Thread: What exactly is the genre of music known as indie ?

I always hear about "indie" music but I dont have a clue what it is. Can someone explain to me what indie music sounds like.

lulzy

indie means "independent", which could be pretty much any creative ecclectic underground band that is not backed by a mainstream record label.

Indie could be anything off the beaten path that is modern as far as music goes. Some indie bands are actually popular indie bands, they are just not in the money if that makes sense.

Some bands start off as Indie and then they become mainstream. The best example of this would be "Green Day".

The market for indie, however, has developed its own alternative mainstream to the point there are now other names given in place of indie for some bands because the label "indie" is losing its proper definition.

Quite honestly, I'm very anti-mainstream but I ALSO dislike the term "Indie". It is very categorical and it puts a narrow label on a very very very broad collage of music that is diverse as any other genre may be with another. I think the term should be eliminated and other genre names need to be invented in its place.

What do you call a band, for example, that mixes swing jazz over an accordian with an ambient background and ska thrown in and some heavy metal with interludes of a violin concerto?

Is that the same as some other random indie band?

Some music is just un-genred. It's just its own.

its just a group of indians dancing round a fire nothing special

Gay and lesbo rock...

INDIE:
The term: Short for independent rock. In terms of music it would be independent of major labels/mainstream stuff.

History: grew out from 60s garage, 70s punk, and 80s post punk it started in the mid 80s as alternative/college radio music. Once nirvana hit big the alternative genre split: the popular side was just alternative(Smashing Pumpkins, Hole, No Doubt, etc.) and the other half that wasn't mainstream(by choice or not) became indie rock(Pavement, Sebadoh, Built To Spill, etc).

Some bands have signed to major labels but are still considered indie(Modest Mouse, etc.). Go figure.

Sound: In the begining indie sounded like alternative(because it was) but it grew more experimental and weird. In Britain indie has more of a typical sound like Radiohead, Muse, etc. rather than a definition based on 'the scene.'

The scene: if you really think all indie kids do is try to be cooler than other people then... well.. you're mostly right. The main point is, don't take the scene and the whole hipster attitude seriously. No one does. And if you do, well, then I'm cooler than you.
just gimme indie rock

Indie music started out as any independent band that had a different sound, different from the mainstream.

Now, it has developed into its own style (similar to The Strokes sound)

Indie though considered a genre of music really is not. It's original use was to describe bands playing for an independant label or releasing everything on their own DIY style.

Now usually "indie" bands are pop-rock/alternative.

I mean I could claim my band plays "indie" music...even though we are a thrash/punk outfit.

Something that proves to people you're stupid.