If you want to understand white people, you need to understand indie music. As mentioned before, white people hate anything that’s “mainstream” and are desperate to find things that are more genuine, unique, and reflective of their experiences.
Fortunately, they have independent music.
A white person’s iPod (formerly CD collection) is not merely an assemblage of music that they enjoy. It is what defines them as a person. They are always on the look out for the latest hot band that no one has heard of so that one day, they can hit it just right and be into a band BEFORE they are featured in an Apple commercial. To a white person, being a fan of a band before they get popular is one of the most important things they can do with their life. They can hold it over their friends forever!
Indie music also produces a lot of concerts, for which white people can attend and meet other white people. It’s especially useful, since they are attending the same concert, they both like the artist and can easily strike up a conversation that will flow from band at the show->other bands they like->where they went to/go to school->where to get the best vegan food in town->agreement to meet at said restaurant for awkward date.
It is worth noting that white people are expected to stay current with music and go to concerts well into their 40s. Unlike at dance or hip hop clubs, there are few stigmas attached to being the “old guy at the club.”
But BE WARNED, talking about Indie Music with white people is perhaps the most dangerous subject you touch upon. One false move and you will lose their respect and admiration forever. Here are some general rules
- Bands that have had their songs in an Apple ad are still marginally acceptable
- Bands that have had their songs in ads for other companies are not acceptable
- If you mention a band you like and the other person has heard of them, you lose. They own you. It is essential that you like the most obscure music possible.
Remember, popular artists can turn unpopular in a heartbeat (Ryan Adams, Bright Eyes, The Strokes), so you would be best to stick to the following statements: “I love the Arcade Fire,” “I still think the Montreal scene is the best in the world,” “I would die without Stereogum or Fluxblog“* and “Joanna Newsom is maybe the most original artist today.”
*-do not substitute Stereogum for Pitchfork, as this is one of those things that used to be cool, but is now not cool.
Image: Spaceland in Silverlake.
Stuff White People Like 
Clander is guilty of this. Your hip-hop beats do not cover-up your hipster-ness.
P.S. Man, I’m so into Swedish folk-rock right now. What, you haven’t heard of Jens Lenkman? Too bad.
Nice try.
Jens was signed to Secretly Canadian records in Bloomington, IN and I saw him play live at the 2nd story in…..2005…eat it.
Hey, I was at that Jens show. *cough*
[…] #41 Indie Music Stuff White People Like __________________ Quote: […]
All music is dead as we know it. We all fear this to be true… That is why all songs must be less than 30 seconds to be re-purposed for ring tones. I am only half of a whole of American Ringtone Band… and we are the number one ringtone only band! Get used to the name, because you will hear from us again… but not longer than half a minute.
have you heard felix laband on compost records? electronica whizzkid from south africa with 909 type beats and organic samples… he rules.
f*ck.
Busted.
And just as I was about to re-up on my E-Music download.
Indie has always been enother way to say shitty.
[…] of dropping my own subject categories and just organizing my blog by just citing entries on this uncannily accurate site. I’m looking forward to spending my Sunday morning checking out some more entries and […]
next up: how many OLD and obscure references can you make without mentioning Wire. oh wait, that’s not so obscure.
[…] about the young, white image? (Thanks Rozie!) Sample quote on indie music (#41) But BE WARNED, talking about Indie Music with white people is perhaps the most dangerous subject […]
I HATE indie music by YOUNG PEOPLE. 99 percent of the music made by people less than 50 years old is unlistenable crap. You kiddies can take your Nirvana records and shove them up your ass.
Give me some Delbert McClinton or some Kentucky Headhunters any time.
You’ve heard of them, right?
