The Indie ThreadMusic

[astrosdude91]

The Indie Thread

This is a thread dedicated to Indie music. It's those bands who aren't quite that big yet, but still have a strong following of hip college kids, such as myself.

So, let's discuss Indie music. I'll start off.

I got the new album from Arcade Fire titled The Suburbs. It is AMAZING! There isn't a single track on the album that I do not like!

So, does anyone else like indie music?

 

[Public'sTwin]

I just saw Metric live in Toronto yesterday. It was good.

But then, Arcade Fire and Metric haven't really been "indie" for quite a few years now, seeing as they're huge now so fleeting are the trends.

 

[F1GTR]

If you're into indie, you should check out Rough Trade records. Not only are they one of the most prolific 'indie' record labels, but they also have a yearly "Counter Culture" compilation of the best indie singles of the year. Great stuff. I guess the majority of my music collection could be classified as indie or, were indie (in the strictest sense) but have gained mainstream recognition. Right now I've been listening to Wild Beasts (their singer is brilliant), Villagers (great folky sound), Grizzly Bear and The XX. All of which I saw at Latitude festival this year. Come to think of it, festivals are a great way of discovering these obscure bands. 👍

The Suburbs is a brilliant album, I'd rank it higher than Neon Bible (though Funeral still tops the lot).

 

[astrosdude91]

The Suburbs is a brilliant album, I'd rank it higher than Neon Bible (though Funeral still tops the lot).

Agree with all of that statement. I don't think Arcade Fire will ever be able to top the masterpiece that is Funeral. But when they try to top it, great things happen! As evident by their latest installment.

I got $8.45 in my iTunes account, and I need a good Indie album to buy. Any suggestions?

 

[F1GTR]

Indeed, I think that if one or two songs were cut out I'd feel it would be a much stronger album, but even the filler is pretty good.

The other bands that I mentioned in my other post have really good albums, The XX and Villagers only have one album out each, Wild Beasts' and Grizzly Bear's second albums are brilliant as well (though their debuts are worth a listen to). The Pains At Being Pure At Heart's self titled debut is also pretty good if you're into twee (think The Smiths). Though out of the lot I listed I enjoy listening to The XX the most, they have such a sparse, yet intimate sound that you can't help but be sucked in by the emotions present.

Of course, In An Aeroplane Over The Sea is actually a good album, despite a certain image board turning it into a meme.

 

[Smallhorses]

I got $8.45 in my iTunes account, and I need a good Indie album to buy. Any suggestions?

If you've not already got it, grab Glasvegas.
It's actually a Columbia Records release, so not technically "Indie", but their style is very like many Indie/Alternative bands, but with a huge dose of extra Scottishness!

Alternatively check out The Guggenheim Grotto's albums. They're kind of folky but very good. 👍

 

[astrosdude91]

I really like that first suggestion, Nick! That will be going in the possibility pile. I'm going to get a list of possible purchases after I watch the Arcade Fire Concert stream on Youtube. It starts in 24 minutes!

 

[F1GTR]

I was about to go to bed, then I realised that they'd be playing soon. Thank God for summer holidays....

 

[astrosdude91]

Fantastic concert! I'm glad I got to see it, even though I wasn't actually there. I'm sure Arcade Fire still has a bunch of tour dates to set, so hopefully I'll see Houston or at least Austin come up, so I can really see them live!

Funny moment during Sprawl II, when the drumtrack messed up! Win basically said "Screw it, let's just start over!"

 

[Neal]

Great thread idea Ryan 👍 I'll be checking back here for suggestions. Unfortunately it's been a while since I was down with the kids but I'd reccomend The Pigeon Detectives, both their albums are great.

If you've not already got it, grab Glasvegas.
It's actually a Columbia Records release, so not technically "Indie", but their style is very like many Indie/Alternative bands, but with a huge dose of extra Scottishness!

Indeed, they are quite grumpy

 

[F1GTR]

Fantastic concert! I'm glad I got to see it, even though I wasn't actually there. I'm sure Arcade Fire still has a bunch of tour dates to set, so hopefully I'll see Houston or at least Austin come up, so I can really see them live!

Funny moment during Sprawl II, when the drumtrack messed up! Win basically said "Screw it, let's just start over!"

The sun was starting to rise over here when they finished. Was definitely worth it though!

 

[astrosdude91]

Yeah, it really was worth it! They played a hell of a show!

Here are some highlights that the band put up on youtube:

Ready To Start


Rococo


Empty Room

 

[astrosdude91]

Anybody listening to some good indie music this week? I'm still on my search for a good indie album for the money I've got in my iTunes account ($8.50). I've narrowed it down to a few choices, most notably The Arcade Fire EP from '03. But there isn't much for the price, so I may just break down and put some more money in my account.

Any more suggestions?

Anyways, here is a good indie track that I've been listening to for a few weeks:

 

[Eric Demory]

I used to think Franz Ferdinand, The Killers, and Modest Mouse had the same singer. They sound the same a bit. Or at least I thought they were when I was young.

