indie rock

Indie rock, an abbreviation of independent rock, is a offshoot genre of rock and roll that came to prominence in the late eighties and arguably reached a peak of popularity during the mid '90s as grunge music entered the mainstream, and then again in the late 2010/early 2011. The label 'indie rock' can be misleading in that it can refer to an artist's status as independent (not affiliated with a major label) or by their aesthetic. For example, The Decemberists are still regarded as an important figure in indie rock, despite signing to Capitol Records for their fourth release.

Aesthetically, indie rock is frequently influenced by the do-it-yourself punk ethos, but the genre is also defined by an incorporation of diverse styles. A wave of post-punk and what would be known as 'alternative' bands predicated the arrival of indie rock. In the '90s, a stable of labels released what would be come to be the most influential indie rock records of the decade. These labels included Merge, Matador, Sub Pop, Rough Trade, and many more. While a core of guitar, bass, drums and untrained vocals typifies many landmark indie rock recordings, this configuration is not central to all or even most indie rock bands.

Throughout the 2000s, indie rock grabbed an increasingly larger share of both popular and critical acclaim. Merge Records band The Arcade Fire won a Grammy Award for their 2010 album The Suburbs, an unprecedented honor for an independent music artist. As many bands continue to push in directions that could be described as “post-rock” or which rely less on a rock instrumentation and aesthetic, the state of indie rock is in flux. A story by Paste magazine entitled “Is Indie Dead?” approached this question from a critical if somewhat sensational perspective in their February 2010 issue.

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Original Technorati articles tagged “indie rock”

• in Music
  Sloan's The Double Cross - How Will You Be "Whelmed"?
  What better way to celebrate a new Sloan album than by a song deconstruction from their first album
  by onegoodminute / on May 9, 2011
• in Videos
  Music Video: Warpaint, "Undertow"
  A warm, gauzy video for the band's debut single.
  by bryanmckay / on Oct 21, 2010
• in Videos
  Behind the Scenes with Terry Gilliam and Arcade Fire
  Terry Gilliam and Arcade Fire prepare backstage for their live webcast at Madison Square Garden.
  by bryanmckay / on Aug 6, 2010

Latest blogosphere posts tagged “indie rock”

 

• Jalebee Cartel In Lineup For Future Music Festival, Malaysia

  
  Indiecision: Music Magazine: Indian indie music News, MP3s, Interviews, Videos, Giveaways, Awesomeness — Authority: 120
  Preempting the F1 Grand Prix week, Livescape (Malaysia) and Future Entertainment (Australia) come together to bring the first edition of the Future Music Festival Asia on March 17, 2012, at the Sepang International Circuit in Kuala Lumpur. This year’s headliners include, The Chemical Brothers, Tinie Tempah, Chase ...
  3 days ago

• Download: The Maccabees – Given To The Wild

  
  :::Music::: — Authority: 121
  Artist: The Maccabees – Album: Given To The Wild Release: (2012)Genre: Indie RockLabel: Polydor UK01 – Given To The Wild (Intro)02 – Child03 – Feel To Follow04 – Ayla05 – Glimmer06 – Forever I’ve Known07 – Heave08 – Pelican09 – Went Away10 – Go11 – Unknown12 – Slowly One13 – Grew Up At ...
  4 days ago

• Pop punk legends Blink-182 to headline at the Eden Sessions

  
  Buzzin Music Blog — Authority: 98
  Blink-182 Blink-182 have been confirmed to headline an Eden Session on Sunday July 8. The Californian three-piece come to Eden following the release of their acclaimed sixth studio album Neighborhoods last September, their first record since the band split in 2005. Blink-182, otherwise known as Mark ...
  4 days ago

• Nada Surf - The Stars Are Indifferent To Astronomy Review

  
  Earbuddy — Authority: 430
  Will this be the album that finally makes these guys “Popular”? Read more »
  4 days ago

• Alternative Rome

  
  What to see in Rome — Authority: 101
  Having the perception of Rome as an old woman who lies on a huge velvet couch, adorned with flowers and fruits as a marble horizon hides behind silk curtains, is a huge mistake. Rome wears miniskirt, has sneakers, and is not necessarily a woman, goes out very late on the street, listening to rock, eats on the ...
  5 days ago

• We Were Promised Jetpacks March/April 2012 Tour Dates

  
  Earbuddy — Authority: 430
  We Were Promised Jetpacks have released their tour schedule for dates in March through early May 2012. The new tour is in support of We Were Promised Jetpacks latest album In The Pit Of The Stomach . Check out the tour dates below as well as the video for their single "Medicine". Read more »
  5 days ago

• Andrew Bird - Eyeoneye (New Single)

  
  Music That's Nu2Me — Authority: 89
  Nothing better than a brand new first single off an upcoming album from Andrew Bird to start your week off right. And much like everything that we get and expect from Andrew, this song is folking fantastic . Full of amazing acoustics and beautiful harmonies, I couldnt think of a better way to get rid of a case of ...
  5 days ago