Where’s jonesy?
stuffblackpeoplelike – eating watermelon! hahaha!!!
stuffarabpeoplelike – pumping oil! hahaha!!!
stuffblackpeoplelike – gang warfare! hahaha!!!
stuffmexicanpeoplelike – eating beans! hahaha!!!
stuffchinesepeoplelike – shooting heroin! hahaha!!!
stuffblackpeoplelike – welfare! hahaha!!!
stuffjewishpeoplelike – keeping money! hahaha!!!
stuffmexicanpeoplelike – wearing sombreros! hahaha!!!
stuffchinesepeoplelike – eating rice! hahaha!!!
stuffarabpeoplelike – kissing goats! hahaha!!!
stuffmexicanpeoplelike – wearing sombreros! hahaha!!!
stuffblackpeoplelike – sniffing glue! hahaha!!!
aren’t i funny and clever!!!
don’t you dare call me a racist!!!
Mike B and Clander are both posers. Everyone who is important and interesting and cool knows that Jens Lenkman’s solo work never capture the magic of his (one album, no record deal) work with The Scissors.
Talk about come-lately also rans.
sorry, arcade fire is already passe. file them in with the the strokes and, oh, every other band that has been rung through the pitchfork/blog-o-sphere hype machine.
It’s Lekman. not Lenkman.
can we talk about the EMO scene?
Mike B: It’s Lekman, not Lenkman. Please hand in your white guy card at once!
I’m white and I hate the genre “indie” but I like going to club shows of bands I like better than I like going to huge concerts of mainstream bands I like (and I do like many mainstream bands). I don’t like any of the bands you’ve listed. I haven’t even heard of some of them. You are whiter than me.
[…] #41 Indie Music […]
i’m actually so white that i just make up bands when i talk about music. what, you haven’t heard of the magnesium whistleblowers?
“To a white person, being a fan of a band before they get popular is one of the most important things they can do with their life. They can hold it over their friends forever!”
As a White racialist my own darn self, it would be somewhat hypocritical of me to deride this blog for its often condescendingly anti-White themes. Not that I’m not occasionally tempted. Never-the-less, this remark is pretty close to pure truth. My own favorite band is this Slovenian (formerly Yugoslavian) Gothic-industrial band called “Laibach” (which pretty much fits the stereotype about as well as anything could), which has been putting out albums since at least 1985. In the rare event you actually meet a “Laibach” fan today, he or she is usually some weird-looking, youngish White person (I’m 37, so I mean like under 30 when I say “youngish,” and by weird-looking, I mean they dress & style/dye their hair in one of those outlandish, “alternative” styles that most people abandoned sometime when they were in high school, presumably because they realized they looked fucking ridiculous*) who’s only known about Laibach for around five years or so (and often a lot less). When I tell these people I’ve been listening to them since 1989, they frequently accuse me of lying. There is no rational reason this should provide me with satisfaction, but it does. In spades.
*These days, most of the people who do that sort of thing identify with the so-called “Emo” sub-culture. Back in the 1970s, they were called “punk rockers.” Now I have little doubt that “Emos,” and the vestigial remnants of the “punk rocker” sub-culture, would be utterly aghast at my equating their two sub-cultures, but to me, people who dress in costumes after puberty are all part of the same sub-culture, irrespective of the excuse they utilize in order to justify their childlike hijinx.
“stuffblackpeoplelike – eating watermelon! hahaha!!!
stuffarabpeoplelike – pumping oil! hahaha!!!
stuffblackpeoplelike – gang warfare! hahaha!!!
stuffmexicanpeoplelike – eating beans! hahaha!!!
stuffchinesepeoplelike – shooting heroin! hahaha!!!
stuffblackpeoplelike – welfare! hahaha!!!
stuffjewishpeoplelike – keeping money! hahaha!!!
stuffmexicanpeoplelike – wearing sombreros! hahaha!!!
stuffchinesepeoplelike – eating rice! hahaha!!!
stuffarabpeoplelike – kissing goats! hahaha!!!
stuffmexicanpeoplelike – wearing sombreros! hahaha!!!
stuffblackpeoplelike – sniffing glue! hahaha!!!
aren’t i funny and clever!!!
don’t you dare call me a racist!!!”
If more of the people who are pro-White were like me, and most of them weren’t like this guy, we might actually have some chance of influencing the socio-political debate in Western nations. Don’t worry, however. Most of them really are as dumb as you probably think they are. Not that they tend to be much stupider, on average, than your standard-issue supporter of Juan McInsane or Hillarious Rotten Klinton. I’d love to do a study to see if there’s a correlation between low IQs among White people and habitually voting for the winning candidate in a U.S. Presidential election.
