ive always avoided this band because supposedly they are like the godfathers of "emo", but i recently heard a song by them that i really liked and didnt sound very emo-ish. So are any of their albums worth buying or is most of their stuff just emo crap?

They're far from being the godfathers of 'emo', I think that Moss Icon or the Rites of Spring would be the rightful claimants to that title. Anyway, in the mid-90s 'emo' virtually re-defined itself in terms of having an indie sound (rather than hardcore) and quite a few good bands appeared; Sunny Day Real Estate, Texas Is the Reason etc (arguably Weezer too). Then this evolved back into a hardcore/indierock hybrid that we know and hate today.

So yes, SDRE are a decent band, 'Diary' is a nice album worth checking out.

SDRE is actually quite a good band. But a good band is really relative because of diverse tastes. Their music makes me feel like I'm falling down a never-ending spiral. If that makes any sense at all. I agree, Diary is fantastic and probably their best and most well-known. Although, my favorite song is "Pillars" from their How It Feels to Be Something On album.

SDRE started off with a noisy punk-laced indie pop sound before veering into more prog directions. I know I'm really in the minority, but I like all of their albums (as opposed to the standardized hipster response of, "Dude, Diary is all awesome and stuff, but the rest suck."

Diary had some standout tracks, but a lot of it treads the same murky, distorted water as the previous track.

LP2 (aka the pink album aka self-titled) is probably my favorite album. Lots of odd time signatures, complex two-guitar/bass intertwining, lots of subtle melodic hooks.

How It Feels to Be Something On is a great album, though it does sag near the end. Still, it's amazing. This shows the band leaning in a more straight pop rock-meets-progressive direction.

The Rising Tide gets a fair bit of bad press, and I'm not sure why. YES, it is the band's weakest album, but it's not bad at all. I was also surprised at Jeremy Enigk's nimble bass playing. It has the spirit of Yes hovering over it, and there's a whole lotta reverb, but there are some killer cuts within.

Jeremy Enigk's solo album is definitely worth checking out (wonderful baroque pop) and I think the Fire Theft disc (the remains of SDRE) isn't bad at all, though I tend to favor about five tunes.

well i got How It Feels... a while ago, and i enjoy the album a lot. Ive been waiting to pick up Diary for awhile.