Indie Music

Music genre research

Indie music

Indie rock is a type of alternative rock that originated in the 1980's in both America and the UK. This genre is very diverse and many people have different views on what the genre consists of . It can often be divided into other sub categories like indie pop and jangle pop.

Before Indie rock was known as a music genre, it was the name used to describe music labels. However it then changed to describe the type of music they created and therefore is known today as the indie rock genre.

In the 1990's, Indie rock was seen as almost being rebellious in the music world and almost raw underground talent of artists that weren't in it just for the commercial success. However this suddenly changed in 2000 when the genre came into the industry more and was seen as more mainstream. People then started to question what Indie rock meant and what it was about as artists in this genre started to like the success more and the raw uniqueness of the genre slowly faded.

Famous artists

Some famous artists that belong to the Indie rock or pop genre include:

• Arctic monkeys

• Lana Del Rey

• Paloma Faith

• Mumford and sons

• The vaccines

Characteristics

The Indie genre was once the name used for small record label companies, however it soon developed into a musical style, in which music labels would let the artist take full responsibility and be independent. They would be allowed to do whatever they wanted in the music and the video and be creative. This genre is a lot more laid back in comparison to the pop genre were everything is planned and thought through before its released to make sure it gets the best number of sales.

The genre itself has had many influences from punk, to rock to even pop. Indie rock is largely made up of female artists such as Paloma Faith and Ellie Goulding, and this is because the genre are trying to compete against the masculine and 'macho' image that is given by the rock genre.

The genre through the years

In 1980, the Indie rock genre started to become apparent in the America and artists of this genre started to be played on the radio such as The Smiths. Bands that belonged to the genre in this time were going against the norm and rejected being the typical pop band that would be recognized in the charts.

Many of the large Indie Rock labels were founded in this time and are still successful today as the genre has grown and adapted. This was also the time when many sub genres started to form within the genre like noise rock as artists stopped being afraid of trying to fit in and were trying new things.

1980

Indie music

1990's

The 1990's saw alternative rocks biggest change as Bands started to become successful in the mainstream music scene and started to be in the charts. These artists included Pearl Jam and Oasis. This caused many underground artists to come out and start to want to enter the commercial side of the industry and gave them a new perspective as they could be successful.

The meaning of the genre then started to change as many artists didn't stay true to the meaning and reasoning for making music. Therefore the artists that remained the same and kept the low profiles were then classed as the Indie rock genre.

Present day

In 2000, the music industry changed completely with new advances in digital technology, allowing artists to reach audiences in new convenient ways. This worked on the Indie rock genres side as it helped them gain mainstream success with other artists as their were new ways to promote the artists.

Also at this time, the UK indie artists had a huge influence on America and this made more UK music labels and websites more popular and well known worldwide, spreading the genre internationally.