Kevin Riley O’Keeffe –
ha ha you still care. How white. 🙂
Yeah, I’m losing my edge.
I’m losing my edge.
The kids are coming up from behind.
I’m losing my edge.
I’m losing my edge to the kids from France and from London.
But I was there.
I was there in 1968.
I was there at the first Can show in Cologne.
I’m losing my edge.
I’m losing my edge to the kids whose footsteps I hear when they get on the decks.
I’m losing my edge to the Internet seekers who can tell me every member of every good group from 1962 to 1978.
I’m losing my edge.
To all the kids in Tokyo and Berlin.
I’m losing my edge to the art-school Brooklynites in little jackets and borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered eighties.
But I’m losing my edge.
I’m losing my edge, but I was there.
I was there.
But I was there.
I’m losing my edge.
I’m losing my edge.
I can hear the footsteps every night on the decks.
But I was there.
I was there in 1974 at the first Suicide practices in a loft in New York City.
I was working on the organ sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart started up his first band.
I told him, “Don’t do it that way. You’ll never make a dime.”
I was there.
I was the first guy playing Daft Punk to the rock kids.
I played it at CBGB’s.
Everybody thought I was crazy.
We all know.
I was there.
I was there.
I’ve never been wrong.
I used to work in the record store.
I had everything before anyone.
I was there in the Paradise Garage DJ booth with Larry Levan.
I was there in Jamaica during the great sound clashes.
I woke up naked on the beach in Ibiza in 1988.
But I’m losing my edge to better-looking people with better ideas and more talent.
And they’re actually really, really nice.
I’m losing my edge.
I heard you have a compilation of every good song ever done by anybody. Every great song by the Beach Boys. All the underground hits. All the Modern Lovers tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Niagra record on German import. I heard that you have a white label of every seminal Detroit techno hit – 1985, ’86, ’87. I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good ’60s cut and another box set from the ’70s.
I hear you’re buying a synthesizer and an arpeggiator and are throwing your computer out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Yaz record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitars and bought turntables.
I hear that you and your band have sold your turntables and bought guitars.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records? This Heat, Pere Ubu, Outsiders, Nation of Ulysses, Mars, The Trojans, The Black Dice, Todd Terry, the Germs, Section 25, Althea and Donna, Sexual Harrassment, a-ha, Pere Ubu, Dorothy Ashby, PIL, the Fania All-Stars, the Bar-Kays, the Human League, the Normal, Lou Reed, Scott Walker, Monks, Niagra,
Joy Division, Lower 48, the Association, Sun Ra,
Scientists, Royal Trux, 10cc,
Eric B. and Rakim, Index, Basic Channel, Soulsonic Force (“just hit me”!), Juan Atkins, David Axelrod, Electric Prunes, Gil! Scott! Heron!, the Slits, Faust, Mantronix, Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines, the Swans, the Soft Cell, the Sonics, the Sonics, the Sonics, the Sonics.
You don’t know what you really want.
OH MY GOD. I think I fell on the floor laughing. This is completely and TOTALLY true!!!!
The answer is Tokio Hotel. I read about them in the Times while eating breakfast listening to jazz. This must be why my kids with two last names hate me.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/20/arts/music/20toki.html?hp
But wait, if they’re in the Times, does that mean they’re not cool?
White people love bands. Oh, they only really respect people who write their own songs, and forget about singers having a supremely beautiful voice or musicians being able to play well. It only matters for a musician to be a true artist if he or she writes original material (even sub-par originals are better than visionary covers). White people like girls with generic pretty ethereal voices.
I like the Indy shows because thier cheap $15 tickets and front row views. The crappier they are the cheaper the tickets and the better view you get. Zepplin and Kenny G are much too expensive to be sitting in the nose bleed section.
Also, white people love the movie Once–it combines indie music with film festivals with obscure european cultural points.
