Sekrit Origins

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

One of the persistent themes in the Now polls is "wow this is my first NOW album" (frantically ticks everything). Another persistent theme is "OK at this point I'd got into indie" (ashamedly ticks nothing). So in the endless search for shared experience let me ask you this question:

How did you get into indie?

and as a bonus question - let's try not to make this too loaded -

If indie is less central to your music listening now than it once was, why do you think this is?

Define the i-word however you like.

I think I have asked similar qns on ILM, but this is a new kettle and these are new fish.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Post lyrics to 'Rubber Ring' now, plz!

I got into indie because I got into girls but girls didn't get into me and I wanted to listen to something as I lay on my bed and felt...not so much sad...as...It's an identity thing, I think. I wanted to something to 'stand for' me, and indie esp. say Belle and Sebastian at first seemed to do this. Don't get me wrong, they didn't save my life: it was more a badge, something to talk about, be proud to be into, associate myself with. The reasons why I did this are still vague: I identify with a voice usually, as someone I'd like to know. Perhaps that's it...

But I do still listen to a lot of indie and I do, as then, listen to lots of other stuff. It never particularly 'got in the way' in that respect. Indeed, I've never understood people reacting against their indie past unless they do it on the grounds that they find the music mediocre.

[steviespitfire.livejournal.com]

That ill-formed rant above was by me.

[steviespitfire.livejournal.com]

What I mean is--I was young, I wanted something to follow, collect, talk about, etc, and music was that. Indie appealed cos it was about bands, with back catalogues, and could fill my time when I was lonely/bored.

This fact was important to me. I sometimes think it's ignored.

[steviespitfire.livejournal.com]

A rockist point, it is too, I guess.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

No, not really I don't think, it's a social point.

I got into music because it was something to talk about - not entirely because, but partly. Indie when I got into it seemed to talk about me in a way that other music didn't. This is the case for a lot of people, I reckon.

[steviespitfire.livejournal.com]

People will often eulogise about bands saving their life etc? Identifying and all that.

Anyway, music was, and is, my great hobby. It was a gateway for me, for better or worse. Living in a small town, near Glasgow, I was drawn into various scenes from which I've never really emerged; I've broadened to encompass other groups. It is amazing how many of my friends I have made through shared love of music, through gigs of friend's bands etc.

Indie, in this respect, is the common musical currency for myself and many of my friends. Microhouse being too hip, pop not hip enough etc...