Indie (music)

 

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In popular music, indie music (from independent) is any of a number of genres, scenes, subcultures and stylistic and cultural attributes, characterised by perceived independence from commercial pop music and mainstream culture and an autonomous, do-it-yourself (DIY) approach.

 

Definitions of "indie"

 

The term "indie" is often used to mean a sound that a musician presents, but when interpreted more literally, it is the way that sound is presented or made. "Indie" often refers to an artist or band that is not part of the mainstream culture and/or is making music outside its influence. Though the sound of these bands may differ greatly, the "indie" definition comes from the do-it-yourself attitude and ability to work outside large corporations.

 

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Indie meaning "not major-label"

 

One of the most common and simplest definitions of "indie" is the definition of not being connected with a major recording label (currently one of the "Big Four" recording companies: Warner, Universal, Sony BMG and EMI). This is the definition used by NME's indie music charts in the UK, among others.

 

The problem with this definition is that there is often little correlation between the commerciality or creative freedom offered by major labels and those outside the "big four". Most of the larger independent labels are run along the same business principles as the major labels, with A&R departments, marketing budgets and commercial considerations guiding their operations. Meanwhile, major labels often retain independently-oriented artists who are given greater creative independence, and who receive considerable critical acclaim. Some notable major-label artists of this sort include Sonic Youth, Radiohead, Pulp, Bloc Party, Hot Hot Heat, and The Flaming Lips.

 

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Indie and commerciality

 

A more puristic structural definition of "indie" would draw the line further down, not between the "big 4" major labels and others but between the "big indie" labels and smaller labels, considered by purists to be true indie labels. These small labels are typically run by a few people, often out of their home or garage, and often coupled with a mail-order service representing other labels. The people running the labels have a close connection to a certain scene; many labels are run partially or wholly by musicians in bands on them. A concern for the purity of the creative mission of the label takes precedence over commercial concerns; many labels close down or go on hiatus when the owners lose interest or (as often happens) run out of money (or sometimes close down when the owners feel their mission has been fulfilled, as happened with Sarah Records). Archetypal examples of such labels include the aforementioned Sarah Records, Factory Records, Dischord, Kindercore Records, SST and Kill Rock Stars.

 

The converse of this are independent labels that have been perceived, rightly or wrongly, as being overly "commercial" or exploitative of certain artists or trends. Examples at various times include Fat Wreck Chords, Matador Records and Sub Pop. Epitaph was often the focus of similar accusations, however in 2005 label management signed an agreement with RIAA arguably making them no longer "independent".

 

Once again, this is not so much a dichotomy as a continuum; some labels grow from such independent status and gradually become more commercially oriented (often prompted by the success of one of their acts), eventually becoming subsumed by a larger conglomeration or a major label. One example of this was Creation Records, a label Alan McGee started in the 1980s on a small scale, which, in the 1990s had success with Oasis, subsequently becoming much more commercially oriented before being acquired by Sony.

 

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Indie and genres

 

The word "indie" is often used to refer specifically to various genres or sounds. During the 1980s, "indie" was synonymous in Great Britain with jangly guitar pop of the C-86 movement. During the 1990s a lot of Britpop bands were referred to as "indie", despite most of the movement being signed to major labels and dominating sales charts. More recently, the word "indie" is sometimes used as a synonym for new wave revivalist bands such as Franz Ferdinand and The Killers and The Strokes. The word "indie" is sometimes used as a synonym for alternative, a word which often bears the stigma of being associated with cynically manufactured mass-market teen-rebellion music from major labels. Such usages of "indie" may be considered inaccurate for various reasons: for one, stylistic qualities are often not accurately correlated to commercial independence or adherence to indie principles (this is particularly true when a sound becomes popular, its leading exponents are signed by major labels and more success-oriented bands and production teams attempt to imitate the style; this ultimately culminates in commercially driven artists sporting the same stylistic traits the "indie" artists of a year ago had). Secondly, however pervasive any style of music (even one as broadly defined as "guitar pop" or "post-punk rock") may become at a particular time, it by definition cannot embody all of indie music, as, by indie's nature, there will be indie artists, labels and entire local scenes operating outside of this style and its definitions.

