Lisnaholic

Yes one or two good points in this video. I like how he says that Indie Music is defined by what it isn't - and that's why it took me ages to more-or-less work out which bands/music fell into the Indie category. If the word Indie implies some hostile stance against the musical establishment, then perhaps it's time for a new label; here on MB we have hedged our bets with "Indie & Alternative", and "Alternative" works better for me: music that isn't quite popular enough to be mainstream, a place for artists to experiment with pop-rock of their own choosing, without the pressure to come up with hit singles.

The guy admits he doesn't like the genre, but spends way too much time being scornful, not of the music, but of the way people write about the music, about the cars, clothes and lifestyle of people who listen to the music. The giveaway was when he mentions "hanging out with my exgirlfriend Donna and all her rich friends"; he's got some grievance about the way they use drugs, which again, is a bit adrift from the topic of the music.

When he focuses on the music, he makes this surprising statement: "I think art should have a very specific point of view and should slap you in the f***ing face with that point of view". As an example of this attitude he chooses ska. It's true that unlike Indie music, ska has an easily identifiable sound, but I wouldn't call that a point of view as such. I'm running through some artists and wondering how they measure up; did The Beatles have a specific point of view that they slapped you in the face with?

Overall, I feel like this is a guy who had to put up with his girlfriend's music for too long and is now getting his own back by asking, "Why can't Indie music be more like the kind of stuff I listen to?"

__________________
"Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953

Janszoon

I'm with you, Lisna. A lot of what he says is true, but it's also applicable to a lot of other music. The funniest part of the video—aside from him complaining about attention-seeking behavior on his YouTube channel—was how much of a hardcore fan cliché he is. While he was talking about how music "needs to stand for something", I was looking at all those stickers behind him thinking about how preachy bands like Earth Crisis and Shelter are and how much I don't think it enhances the music.

__________________
A Night in the Life of the Invisible Man

Time & Place

25 Albums You Should Hear Before the Moon Crashes into the Earth and We All Die

last.fm

Lisnaholic

Well Queen Boo has an interesting insight into who this guy is, and a reminder of how you should be careful about taking internet stuff at face value.

Haha! Absolutely, Janszoon! Any artist who uses music to evangelize about some position, be it religious or political, is at risk of turning his song into an irritating one-message clunker in my opinion. Also, I suspect, the opinion of Chula V, who had this to say about guitarist Phil Keaggy:-

__________________
"Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953