“Alt-rock” vs. “Indie”
April 29th, 2008, 11:20 am · Post a Comment · posted by Chris Hansen Orf
Hey Everybody
A colleague of mine (and an ardent music fan) here at the Trib raised an interesting question recently: What is the difference between “alt-rock” and “indie rock?”
The question was in reference to a story I’d written announcing a Death Cab For Cutie show at the Mesa Amphitheatre, and I referred to the band as “alt-rock.” My colleague said that he still considers Death Cab “indie,” even though they are now on a major label and have gotten some airplay on ”alt-rock” radio in recent years.
The way I try to distinguish who is “indie” and who is “alt-rock” goes way (way!) back to the ’80s, when bands such as R.E.M., The Replacements and Husker Du came out on independent record labels (IRS, SST and Twin/Tone respectively). Back then it was called “underground,” because radio still played major label artists such as Journey, Foreigner, The Cars, etc.
But when those bands (and other like-minded groups who followed in their wake) all signed to major label discs in the mid-to-late ’80s, “alt-rock” was born, as it was not Journey, but it was an alternative to commercial rock.
With “alt-rock” now in the mainstream, the next “underground” became indie rock, where small labels such as Saddle Creek Records (a Nebraska based label with a roster of bands such as Bright Eyes, Cursive and Tokyo Police Club) and Matador Records (with a roster of artists such as Cat Power, The New Pornographers and Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks) release albums to little corporate radio fanfare but whose acts have strong fan followings.
What it comes down is, does indie rock have a particular sound, or does being on an independent label automatically make you an “indie” band and being on a major label make you an “alt-rock” band?
So, is Death Cab For Cutie still “indie” or are they “alt-rock?”
It depends on where you draw the line…
Chris