 

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Cultural and philosophical attributes of indie

 

Main article: Indie (culture)

 

There are a number of cultural and philosophical traits which could be more useful in pinpointing what "indie" is about than specific musical styles or commercial ownership. Indie artists are concerned more with self-expression than commercial considerations (though, again, this is a stance that is affected by many artists, including hugely commercially successful ones). A do-it-yourself sensibility, which originated with punk in the 1970s, is often associated with indie, with people in the scene being involved in bands, labels, nights and zines. Indie often has an internationalist outlook, which stems from a sense of solidarity with other fans, bands and labels in other countries who share one's particular sensibilities; small indie labels will often distribute records for similar labels from abroad, and indie bands will often go on self-funded tours of other cities and countries, where those in the local indie scenes will invariably help organise gigs and often provide accommodation and other support. In addition, there is also a strong sense of camaraderie that emerges from a selflessness among indie bands and often results in collaborations and joint tours.

 

Indie artists of any particular time often go against the prevailing trends (for example, the twee pop movement that started in the 1980s was a reaction against the testosterone-fueled swagger of rock). A 'lo-fi' aesthetic (i.e., an often deliberate lack of polish and a more "authentic" roughness and imperfection) has often been associated with indie, particularly when slick, polished recordings were the preserve of the commercial music industry; this line has since become blurred, in a world where high-quality recordings can be made increasingly easily with inexpensive computer-based recording systems and where commercial production teams often deliberately utilize a "lo-fi" sound.

 

People into the indie lifestyle are commonly referred to as "indie kids", regardless of age; however, they do not often use that term for themselves. Other terms exist; the term "hipster" has, in recent years, become somewhat synonymous with this subculture.

 

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Indie and technology

 

The concept of the album was first introduced with the invention of the phonograph. Artists became dependent on companies with capital because it was too expensive for an artist to produce and distribute an album themselves. Because of this, the choices offered to the public were decided by what the record companies chose to support and distribute. Today, technology is finally at the point where it is affordable for an artist to produce and distribute an album without the assistance of a label. Ironically, this same technology is available to consumers who can easily reproduce the music. This makes it increasingly difficult for an artist to make a living from selling albums alone.[1]

 

Internet technology allows artists to introduce their music to a potentially enormous audience at low cost without necessarily affiliating with a major recording label.[2] The design of digital music software encourages the discovery of new music. Sites with larger libraries of songs are the most successful. This, in turn, creates many opportunities for independent bands. Royalties from digital services could prove to be an important source of income. If an artist has already paid to record, manufacture, and promote their album, there is little to no additional cost for independent artists to distribute their music online.[3] Digital services offer the opportunity of exposure to new fans and the possibility of increased sales through online retailers. Artists can also release music more frequently and quickly if it is made available online. Additionally, artists have the option of releasing limited edition, out-of-print, or live material that would be too costly to produce through traditional means.

 

With the arrival of newer and relatively inexpensive recording devices and instruments, more individuals are able to participate in the creation of music than ever before. Studio time is extremely expensive and difficult to obtain. The result of new technology is that anyone can produce studio-quality music from their own home. Additionally, the development of new technology allows for greater experimentation with sound.[4] An artist is able to experiment without necessarily spending the money to do it in an expensive studio.

 

Most artists maintain their own Web sites as well as having a presence on sites such as Myspace.com. Technological advances such as message boards, music blogs, and social networks are also being used by independent music companies to make big advances in the business.[5] Some sites, such as Garageband.com, rely on audience participation to rate a band, allowing listeners to have a significant impact on the success of a band. This eliminates new talent search and development, one of the most costly areas of the music business. Other sites allow artists to upload their music and sell it at a price of their choosing. Visitors to the site can browse by genre, listen to free samples, view artist information, and purchase the tracks they want to buy.[6] Acts such as Wilco have chosen to make their new albums available for streaming before they are released.[7]

 

However, the sale of digital music makes up only 5-10% of the total income generated from music sales. At this point, most people do not have broadband connections to the internet, making it relatively difficult for the general public to access music online. Many digital music services tend to focus overwhelmingly on major label acts. They don’t necessarily have the time or resources to give attention to independent artists.[8] Currently, it is unlikely that a completely unknown artist would be able to sell a large number of records solely via the internet.

