You've got the basics down; now you need to fill in some of the gaps. Remember, you don't need to fill in all of them ... you don't want to actually BE an indie rock expert, because that's a lifetime of work. You just need to fill in enough of the holes to keep people from prying further to see how many are actually there.
Familiarize yourself with The Elephant 6 Collective of the Olivia Tremor Control, Apples in Stereo, and Neutral Milk Hotel. This is a group of bands who have taken up where the Stones' "Their Satanic Majesties Request" and the Beatles' "Revolver" left off. The Beatles and the Stones? That may sound mainstream, but these guys do retro psych-pop in a way that nobody with a taste for Top-40 would ever want to sit through.
Know about Minneapolis in the heyday of the '80s, when the Replacements, Hüsker Dü and Soul Asylum were the underground holy trinity of rock. Drop mentions of the Replacements whenever possible, and mention Peter Jesperson, even if you have no idea who he is. It doesn't matter. Just say something like, "Yeah, I hear Jesperson's got something new going on."
Finally, it will be advantageous to pick one favorite band that just never broke despite its genius--someone like Spoon. Do you own both Spoon records, as well as the "Soft Effects" EP? Probably not, because they are not easy to find, but if someone sees you in an indie record store, that's what you tell them you are looking for. As for what you buy at the record store--CD or vinyl--you are free to go either way without really affecting your indie cred.
If you really want to do the extra-credit work, pick a foreign country and school yourself in some of its bands. For instance, you can pick Japan and drop names like Lolita No. 18, Zoobombs, Melt Banana, Cornelius, Buffalo Daughter, Guitar Wolf and Husking Bee. You should actually listen to one or two of them. That way, you can make a judgment like, "You know, the Japanese bands are finally starting to move away from simple imitation of American music, and are now starting to incorporate elements that are wholly original."
One last minefield you need to navigate is what happens when an indie band jumps to a major label. No matter how cool a band is, this is bound to happen. Sometimes it doesn't mean much, and other times it is the end of the band. Again, Sonic Youth was cool even on DGC, but the Goo Goo Dolls, who did about the coolest Prince cover ever by singing "I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man," became something else when they went to a major label. Showing anything but disdain for that bunch of milksops will get you cast out east of indie Eden. Then there are cases like Dinosaur Jr.: "Green Mind" is good but anything after "Where You Been" is bad. There is no science here, and without a good knowledge of the bands, you are only likely to get into trouble.
on 10/28/2009
The most daft, annoying article I have ever read.
Faking anything is asinine, and it makes a complete mockery of any desperate boob who flagrantly emulates trends -- and not to mention, of indie itself.
Indie spawned from independent thought. Go wear your thrift store tshirts, and download VU mp3s, but regurgitating tripe like this will not make you appear anything but transparent and hollow.
And despite this, thank you. Bumbling louts like you are the reason indie rock exists.
on 10/6/2009
Hilarious article, but a good one. What's wrong with introducing people to indie music, pissdagger? I think that was whole point of the article (proof being that the majority of the article focused on the music, not the fashion--of which there is none).
For the uninitiated, let me suggest some great indie bands, who stand out for their musicality and longevity.
Polvo (Merge & Touch & Go), Stereolab (Duphonic Records) Sebadoh ( Sub Pop) The Sea & Cake ( Thrill Jockey)
The 25 to 30+ crowd should appreciate that. The under 25 crowd...well, rep your own ****.
on 4/20/2009
I am a non-violent person, and I pay my convictions a disservice when I admit to myself and to you that you deserve physical punishment for publishing this.
Comments
jamitout said
on 10/28/2009 Wow. I think I just saw "cool" melt before my eyes.
gueneveve said
on 10/28/2009 The most daft, annoying article I have ever read.
Faking anything is asinine, and it makes a complete mockery of any desperate boob who flagrantly emulates trends -- and not to mention, of indie itself.
Indie spawned from independent thought. Go wear your thrift store tshirts, and download VU mp3s, but regurgitating tripe like this will not make you appear anything but transparent and hollow.
And despite this, thank you.
Bumbling louts like you are the reason indie rock exists.
kyoruiko said
on 10/6/2009 Hilarious article, but a good one. What's wrong with introducing people to indie music, pissdagger? I think that was whole point of the article (proof being that the majority of the article focused on the music, not the fashion--of which there is none).
For the uninitiated, let me suggest some great indie bands, who stand out for their musicality and longevity.
Polvo (Merge & Touch & Go),
Stereolab (Duphonic Records)
Sebadoh ( Sub Pop)
The Sea & Cake ( Thrill Jockey)
The 25 to 30+ crowd should appreciate that. The under 25 crowd...well, rep your own ****.
pissdagger said
on 4/20/2009 I am a non-violent person, and I pay my convictions a disservice when I admit to myself and to you that you deserve physical punishment for publishing this.
pissdagger said
on 4/20/2009 http://www.ehow.com/how-to_4845452_1_fake-being-indie-rock-expert.html