I've been looking for this video for some time. There has been endless discussion on what Indie is supposed to be - Is it a form of music?, record label status?, etc...
As usual, comedians explain it better than anyone could -
Who knows? I hate it when people change their names to something completely and unrecognizably different. Mike changes his, but you can always tell it's him.
Posts: 3858 | Location: NE Indiana | Registered: 14 April 2005
I don't know, this sketch doesn't seem terribly relevant. I mean, there are some shitty bands who get rabid hype, but ironically it's much more likely to be piece of shit UK acts like the Arctic Monkeys than any American indie band - who the band I guess is supposed to...almost...kind of...be a parody of.
I really tried to hate the Arctic Monkeys and failed. They were everything I hated in music. Hyped by the NME with a wealth of cliches written about them ('next big thing' etc) but that first album remains a solid body of work. Excellent social commentary and stuffed to the gills with exceptional songs. 'Whatever you say I am...' is just as good as anything by The Smiths or Pulp.
By contrast I didn't like the second album too much. All the clever social commentary has been replaced with lyrical content about the music industry in general. Consequently I couldn't identify with it as much. A bit too pedestrian, although the drums are nice and meaty!
I should add that 'Whatever you say I am...' is an extremely rare case of me actually liking a self-consciously 'indie' release. I still find most current indie trends utterly pretentious in the same way as the video link at the top of this thread.
Originally posted by BlackGravel: I don't know, this sketch doesn't seem terribly relevant. I mean, there are some shitty bands who get rabid hype, but ironically it's much more likely to be piece of shit UK acts like the Arctic Monkeys than any American indie band - who the band I guess is supposed to...almost...kind of...be a parody of.
Who could this be a parody of though? Sloan?
The video actually dates back to around 1995, so it probably refers to the indie bands of that era. Stuff like Blur, Pulp, Oasis etc (although they were referred to as 'Brit-Pop'). That some find it still relevant is testament to the well worn cliches of indie music.
As for UK indie bands being 'pieces of shit' compared to their US counterparts - that appears to be an oversight and a generalisation. The UK pretty much invented the whole concept of 'indie' as a term and indeed a genre, dating back to early DIY punk releases from the Buzzcocks, through to the Smiths, The Stone Roses and beyond.
This was well before the American media had discovered the delights of Nirvana, although Sonic Youth and The Pixies were doing well. The UK had embraced 'indie' in the mainstream media at least five years before Nirvana hit. It was even part of Saturday Morning TV on ITV's 'The Chart Show'. The Indie section regularly played tracks by The Happy Mondays and Joy Division. (Bare in mind we only had 4 TV channels in those days, so that was pretty good airplay). Interestingly, the programme also counted Kylie Minogue, Fields of The Nephilim and Napalm Death as indie artists, which goes to show how much this genre has been corrupted over the years to be a mark of high fashion, rather than a DIY ethic.
Additionally, US bands are hyped in almost exactly the same way as the UK bands these days. The Gossip, The Strokes, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs and thousands of other bands who start with 'The' have all been put forward as big shiny hopes for the next big thing in both the UK and US music press. Personally I find the whole journalistic process rather tedious.
i wouldnt say arctic monkeys are incredible, but they certanly are a very good band. i enjoyed both albums, liking the 2nd one slightly more than the 1st. i wouldnt say they are better than the smiths (yet), but i feel they are better than pulp.
Mistaken for Strangers by your own friends
Posts: 181 | Location: California | Registered: 29 July 2007
Originally posted by just indie: i wouldnt say arctic monkeys are incredible, but they certanly are a very good band. i enjoyed both albums, liking the 2nd one slightly more than the 1st. i wouldnt say they are better than the smiths (yet), but i feel they are better than pulp.
Oh hell no! They've hardly done anything as great as "This Is Hardcore" yet.
------ Let's raise a toast to St. Joe Strummer! I do believe he was our only decent teacher
Posts: 2094 | Location: ATL-abouts. | Registered: 24 October 2006
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