Oh, and rediscovering people. White people love rediscovering other people and appreciating them on a deeper level. Bob Dylan, Veronica Wood, Prince, Peter O’Toole.
OMG the indie rat race – so true! And I’m only half white lol.
Forgive me for my impertinence, but it seems that just about every post on this site applies not so much to white people as it does to upper-middle class hipsters.
I mean honestly, how many working-class high school educated Texans like sushi, eastern religions, and indie music?
I recognize the pictured band as Stars. I guess I’m busted.
Ha! Buddy_Holly_Was_Emo, that LCD Soundsystem song is one of my favorites. So I have completely confirmed the point of the post by naming a band. So sue me.
Hey, I’ve got a joke for you:
Q: How many indie music fans does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: What, you don’t know?
Ha! Can we pick up the black mantle of color shading and start accusing one another of being too white or not white enough? And I have a friend who literally stands around waiting at concerts for a cover so that he can loudly shout to his friend “that was a great BOWIE cover” while looking around to make sure everyone heard him properly name the song. It’s really embarassing. Waaaay too white.
haha that’s soo true. All the hipsters and wanna be hipsters can totally relate to this
hmph, hipsters are far less prominent than brocore kids in my area
then again, i guess, working class area = DIY ethic bullshit or whatever
Actually, indie cred can be pretty easily faked. Since there’s an expectation that the other guy shouldn’t have heard of any of the bands that you like, you just have to name your teenaged cousin-in-law’s nascent garage band, in another city, that hasn’t yet recorded or performed anything. When it comes to specifics, make shit up. In the absence of a teenaged cousin-in-law (or suitable substitute) go for broke and completely invent a band. If it doesn’t exist, you’re almost guaranteed that the other guy hasn’t heard of it.
The other trick is taking any friend you know who performs, and saying “I don’t really get out much; I mainly go to shows to support my friends”. Then name any musician who you’ve ever known, and haven’t gotten on bad terms with. Even if they’ve gotten somewhat famous, being friends with a famous person grants you a magic exemption from the rule that you have to stop liking them when they get famous.
I have to say this, Mr. O’Keefe, before you go chastising people for being ‘stupider,’ you should check your grammer so you don’t seem ‘more stupid’ than you are.
I agree Pete. If ever there was a fucking overrated and under-talented band it is Nirvana. Of all those grunge bands they were the worst.
Thank you for naming whiteness for what it is. But I wonder, can non-whites still practice whiteness? Is it possible to de-link white identity from whiteness?
I just got busted…
Indie music is my first love, and hype machine is my weapon.
When I saw Joanna Newsom’s name, I went, “YES!” I love her!
Maybe it’s just where I live, but in my experience, people really don’t know who she is until I make them listen to her. I’m the ultimate in white people!
Oooooh!
Awkward dates! That’s something us white people love. I go on awkward dates all the time. It seems the better we are at white things (indie music, reading sunday times, etc.) the more awkward the date.
Wow..
This is ALMOST true.
There is a huge “indie” scene at my highschool that are OBSESSED with that. You can’t really be friends with any of them unless you listen to underground music and dress like you got hit by an american apparel tornado or something.
I must have missed it in the white newsletter. What is “indie” music? Is it white to like some black music like blues or jazz? I listen to it on my own with head phones and I swear I do not tell anyone that I listen to it, not even my wife.
I wonder why vinyl records were not mentioned in this post. Some obscure 7″ is pure white, also limited pressings
this list is only for rich white people from the north east. THE SUNDAY TIMES!? show me one white person who lives west of mississippi and east of california that reads that shit.
ETHNOCENTRIC BABYZ
In another entry about comedy you warn that if you say you like “comedian” Dane Cook, fellow whites will lose all respect for you.
This entry reminds me of the Dane Cook of music: John Mayer
Do not express any postive sentiment about his music under any circumstances or you will be ostracized! (And rightfully so.)
Another very white quote currently making the rounds: “I’m glad Patty Griffin is finally getting the attention she deserves.” (Also suitable for The Flaming Lips. However, if you compare Polyphonic Spree to The Flaming Lips, you’re evil.)
