Indie Music: a constant controversy on whether or not it can be labeled as a genre. The definition of indie music is "music produced by artists that haven't signed to a major label, and produce their own music, or are signed to a minor indie label". This definition doesn't exactly classify a genre of music, does it? But the fact is, it is a genre, because all of these "indie bands" share a lot in common. All indie bands share the same aspects of artistic liberty, freedom from the control of large companies, as well as the ability to make their music the way they want and how they want it. That's how you define indie music; freedom of expression and taste.
All indie music has a series of sub-genres, in fact, it's these sub-genres that form the music. Indie music, considering it has no particular sound besides whatever unique twist an artist puts into it, has to be based off of some sort of other genre. Such as Indie-Rock (Arcade Fire), Indie-Folk (Such as Bon Iver), and Indie-Ska (Bedouin Soundclash)... The list goes on and on. The instruments of this genre can vary from the most simplistic (basic guitar-drums-base), to a wide variety of obscure, and less common instruments (such as the xylophone, glockenspiel, harp, accordion, hurdy-gurdy, and the series of classical instruments used in bands like Arcade Fire). Indie music is the pure definition of artistic freedom; the artists can do whatever they want, because the only thing representing them is themselves. These artists make their music more for expression than money, considering a number of these indie artists, who are signed to minor labels or none at all, do not make as much money as their commercial counterparts. They rely solely on their fans purchasing their music to gain any profit.
Indie music began to emerge in the 1980's, when alternative bands such as Soundgarden and Pearl Jam broke into the mainstream and gained widespread exposure. When this happened, "alternative music" lost it's name and began to refer to a new form of music that was now achieving mainstream success. As a result, "indie music" emerged, and began to refer to the bands that remained underground (which is the difference between alternative and indie). Indie artists used at-home studios with simplistic recording techniques, and had a full-out disinterest in giving out to the mainstream alternative scene.
So Indie music began to emerge, and became widely popular amongst college radio stations, where bands such as R.E.M. became popular and well-known. During the 1980's, the first indie charts in US and UK were formed, and were trapped under the watchful eye of big labels, eager to exploit the growing popular underground scene and make a profit off of the "new sound" they had discovered. But the true indie artists remained unsigned and unfazed by these labels, to keep their true independence. Only music produced at home or by means of a small label was considered "independent". Between college radios and the internet (which enabled indie artists to post their music on sites such as myspace to get their sound out to the world), indie music began to be more and more popular.
So Indie music began to emerge, and became widely popular amongst college radio stations, where bands such as R.E.M. became popular and well-known. During the 1980's, the first indie charts in US and UK were formed, and were trapped under the watchful eye of big labels, eager to exploit the growing popular underground scene and make a profit off of the "new sound" they had discovered. But the true indie artists remained unsigned and unfazed by these labels, to keep their true independence. Only music produced at home or by means of a small label was considered "independent". Between college radios and the internet (which enabled indie artists to post their music on sites such as myspace to get their sound out to the world), indie music began to be more and more popular.
The Indie scene soon began to adopt its own look. An "indie" person, also known as a "hipster", is typically a person with straight/skinny jeans, stretched ears, sometimes beanie hats and beards, choppy hair and unique, vintage/old school clothes. As the genre grew, so did the fashion expressions of the fans.
Canada has a large indie rock scene. Arcade fire, for example, were forerunners in Canadian Indie music, Indie-rock in particular. They began as a small band in Montreal, and grew to where they are now, nominees and winners of numerous and honorary awards including a Grammy for best album in 2010. I remember seeing Arcade Fire when they were still a minor band at Hillside Festival, getting photos with them, and sitting in the crowd watching them, the crowd small in comparison to what their fan base is now.
Arcade Fire, though one of the most popular, is only one piece of Indie Music. It is Indie-rock, the most basic indie sound, but this style of music can vary far more then their simplistic sub-genre. Bon Iver, an Indie-Folk band, is revered for its originality and unique, obscure sound, that differs so much from other genres that you usually hear today and brings folk music into popularity.
Another renowned Indie Band is Bright Eyes, a band with such a soothing, basic sound, that it has won the hearts of many. Mixed with gentle and basic music, rough recording job and a shakey voice, Bright Eyes is the epitome of Indie Music.
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