Task 6:

My research into the Indie genre:

− Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s.

− Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include indie pop, jangle pop, C86, and lo-fi, among others

− Originally used to describe record labels, the term became associated with the music they produced and was initially used interchangeably with alternative rock.

− Allmusic identifies indie rock as including a number of styles that are: "too sensitive and melancholy; too soft and delicate; too dreamy and hypnotic; too personal and intimately revealing in its lyrics; too low-fidelity and low-budget in its production; too angular in its melodies and riffs; too raw, skronky and abrasive, wrapped in too many sheets of Sonic Youth/Dinosaur Jr./Pixies/Jesus & Mary Chain-style guitar noise; too oblique and fractured in its song structures; too influenced by experimental or otherwise unpopular musical styles.

− Indie rock has been identified as a reaction against the "macho" culture that developed in alternative rock in the aftermath of Nirvana's success.

Examples of Indie rock are;

The Arctic Monkeys

The Wombats

The Vaccinces

An NME cover:

This magazine is often associated with indie music which is further associated with going against the trend and standing out. This is demonstrated by the magazine cover with a pose that is very different to what is often seen. The dark background helps the bright text stand out and it is placed around the image so that the readers eyes are not distracted away from one part of the cover. Furthermore the bold main selling line is very different and outlandish which highlights the connection with indie rock even though the cover is not necessaraly from that genre. On top of this, smoking is often linked with rock which gives a familiarity for fans who may not be a fan of the cover star.

The contents page:

The contents page talks about: different bands/artists

Festivals and gigs Reviews albums Purchases for the readers Interviews with various people Images

Images associated with Indie rock

Interviews with Indie rock groups:

In this interview with The Arctic Monkeys they are asked casual questions about what they have been doing in the area, what they can remember from the last time and other questions. The interview is very relaxed and casual with non factual questions.

The Verge magazine interview with the Wombats features them talking about festivals they're at and stories from the past. Questions such as 'who are you most looking forward to seeing at the festival?' and other informal questions are asked. The language is very informal and the group look extremely relaxed which fits in with the indie rock theme.