Mineral was a prominent mid-90s emo band originally from Houston, Texas, but soon relocated to Austin following their formation. All four members of Mineral were signed to Interscope Records on individual contracts. Its former members have since moved on to other musical projects including The Gloria Record, Pop Unknown, and Zookeeper.

Mineral's music is characterized by its iterated soft/loud structure, overlaid with melodic, off-key vocals and ethereal guitar-based instrumental bridges. Many of their songs adhere to the formulas and now ubiquitous stylistic conventions associated with "emo" pioneers Sunny Day Real Estate (SDRE). Despite their similarities to SDRE, Mineral emerged at the same time as that group and added their own less intense, more brooding flavor to the then-emerging "Midwest" sound. Mineral's subtle balance between angst-ridden kinetics and wistful underpinnings, in conjunction with their intelligent lyrics, have heavily influenced many bands of the late 1990s and 2000s.

In 2010, a compilation CD of all the band's songs was released, entitled "The Complete Collection". It was released exclusively in Japan, but a handful of copies have made it to the US and are being sold for around the $60-$100 range.