 

[Smallhorses]

Kinda tricky to make recommendations when we don't know what you like or have already, it depends if you're willing to explore older stuff too and if you're dead-set on sticking to strictly Indie labels or want Indie-ish sound regardless of label?

If you've never listened to The Charlatans (they're actually known as The Charlatans UK in the US) then they're worth exploring, they started out on Beggar's Banquet Records, moved to Universal and have released albums with Sanctuary Records and their last album on Cooking Vinyl. They're classed as a Manchester band, but are actually from Northwich, as am I!!!

I'd highly recommend "Us And Us Only" from 1999 or "You Cross My Path" from 2008.
They have a new album (their 11th) out on Sept 4th and will begin a US tour shortly afterwards.


Failing that Starsailor & Doves have been around for a while, both on Capitol Records, but well worth checking out, especially "Love Is Here" by the former & "Lost Souls" by the latter.

Delphic's album "Acolyte" on Dangerbird label is certainly worth a listen if you've no objection to something more electronicky, kind of in the New Order or The Chemical Brothers vein.

I've narrowed it down to a few choices, most notably The Arcade Fire EP from '03.

I recently acquired this from my wife's negotiations on Swaptree in exchange for an old PS2 game. Compared to "Funeral" which is the only other Arcade Fire stuff I have at the moment (the other albums are on the list for my next buying splurge at Amoeba Records) it's kind of "meh" and frankly a little odd.
It'd be nice to complete your catalogue though. 👍

 

[astrosdude91]

I'm open to any suggestions. So if you know an indie album that you like, and you think I should be listening to it, by all means recommend it!

I've got a few more choices for a new album. Coldplay's Parachutes, A Rush of Blood to the Head, and X&Y are all under eight bucks on iTunes. I know that Coldplay is the exact opposite of an indie band, since they are one of the biggest bands in the world. But that is too good to pass up. Also, Justin Bieber's My World 2.0 is also on sale, so tough choices!

And just for kicks, here is another good indie track. I posted this song in the "What are you listening to" thread, but I thought I would put it on here:

 

[Smallhorses]

I'm open to any suggestions. So if you know an indie album that you like, and you think I should be listening to it, by all means recommend it!

How far back do you want to go?!!!
I grew up around Manchester in the late '80s / early '90s when the "Madchester" revolution took hold and there was an Indie music explosion!
Did you ever see the movie "24 Hour Party People"?
It's based on the true story behind Factory Records that launched bands like Joy Division, New Order & had a hand in The Happy Mondays & more.

Smaller stuff from UK isn't given great coverage over here, unless a band makes it big & chartable, which is why Oasis irritate me to this day, and I still think they've only ever done 1 really good song ("D'you Know What I Mean?") as they cashed in on everything Manc that went before them, but happened to break the US market.

That said, I'm more partial due to where I grew up, to stuff that echoes the Manc vibe from those days, e.g. The Courteeners, than stuff that sounds like US garage bands with their semi-thrashy Nirvana style.
Each to his own I guess, I did like Ned's Atomic Dustbin & Ride in their day, things that my wife describes as "noise"!!!

 

[astrosdude91]

How far back do you want to go?!!!

Baroque period to now. I'm open to any indie music. So if it's 30 years old or 30 minutes old, it doesn't matter.

I have been getting into this band called Best Coast. They have that Lo-Fi surf rock kind sound. Really enjoyable!

Here is a taste:

 

[Neal]

All of Nick's suggestions get the 👍 from me. I grew up not too far away from Norwich and at around the same time. Weirdo by The Charlatans is awesome.



Pulp used to be good specifically the albums His 'N' Hers and Different Class. The Zuton's first two albums were good but not so much the third one. Pretty much everything by Supergrass is brilliant and I still listen to all their albums regularly. The Coral and Cast did a lot of good stuff. If you're interested in the Manc sound then really you have to listen to The Stone Roses, without them Oasis wouldn't exist.

 

[Bones Brigade]

Sunny Day and Pedro the Lion for me. Gotta keep it local.

 

[F1GTR]

Baroque period to now. I'm open to any indie music. So if it's 30 years old or 30 minutes old, it doesn't matter.

I have been getting into this band called Best Coast. They have that Lo-Fi surf rock kind sound. Really enjoyable!

Here is a taste:

Check out Wavves and Girls.

I've been getting into some Japanese indie lately, namely MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS:


and Number Girl (who have a really nice mix of traditional Japanese folk sounds, noise, funk and jazz):

 

[Neal]

I got The XX album after reading this thread, cheers for the recommendations to those who suggested it 👍

 

[astrosdude91]

glad to see my thread is getting a workout without me!

So whats new?

