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Notes on video lecture:
1990s Indie Rock and the Question of Selling Out
Notes taken by Edward Tanguay on July 16, 2017 (go to class or lectures)


Choose from these words to fill the blanks below:
lower, Pearl, porch, London, Seattle, quality, Velvet, college, styles, Geffen, alternative, hooks, MTV, Voices, cassette, major, shadow, Dallas
many of the bands from the 1980s indie scene went to labels
ended up on , went on tours
there was some push back on this, e.g. Jam protested Ticket Master's prices
the indie scene continued
a kind of alternative to the
more dedicated to the idea of not selling out, keep it indie, keep it real, keep the do-it-yourself aesthetic
indie record labels
Matador
from New York
Merge
Chapel Hill
Sub Pop
continued involvement of radio stations
College Music Journal (CMJ)
parallel to Billboard
wide circulation
alternative network
Lo-Fi movement
it cost a lot of money to make a sound production
indie artists would have to create quality
they embraced this idea and owned it
turned it into a mark of distinction, of authenticity
a way of showing: we haven't sold out, we can do something hip with this lo-fi approach
people moving back to tapes
Pavement
Stockton, California
Stephen Malkmus
Scott Kannberg
Slanted and Enchanted (1992)
Matador label
Guided by
Dayton, Ohio
Robert Pollard
1994 album: Bee Thousand
Elliot Smith
born in Omaha
career emerged out of Portland, Oregon
1994 Roman Candle
Indie label: Cavity Search
recorded on a simply machine
Merge Records
Chapel Hill
Indie music brings together many
Superchunk
1991 No Pocky for Kitty
clear punk roots
guitar rhythm
Neutral Milk Hotel
1998 In the Aeroplane Over the Sea
singer songwriter
lo-fi
The Magnetic Fields
out of
Stephin Merrits
69 Love Songs (1999)
singer songwriter theme
interesting and diverse
not a lot of air play
college radio and venues
a kind of a parallel culture, a culture
Noise Pop
roots in the Underground
fascination for sound and sound effects
artsy
Yo La Tengo
Ira Kaplan
Georgia Hubley
1993 Painful
1997 I Can Hear the Heart Beating As One
Moby Octopad
My Bloody Valentine
1991 Loveless
classic of 90s Indie rock
When You Sleep
Only Shallow
Alt-Country
blending country with rock
old country, honky-tonk country
authentic back- music
Uncle Tupelo
Illinois
1990 No Depression
Screen Door
split up and form:
Wilco
Jeff Tweedy
Son Volt
Jay Farrar
Whiskeytown
Ryan Adams
1995 Faithless Street
India label: Mood Food
Old 97's
, Texas
Bottle Rockets
Festus, Missouri
Beck Hanson
goes major label but tries to retain his integrity
much like R.E.M.
Los Angeles
1994 signs to Geffen Records
1993 "Loser"
Bong Load
when re-released it, it became very popular
1994 Mellow Gold
1996 Odelay
combines pop with hip hop, country rock, soul, and classical music
Ideas and Concepts:
Hitherto unknown musical genre, via tonight's History of Rock and Roll class:
"As many of the bands from the 1980s indie scene went to major labels, starting touring, and ended up on MTV, the 1990s saw a new indie scene form which was dedicated to not selling out in this way, and became a kind of alternative to the alternative scene, adamant about keeping it indie, keeping it real, keeping the do-it-yourself aesthetic.
Some of the major labels were Matador in New York, Merge from Chapel Hill, and Sub Pop in Seattle. In addition, you had the continued involvement of college radio stations and the College Music Journal (CMJ), which was a kind of Billboard magazine for indie and other alternative bands.
A sub-group that grew out of this was the the Lo-Fi movement, which produced sound recordings that were of lower quality than the usual standard for modern music. The fact was it cost quite a bit of money to make quality sound productions, and so many indie artists embraced and owned the idea of creating lower quality sound recording on purpose, turning it into a mark of distinction. It was a way of showing the world they hadn't sold out and that they were still hip. Many of them even produced their music on retro cassette tapes.
So while Lo-Fi music is by definition music with low sound quality, it often comes across as being quite authentic."
"As many of the bands from the 1980s indie scene went to major labels, starting touring, and ended up on MTV, the 1990s saw a new indie scene form which was dedicated to not selling out in this way, and became a kind of alternative to the alternative scene, adamant about keeping it indie, keeping it real, keeping the do-it-yourself aesthetic.
Some of the major labels were Matador in New York, Merge from Chapel Hill, and Sub Pop in Seattle. In addition, you had the continued involvement of college radio stations and the College Music Journal (CMJ), which was a kind of Billboard magazine for indie and other alternative bands.
A sub-group that grew out of this was the the Lo-Fi movement, which produced sound recordings that were of lower quality than the usual standard for modern music. The fact was it cost quite a bit of money to make quality sound productions, and so many indie artists embraced and owned the idea of creating lower quality sound recording on purpose, turning it into a mark of distinction. It was a way of showing the world they hadn't sold out and that they were still hip. Many of them even produced their music on retro cassette tapes.
So while Lo-Fi music is by definition music with low sound quality, it often comes across as being quite authentic."
Hitherto unknown musical genre, via tonight's History of Rock and Roll class:
"Alt-country is a loosely defined 1990s subgenre of country music which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music.
It has been used to describe country music bands and artists that have incorporated influences ranging from roots rock, bluegrass, rockabilly, honky-tonk, alternative rock, folk rock, and punk rock. Lyrics may be bleak or socially aware, but also more heartfelt and less likely to use the clichés sometimes used by mainstream country musicians.
The Old 97's are an American alternative country band from Dallas. Lead vocalist and primary songwriter Rhett Miller has described the band's style as "loud folk".
Initially a popular Dallas bar band, the Old 97's toured the country after releasing their first album, 1994's Hitchhike to Rhome. The band has never reached the level of success expected of them by the music press. Although they have been heralded as a great live band, they claim never to rehearse their act."
"Alt-country is a loosely defined 1990s subgenre of country music which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music.
It has been used to describe country music bands and artists that have incorporated influences ranging from roots rock, bluegrass, rockabilly, honky-tonk, alternative rock, folk rock, and punk rock. Lyrics may be bleak or socially aware, but also more heartfelt and less likely to use the clichés sometimes used by mainstream country musicians.
The Old 97's are an American alternative country band from Dallas. Lead vocalist and primary songwriter Rhett Miller has described the band's style as "loud folk".
Initially a popular Dallas bar band, the Old 97's toured the country after releasing their first album, 1994's Hitchhike to Rhome. The band has never reached the level of success expected of them by the music press. Although they have been heralded as a great live band, they claim never to rehearse their act."