 

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Subcategories of indie

 

There are several subcategories which music from the overall indie scene are often grouped broadly into. Music ranging from alternative rock to punk rock to experimental music has long existed in indie scenes, often independent from one another. Indie rock and indie pop are the most common groupings that conform to an "indie" sound. The difference between these is difficult to pick up from the instrumentation or sound, as both genres include distorted guitar-based music based on pop-song conventions. If anything, the key distinction comes not from instrumentation or structure but from how strictly they follow cultural constructions of rockist "authenticity". There is also indie dance, which comes from a fusion of indie pop and electronic/dance music. Crossover between electronica (mostly glitch) resulted in so-called indietronic, electronic indie or indie electronic, for example some artists on the German Morr Music label, The Firebird Band, or The Postal Service. Another type is post-rock, which includes bands like Explosions in the Sky, Mogwai, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, or Sigur Rós. The idea behind post-rock is that there are very few (if any) lyrics, yet the songs are long (sometimes upwards of 20 minutes), and the point of the songs are to paint an emotional landscape with just music and no words. Further expanding the original meaning of the term, when used in the independent sense, Blog-Rock has come to encapsulate the wave of upcoming artists in the mid-2000s.

 

 

Genres associated with indie

 

Alternative rock, particularly indie rock, indie pop, post-rock, shoegazing, twee pop, and many others

Black metal (especially the early Scandinavian black metal)

Down-tempo electronic

Emo

Garage Rock

Glitch

IDM

Indietronic

Industrial

Post-punk

Power-pop

Powerviolence

Punk rock

Psychobilly

Surf rock

Shibuya-kei

Suomisaundi

 

See also

 

DIY Culture

Indie music scenes

Punk ideology

Selling out

 

Interesting read... We've had a few long chats in this forum about misconceptions of what 'indie' and other genres are as you know and this does highlight most of the points we've covered. I mean when we talk about all the bands that have suddenly become the fore-front of British music right now you can say that Franz Ferdinand, Maximo Park and Arctic Monkeys are Indie because they're on Indie labels but despite them being the same type of music and everyone calling them it Kaiser Chiefs can't be Indie as they're on B-Unique and distributed by Polydor. As we've all already said this is more like a second wave of Britpop or just 'pop' as it is what's popular right now but after the Spice Girls 'pop' music has just been the tenny-bop bands and so people won't be able to call Girls Aloud AND Radiohead pop now as they sound totally different to each other and so they're labelled as 'Indie' or 'Rock'

 

When you say 'Rock' you could be saying many things nowadays as they're so many sub-genres of it which include 'Indie' , 'Metal' , 'Emo' and 'Punk' but of course nine times out of ten right now if you say you like 'rock' music most people would think you like the Arctic Monkeys and probably even someone like Coldplay!

 

Basically what I'm trying to say is just summing up what's been discussed and this confusion has all come from the media pigeon holing certain acts and sometimes even misleading people like apparently Lordi are a 'Gothic Metal' band. :lol: But still people come into this forum and expect to see threads and make threads about bands like The Kooks or Kaiser Chiefs so that's what it'll have to stay as of course. ;)

......... interesting indeed. yes indie came out of punk and is directly linked to the 'do it yourself' attitude that punk inspired.

Indie has, and always will, mean music on an independent record label. Yes, it has changed in meaning since then. I use the NME as a rule of thumbn(apart from when they have pop moments with Sugababes, Girls Aloud or Spice Girls so their old hacks can have a perv or U2 / Chilis interviews purely to shift copies)

 

But if it's featured in the NME then it's "indie" in my eyes.

 

Ditto for MTV2.

But if it's featured in the NME then it's "indie" in my eyes.

 

Ditto for MTV2.

 

yeah man thats what i'm getting at (and not when the nme feature members of girls aloud or peter andre in their ironic questions slot)

 

was gonna put the next part up (alt.music) but didnt have time

 

 

however this area seems to be getting swamped by the plague by all these older rockers like bon jovi, def lep, status quo etc. hardly in keeping with such a cool and leftfield place