Arcade Fire released the rest of what I believe is their full tour. Here are all the upcoming dates:

Leeds Festival Leeds, UK Fri 27th Aug 2010
Reading Festival Reading, UK Sat 28th Aug 2010
Rock En Seine Domaine National de Saint-Cloud, France Sun 29th Aug 2010
Tempodrom Berlin, Germany Tue 31st Aug 2010
Arena Parco Nord Bologna, Italy Thu 2nd Sep 2010
MTV Galicia 2010 Santiago de Compostela, Spain Sun 5th Sep 2010
Roy Wilkins Auditorium St. Paul, USA Wed 22nd Sep 2010
MTS Centre Winnipeg, Canada Thu 23rd Sep 2010
Credit Union Centre Saskatoon, Canada Sat 25th Sep 2010
Stampede Corral Calgary, Canada Sun 26th Sep 2010
Pacific Coliseum Vancouver, Canada Tue 28th Sep 2010
Key Arena Seattle, USA Wed 29th Sep 2010
Memorial Coliseum Portland, USA Thu 30th Sep 2010
Greek Theatre Berkley, USA Sat 2nd Oct 2010
Henry Miller Library Big Sur, USA Tue 5th Oct 2010
Shrine Auditorium Los Angeles, USA Thu 7th Oct 2010
Shrine Auditorium Los Angeles, USA Fri 8th Oct 2010
Palacio De Los Deportes Mexico City, Mexico Sun 10th Oct 2010
Banamex Theatre Monterrey, Mexico Tue 12th Oct 2010
Atlantica Pavilion Lisbon, Portugal Thu 18th Nov 2010
Palacio de Deportes Madrid, Spain Sat 20th Nov 2010
Palau Sant Jordi Barcelona, Spain Sun 21st Nov 2010
Le Dome Marseille, France Wed 24th Nov 2010
Halle Tony Garnier Lyon, France Fri 26th Nov 2010
Zenith Munich, Germany Sun 28th Nov 2010
Philipshalle Dusseldorf, Germany Mon 29th Nov 2010
O2 Arena London, UK Wed 1st Dec 2010
O2 Arena London, UK Thu 2nd Dec 2010
O2 Academy Dublin Dublin, Ireland Sun 5th Dec 2010
O2 Academy Dublin Dublin, Ireland Mon 6th Dec 2010
Birmingham LG Arena Birmingham, UK Wed 8th Dec 2010
Cardiff International Arena (CIA) Cardiff, UK Thu 9th Dec 2010
Manchester Central Manchester, UK Sat 11th Dec 2010
SECC Glasgow, UK Sun 12th Dec 2010

So, long story short, None of these tour dates are anywhere remotely near me! I'm pretty sure this is all they've booked, but I hope I'm wrong, cause I would absolutely love nothing more than to see Arcade Fire live in concert! That would honestly be the highlight of my young life!

Also, if anybody is on iTunes, go check out the iTunes Indie Spotlight podcasts. This week is alternative again. Alot of really good indie bands are in the podcast, and it's a really good tool for discovering new indie music. That's where I get alot of new bands to listen to. And iTunes is having a sale on alot of albums right now, and some good indie stuff is included. So go check it out!

Here is a nice little ditty from a band called The Boat People. This is Damn Defensive:

 

[Smallhorses]

Arcade Fire released the rest of what I believe is their full tour. Here are all the upcoming dates:

Greek Theatre Berkley, USA Sat 2nd Oct 2010

Check.
Another set of tickets to add to the ever growing list!

I've just got home from my 2nd They Might Be Giants concert in as many nights, have to go to bed before getting up tomorrow morning, getting into SF early on to secure a good patch to watch a 3rd TMBG concert at Stern Grove!

 

[Cap'n Jack]

I don't listen to a whole lot of "indie" (although most the bands in my library are on independent labels), but my favourite indie bands would belong to the "indie folk" sub-genre. Here's some examples from my favourites of the genre:

Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros - Home



Bright Eyes - Bowl of Oranges



Monsters of Folk - Dear God

​

 

[astrosdude91]

Check.
Another set of tickets to add to the ever growing list!

Son of a gun! It should be me going to that concert!

They said full Fall tour, so maybe they will have a Spring tour schedule as well. So, hopefully I will still see Arcade Fire!

 

[Fastas]

I've just pre-ordered the first album release by 'Pull In Emergency'. They are a British group who get a fair bit of air time on 6 Music (bbc). They've had three solid singles out and they release their album on the 6th Sept.

Check out their song '15 years' on you tube

 

[arvore]

Some work from a band in the Portuguese Indie Music Scene:










I hope some of You guys enjoy it...

 

[Smallhorses]

Son of a gun! It should be me going to that concert!

They said full Fall tour, so maybe they will have a Spring tour schedule as well. So, hopefully I will still see Arcade Fire!

I know you don't really want to hear this, so I'm going to say they were 🤬 awful, ear-damaging and generally not worth seeing live. 👎

But you'd spot me for the terrible liar that I am.

Sorry, but they were really, really good.
Phenomenal show, great presence and the energy they transmitted to the crowd was astonishing. Will Butler also flabbergasted everyone by climbing about 30ft up one of the stage covering supports (Greek Theater is an outdoor venue, but the stage is covered) during one of their songs (I'm not familiar enough with their back-catalogue yet to know it by name. ) with his drum in tow, and proceeded to beat both the scaffolding, the drum and the stage-light fitting in close proximity with the same furor that he'd been beating the drum onstage! Total loon!

I really, really, really hope for your sake that they find a suitable venue in Houston for you to see them in. 👍

 

[arvore]

Some more bands from the Portuguese Indie Scene:

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