What’s the Alternative? IV – Part 3

Everyone is looking for a thrill and for a while in my youth certain indie/alternative songs did the job. Nothing against more popular artists and genres of the ‘80s and ‘90s but for me those years were pretty much a musical wasteland and it was not only fun but necessary to seek out the harder to find music (often having to travel into Manhattan and scour obscure vinyl record shops) to get my fix.

The Killers

Like it always does, popular music eventually caught up to what indie/alternative artists of the ‘80s and ‘90s were doing. Late century Britpop- as well as early 21st century American artists like the Killers- found ways to make money off the indie/alternative demand by focusing on songwriting and hooks (the Killers even adding ‘80s synth pop to their arsenal). Beck has quietly won seven Grammys.

Ween

While there is a postmodern sensibility to much of indie/alternative music, I have a theory that the postmodern era ended in 1994-1995 during the O.J. Simpson arrest and subsequent murder trial and global media circus and, since then, the world has been living through a new artistic period in which the most productive thing for artists to do may be to not make any new music at all but instead look back and study, use, and rearrange what has already been done- sort of like sound collage or mixtaping- and this will be a necessary phase before any major, new popular music ground can be broken (such as what happened in the U.K and U.S. in the ‘60s). Here are more of my indie/alternative faves. Enjoy! 

Ween

01. Superchunk – “Detroit Has a Skyline” (1995)

02. The Killers – “The Way It Was” (2012)

03. The Killers – “Mr. Brightside” (2003)

04. Ween – “Transitions” (1997)

05. Snow Patrol – “Open Your Eyes” (2006)

06. R.E.M. – “There She Goes Again” (1983)

07. The Dead Milkmen – “Instant Club Hit (You’ll Dance to Anything)” (1987)

08. Beck – “Guess I’m Doing Fine” (2002)

09. The Flaming Lips – “Waitin’ for a Superman” (1999)

10. Ween – “Did You See Me?” (1996)

11. Ween – “Boys Club” (1994)

12. Dinosaur Jr. – “Pieces” (2009)

13. Coldplay – “The Scientist” (2002)

14. They Might Be Giants – “I’m Your Boyfriend Now” (2007)

15. R.E.M. – “At My Most Beautiful” (1998)

16. Ween – “Bananas and Blow” (2000)

17. Travis – “Why Does It Always Rain on Me?” (1999)

18. The Divine Comedy – “I Like” (2010)

19. Beck – “Lost Cause” (2002)

20. Brandon Flowers – “Crossfire” (2010)

Listen to the playlist on Spotify...

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