kansas City band but is far more punky than their later releases.

In my eyes, I have seen TGUK as a sort of a bridge between the grunge explosion of the mid 1990s and the pop punk present in the latter half of the decade as the group displayed strong alt-rock tendencies mixed with emo-punk/pop edginess.

The aforementioned edginess is very much present on Four Minute Mile and nowhere on the impressive record is it more apparent on the quintessential track “Don’t Hate Me”. Jam-packed with punk styled guitar playing and the youthful bellows of frontman Matt Pryor, “Don’t Hate Me” is the epitome of second wave emo.

My introduction to TGUK began at “Don’t Hate Me” where I pegged the group as more punk than they truly are. Don’t get more wrong; TGUK very much cling to the fringes of pop punk, but are far more poppy akin to the style of contemporaries Jimmy Eat World.

Four Minute Mile is most likely the band’s most punk record, which to my benefit, made my journey into emo easier as TGUK were one of the first truly emo bands I properly got into. This early punk sound helped the group find their place amongst the likes of Blink-182 and Fall Out Boy as the two began to dominate the mainstream in the early 2000s.

Even though TGUK may try their damndest to disassociate with their massive influence on countless bands, they are certainly important in the realm of emo, with some thanks being directed to Four Minute Mile.

As for “Don’t Hate Me”, the song remains as masterclass in angsty, emo songwriting with lines like “I’m sorry I can’t be everything to you/Your face is the heart of what I do/Everything’s for you” and “Oh Amy, don’t hate me/’Cause I’m still in love with you”.

A semi-typical love song, Pryor and company power through the four minute song with youthful energy and near reckless abandon to create a rather emotional crescendo that ends in a blissful close.

I love “Don’t Hate Me” and really enjoy the unpolished nature of the accompanying album as it gives just enough to the listener to want more direction and clarity on later tracks, and the group most definitely delivers.

From the moment “Forgive me” is said and the twinkling guitar fades out, therein lies a song that paved the way for a scrappy high school band to earn a place in the hearts of hundreds upon hundreds of diehard fans.

I had the great fortune to see TGUK open for punk legends Descedents at the Riviera in 2017, and while I hadn’t heard of them, I do remember them opening up with “Don’t Hate Me” and the place coming to life.

Whether you prefer Something to Write Home About or Four Minute Mile, there is no real correct answer so long as you blast “Don’t Hate Me” as loud as you can and enjoy some truly special and powerful emo flavored pop punk.