• Cloud Nothings - Attack On Memory (2012).HQ.NE

  
  TTC - Music Loo — Authority: 94
  Album: Attack on Memory Artist: Cloud Nothings Bitrate: 274kbps Year: 2012 Size: 67 Mb Format: mp3 01 No Future/No Past 02 Wasted Days 03 Fall In 04 Stay Useless 05 Separation 06 No Sentiment 07 Our Plans 08 Cut You (15+ hostings) http://theloo.katt.it/68240d ...
  5 days ago

• Artist: We Were Promised JetpacksGenre: Indie Rock,...

  
  spacetoasters — Authority: 110
  Artist: We Were Promised Jetpacks Genre: Indie Rock, Post-Punk Myspace Facebook Twitter   Honestly, the band’s name along should guarantee a spot in your busy schedule at Coachella. Anything with jetpacks is awesome in my books. No seriously, jetpacks are awesome. And so is this band. A little dark at ...
  1 week ago

• Nada Surf - Stream the new LP, tour dates

  
  WAVED RUMOR — Authority: 106
  The wonderfully melodic, guitar-pop classicists Nada Surf have a great new rock LP and tour dates in the US and Europe. The LP is called The Stars Are Indifferent to Astronomy , and features the veteran trio of Matthew Caws, Daniel Lorca and Ira Elliot. The LP kicks off with two amazing rockers. The first is ...
  1 week ago

• Skull Fuct! Ride or Die?!?

  
  Mishka Bloglin — Authority: 505
  When I first heard this song, I was literally lost in the woods. Wasn’t too long ago. I had just what I needed to survive at the time. Spring water, jug of high fructose corn syrup, troll doll and a space blanket. Oh yeah, and a laptop with a solar charger. Traded this dude Dave for my mini bike Str8 up. Anyway, I ...
  1 week ago

• Alice in Chains to Release New Album

  
  Toonari Post - A News Mash Up! — Authority: 440
  Alice in Chains, one of the most admired bands from the Seattle grunge scene, plans to release a new album soon. After some rumors about a new record, the guitarist and vocalist of the band, Jerry Cantrell, ended Alice in Chains’ set at their only gig last year by saying, “Time to head back to the studio and ...
  1 week ago

• Cloud Nothings’ Highly Organized Chaos

  
  MTV Hive — Authority: 122
  Of all the things he has to do before leaving on a three-month tour, Dylan Baldi is doing his taxes. It might seem odd that the Cloud Nothings frontman is concentrating on his deductions, and not the winter he’ll spend on the road, but he likes to plan ahead. Consider Attack on Memory , his group’s Steve ...
  1 week ago

• Dr. Dog - That Old Black Hole (Official Video)

  
  Music That's New To Me — Authority: 116
  We are only officially a few weeks into 2012 and there are already more than a handful of albums due for release in the very near future that I am more than excited about and cant wait to hear. At the top of that list is the upcoming album Be The Void from Phillys own Indie Psychedelic Rockers Dr. Dog which is ...
  1 week ago

• Magic Men

  
  OurStage Blog — Authority: 121
  Really Old Airplanes + Cat There’s something about the music of Really Old Airplanes that reminds one of old nautical towns with their creaking buildings, eccentric townsfolk and a salt-cured way of life. Or maybe that’s just us. But there’s no arguing the fact that the Tacoma band’s music is steeped in ...
  1 week ago

• Marnie Stern – Transformer

  
  This Bonus Track — Authority: 110
  Ah! Wikipedia has been blacked out for today. This girl is futuristic 1980’s psychedelic sexy : Marnie Stern . You’ll see – she’s got the tapping technicals down to a science. That’s her thing. It’s also her thing apparently to have crazy album names. Her second album ( This Is It and I Am It and You ...
  1 week ago

• Artist: The Head and the HeartGenre: Indie, Folk PopMyspace...

  
  spacetoasters — Authority: 110
  Artist: The Head and the Heart Genre: Indie, Folk Pop Myspace Facebook Twitter Chill out ya’ll. At Coachella, it’s nice to take a break from all that loud electronic buzz and relish in the tranquility found in folk pop! And unfortunately, there’s not much of that in this year’s Coachella. So I urge ...
  1 week ago

• Shearwater – “You As You Were”

  
  Stereogum — Authority: 720
  Animal Joy , the new album from expansive Texan falsetto-indie troupe Shearwater, is imminent, and the songs “ Breaking The Yearlings ” and “ Animal Life ” have already made their way to the internet. Below, you’ll find a download of another song: “You As You Were,” a gorgeous and slow-building track. ...
  1 week ago

• Cults - You Know What I Mean

  
  On My Radar — Authority: 102
  Click to listen to more from Cults Self-Titled album Indie Rock Fronted by Madeline Follin and her vocal prowess, Cults  has been a band that took off on the interwebs after the release of their song " Go Outside ." This track spread pretty profusely in conjunction with the accompanying video . Cults ...
  1 week ago

• Turntable Kitchen :: January 2012 Mix

  
  Turntable Kitchen — Authority: 456
  Twenty-twelve is already off to a strong start in terms of good music. Although there haven’t been a lot of great albums yet (after all we are only a few weeks in), there have been a host of intriguing singles popping up left and right. If these singles are a sign of what’s to come this year, then my prediction is ...
  1 week ago

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