The Indie Genre And Being Hipster: 5 Bands in Total Denial

By Chad Anthony on April 1, 2014

Image from Messynessychic.files.wordpress.com

What is hipster? Is it a state of being? A mindset? A culmination of a technological revolution and independent thinking?

“Hipster” is generally defined as a group of individuals–typically in their 20s and 30s–that embrace independent thinking, anti-mainstream culture and forward-thinking politics. In basic terms, hipsters dig wearing clothes worn by other people previously, perusing books in small coffee shops and saying, “I’m not hipster, I’m just different.” No, you’re wearing a plaid blazer you bought at the thrift store, drinking out of a Nalgene, talking about that band no one recognizes. You’re a damn hipster. Just accept it.

Continuously delving into the concept of Generation-Y, I believe there’s a direct correlation between two extremely relevant movements. Generation-Y inadvertently manifested the hipster ideal–a heavy emphasis on uniqueness, independence, and progressive thought–through the use of social media in conjunction with technological advancements. There’s an intrinsic connection between this flannel and thick-rimmed glasses movement and the rise in the music industry’s Indie genre.

Thanks to the internets, I am listening to Childish Gambino’s newest album “Because the Internet.” In a few simple clicks, I can listen to music producer and EDM collaborator Moog from Australia. The access to different, unique music has blossomed.

I have found myself becoming more enveloped in the “Indie” music scene, listening to artists such as Six60, Various Cruelties, Maps and Atlases, Three Legged Fox, etc.  And while waist deep in hipster denial myself, I keep asking, “What is the most hipster band out there,” and “What makes a band ‘hipster’?”

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes

Have you ever looked at an 8-piece band and thought, “These people need more musicians?” Don’t worry your eclectic brain any longer! Mr. Edward Sharpe accumulated 10 individuals with various obscure musical talents. This Sharpe character and his magnetized zeroes are led by front-man Alex Ebert, along with fellow co-lead Jade Costrinos. The two met in 2007 in downtown Los Angeles at Little Pedros.

In 2010, “Up From Below” debuted with the immensely popular single “Home” ringing in [collectively] over 25 million views on the YouTube. The band has found steady success, spending the last couple of years touring internationally and playing festivals such as Austin City Limits, Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo. On July 23, a new album will be released via Community Music. And if you still don’t believe the hipster trend, just check out their website; who needs words to navigate a web page when you have the color spectrum?!

Arcade Fire

Since their inception in the early 2000′s, Arcade Fire has been pounding out bombastic instrumental lines and cacophonous lyrical melodies. Win Butler, the band’s co-leader and Houston native, met Regine Chassagne – his now wife – in 2003 and immediately realized the musical connection. The band came to be once other musicians joined the duo – Tim Kingsbury on guitar, William Butler on keyboard, Sarah Neufeld on violin, Richard Parry on bass and Jeremy Gara on drums.

Their first official debut came in 2005 with the album “Funerals” – a theme explored within the tracks after multiple members lost loved ones in the early 2000′s. Late October of 2013 marked their release “Reflektor,” the band’s fourth album. It debuted at No. 1 on Billboard, their second chart topper in recent years – the first being 2010′s “The Suburbs.” At the Juno Awards this past March, Arcade Fire snagged another accolade for “Reflektor:“ Alternative Album of the Year.

Iron & Wine

One man plays his guitar in a poorly lit room with some aspirations for facial hair. This is the cliché of all clichés  in the music scene, but for Samuel Beam – the man behind the “Iron & Wine” curtain – it works. His glorious beard says “play with me” while the desperate look in his eyes whimpers “I’ve been played with too many times.”

Beam has released five albums under the pseudonym Iron & Wine: “The Creek Drank The Cradle” (2002), “Our Endless Numbered Days” (2004), “The Shepherd’s Dog” (2007), “Around the Well” (2009), “Kiss Each Other Clean” (2011), and most recently “Ghost on Ghost” (2013).  

His whisper-from-the-mic-style and just-as-amazing-as-his-beard finger picking creates a gravitational pull. Audiences crowd around out of sheer interest and probably because they can’t hear him.

Fun

In 2008, Nate Ruess and Sam Means dissolved their duo The Format. This left Ruess wanting another avenue of expression for his musical passion. He hit up Steel Train’s Jack Antonoff and Anathallo’s Andrew Dost to collaborate, all bringing to the table an affinity toward kooky vintage pop sounds and subsequently creating the New York City- based Fun.

In 2009, they released their debut album “Aim and Ignite.” What followed cemented their efforts to become an Indie-household name, or at least a band that is only known by that one song. “Some Nights” launched the trio in 2012 to instant stardom (for a year or two). Their sophomore album climbed to the No. 3 spot on Billboard 200, selling close to 70,000 copies in the first week. It was the most listened to song on Facebook in 2012, being trailed by Gotye’s “Somebody that I Used to Know.” In 2013, the single “We Are Young” won a Grammy for Song of the Year.

Foster the People

Originally named Foster and the People, this Los Angeles-native trio comprised of Mark Foster, Cubbie Fink and Mark Pontius came together in 2009. In the early years, many fans mistook the name for Foster the People. The guys decided to accept it because of the interesting story behind the origins. Everyone loves a story.

The debut single “Pumped Up Kicks” from their first album “Torches” won Billboard Music Awards 2012, even with the dark and controversial lyrics. In an interview with InterviewMagazine.com, Mark says that the surge of popularity surrounding the single felt like a tidal wave, a giant wave the band was not expecting. They went from playing to a couple hundred people to “Coachella” and “Glastonbury”, 3,000 and 15,000 respectively. “Supermodel,” their sophomore release, debuted in March of 2014. “Coming of Age” shined as the single with refreshed guitar implementation and totally-groovy hand claps.

I realize my efforts to accumulate all the Indie-ness will be scrutinized. These popular bands accentuate the hipster mentality by completely denying how kooky they actually are. But let’s face it: the most hipster bands are the ones other people never recognize.

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