2009 Is Like an Indie Rock Time Machine

I only started listening to "Indie Music" in the last five years. In the last two years especially, I have spent a lot of time playing catch up. I have spent time finding all the bands I should have been listening to over the last couple decades and building an understanding of the progression of the genre.

I am finally mostly caught up with the history of the "Indie Music", which is sort of an arbitrary description now that popular culture has adopted many of these bands. I have never felt quite comfortable using it because of that, but I also hate trying to label every band into some ridiculous sub-genre. This new knowledge of music has filled me with a longing to see a lot of bands that are over or seem to have peaked years ago while they were still in their prime. If only I could go back to the '90s to see Flaming Lips, Built to Spill, Dinosaur Jr., and Pavement while they were pumping out those classic albums.

But wait! The first three of those bands have produced excellent albums this year ("Embryonic", "There Is No Enemy", and "Farm" respectively) which they are touring to support, and Pavement is set to do a limited number of shows throughout 2010. It is like I get to go back in time. In Portland, I have unfortunately already missed Flaming Lips (who also shot a very awesome, very NSFW video at Mt. Tabor Park included below), and Dinosaur Jr. shows this year. Built to spill is performing tonight at the Wonder Ballroom, so I am probably not going to make that either. I will, however, not be missing Pavement at Sasquatch this year come May.


The Flaming Lips music video for "Watching the Planets" NSFW!

With these bands back to top form, is it too much to hope that other bands like Modest Mouse and Death Cab could follow suit in the next few years? I thought Narrow Stairs was pretty good, but I still long for these bands around the time of The Moon and Antarctica and Transantlanticism or earlier. I think we have all given up hope for Weezer, but maybe the next color album will surprise? Okay that is a long shot.


Dinosouar Jr.'s Album "Farm"

2009 has also brought amazing albums from newer artists like Animal Collective's "Post Merriweather Pavilion," Grizzly Bear's "Veckatimest," and the Dirty Projectors "Bitte Orca". This combination of the best of the older and newer generations is making it a pretty great time to be an Indie music fan.


Animal Collective's "Merriweather Post Pavilion"