Six Going On Seven 'Self-Made Mess'

Originally released in 1997 on Some Records, Self-Made Mess is the debut full-length from Boston’s Six Going On Seven, capturing the band at the beginning of a run that helped bridge ’90s emo, post-hardcore, and melodic indie rock.

Recorded by Brian McTernan at Salad Days Studio, the album is built around intricate guitar and bass interplay, sharp rhythmic movement, and Joshua English’s direct, melodic vocals. Songs like “Sexy Like the Titanic,” “Endurance,” “Getaway Car,” “Flu Season,” “Lampwick,” and “Method Actor” show a band already developing the tense, hook-driven sound that would become fully realized on Heartbreak’s Got Backbeat.

Six Going On Seven came up in the same late-’90s underground as Hot Water Music, Elliott, The Promise Ring, Texas Is the Reason, Jimmy Eat World, and The Get Up Kids, sharing stages with many of the bands that would define the era. Rather than fitting neatly into one scene, Self-Made Mess sits at the point where hardcore-informed emo was opening into something more melodic, angular, and expansive.

After being out of print on vinyl for more than 25 years, Self-Made Mess returned in 2023 through Iodine Recordings, newly remastered by Jack Shirley at The Atomic Garden and presented with completely new artwork.

As Six Going On Seven’s first full-length, Self-Made Mess is the starting point for one of Boston’s most underrated late-’90s bands and an essential companion to Heartbreak’s Got Backbeat.