The Used

An American rock band from Orem, Utah. Since their formation in 2001, they have released four studio albums, and they have a fifth on the way which is set to release in 2012.

The Used have a versatile sound that has been said to fall under many genres. While Post-hardcore and Alternative Rock are perhaps the best fitting, the terms "Emo" and "screamo" tend to get thrown into the mix, despite the band's neglect to consider themselves by those genres. Says frontman Bert Mc Cracken, "We're a rock band. That's all we've ever been."

Members:

• Bert Mc Cracken - Lead vocals, piano, keyboards.
• Quinn Allman - Lead guitar, backing vocals.
• Jeph Howard - Bass guitar, backing vocals.
• Dan Whitesides - Drums, percussion (as of 2006, as a replacement for former member Branden Steineckert).

Discography:

Studio Albums:

• The Used (2002)
• In Love And Death (2004)
• Lies For The Liars (2007)
• Artwork (2009)
• Vulnerable (2012)

Other Albums:

• Maybe Memories (2003) - compilation of live songs from their debut, demos, and unreleased material.
• Berth (2007) - live album.
• Shallow Believer (2008) - EP consisting of B-sides from their first three albums.

The Used provides examples of the following tropes:

• Album Title Drop: "Leave the lies to the liars" is repeated multiple times in "Hospital".
• Animated Music Video: Portions of "All That I've Got".
• Cluster F-Bomb: "Liar Liar (Burn In Hell)"
• Cover Version: Queen and David Bowie's "Under Pressure", with help from My Chemical Romance.
• Creator Breakdown: During the making of In Love And Death, a number of tragic events struck Bert, such as the death of his pregnant girlfriend.
• Dyeing for Your Art: Bert's naturally blonde hair is often dyed jet-black.
• Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette: Everyone but Quinn.
• Epic Rocking: "Smother Me" exceeds the 6-minute mark. "Men Are All The Same", which clocks in just under 6 minutes, also qualifies, considering the band mostly performs songs around 3 minutes in length.
• Mr. Fanservice: Depending on who you ask, any member of the band applies.
• Fan Service: The occasional makeout session between Bert and Quinn during live shows.
• Grief Song: "Hard To Say".
• Ho Yay: Invoked. Again, Bert and Quinn.
• Lyrical Dissonance: Largely avoided. They really make a point of being direct with the attitude of their songs.
  • An example from "Wake The Dead" - "Take a walk with me, walk with the dead, cause you knew we'd have to die sometime" is sang to a slow melodic tone.
• Metal Scream: Used in their harder songs.
• Mood Whiplash: "Earthquake", a softer song, is placed between the nightmare-fuel-filled "The Bird And The Worm" and fast-tempo-ed "Hospital" on Lies For The Liars.
  • The same album has another example - the angry "Liar Liar (Burn In Hell)" is placed between the two gentlest songs on the record, "Find A Way" and "Smother Me".
• Non-Appearing Title: Rarely. "Noise And Kisses" is an example.
• Ode to Intoxication: "Sound Effects And Overdramatics" is partly about crystal meth.
• Self-Titled Album: Their debut.
• Shout-Out: The music video for "All That I've Got" has the band wear garb with a slight Clockwork Orange influence.
• Signature Song: "I Caught Fire" or "The Bird And The Worm".
• Take That: Many fans insist "Pretty Handsome Awkward" is one toward Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance. All the band has said, however, was that it's about "someone with short blonde hair" (which Gerard had at the time of the song's release).
• Wholesome Crossdresser: Jeph in the "Pretty Handsome Awkward" music video.