Dave Grohl is cool
"I have a funny relationship with emo," he said. "I'm from Washington, D.C., and in the mid-'80s, the hardcore scene changed from what it was — Bad Brains and Minor Threat and the Dead Kennedys and MDC — to a bunch of new bands like Rites of Spring and Embrace, which Ian MacKaye was the singer for. Everyone started labeling it 'emo-core.' So I went to Rites of Spring's first show, and it was a revelation. I'd never heard anything like it, and it was a really emotional experience. But in D.C., we all hated that 'emo-core' tag."
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1565675/20070726/