If you compare built to spill to flaming lips your evil, I never got that fucking comparison. Built to spill FTW
Wow…Stereogum? That is the equivalent of reading People Magazine and watching VH1…do your research next time (just kidding) 😉
Two words…
Portland, Oregon
Dave Matthews. Nothing excites white people more than the release of a new Dave Matthews album.
Does anyone realize that at some point in his life, Jens Lekman rhymes chili with chilly, not to mention snowing with plowing? White, I guess. Especially the mention of Lou Reed.
Guilty as charged.
Reading these comments was making me hate myself for being white…
But then I remembered that I’m not a ‘cred’ obsessed, self-proclaimed ‘hipster’ trustifarian living in Brooklyn (or someone who wishes they were), hell bent on one-upping my peers in all matters of art, music, and culture.
And I felt all warm and fuzzy once more.
This may require a separate entry, but it must be mentioned. The multicultural CD collection that clearly was created with this site in mind…
The one, the only PUTUMAYO! (“Music from Around the World”) Now we can hear artists from all parts of the globe without actually visiting any of their places of origin (although we like to do that too).
Want to sample some ot their music? Check out a listening booth at–you guessed it–WHOLE FOODS.
My first Putumayo CD was entitled “Women of Africa”. I didn’t understand a single lyric on it, yet it moved me deeply.
So did Indie music start in the 80’s? I remember playing this game back then… Remember when R.E.M. was a little Indie band out of Athens, GA? I do…
Joanna Newsom is a good one. Not just because she’s still outside of the mainstream, but because her sound can be so abrasive that you can call her an “acquired taste.” That gives it that extra little boost of pretention.
But, yeah, I love Joanna Newsom. And yes, it makes me feel good about myself.
you speak the truth
Oh no I am the whitest black person I know 😦
I’ve just noticed that all of my friends who are uppity about their unmainstream music (primarily metal) are white. D: Whatever happened to just liking stuff that you like?
This post so describes my husband. Hilarious. Oh, and he also has a “IV” after his name. That is a very white thing as well. There won’t be a fifth (“V”). I’ve put my foot down.
Hey! White people also like to think that White people created rock and roll.
i LOVE the Montreal scene! Seriously. But then again, I am Canadian, so probably the epitome of white aside from Europeans…
whoever posted the lcd soundsystem lyrics is spot on.
this post is perfect, and i am guilty as charged. XD
ha..this one got me the most…i love indie music and i definitely attack people that love mainstream….also the Arcade Fire is my most favorite band ever…its almost scary how true this was and it just made me laugh so hard!
joanna newsom’s voice sounds like a tortured cat parade. But when other people cover her songs, it’s precious. i like indie music as much as the next hipster college kid, but when someone tells me they love her I think, “you cannot be serious.” It pisses me off that other singers have great voices but write like two year olds and this woman is a great word-smith but her voice makes me want to rip my own ears off so i have something to throw at her.
The only bands worth paying attention to are the ones that haven’t formed yet.
All others are just uncool.
So the epitome of this is in Portland , OR…. so white, so indie… it hurts me. I don’t dare speak of music with anyone. I’m only 27 but so past my prime in terms of musical knowledge.
there are two rules for assessing another person’s music collection:
if their music is generally more mainstream than yours, then they are sellout corporate whores.
if their music is generally less mainstream than yours, then they are pretentious know-it-all assholes.
heh, they call people like me bananas, for being whiter than i should be… eeps.
Stop trying to make me feel guilty about my love of the Strokes. I love Julian Casablancas and his tragic, alcoholic childhood, and “Is This It?” is still quality.
That being said, how could you have not mentioned Vampire Weekend? They incorporate AFRO-POP, use weird instruments (love it), and make witty, snide comments on the grammar, causing me to question my support of the Oxford Comma! Besides, like the Strokes, they’ve had just successful enough a debut that it will only be okay to like them for a very short period of time!
PS: This blog is so true.
[…] time he mentions something that White People Like (e.g., “Bust a Move”, Holy Cross, indie music, and of course Steve Nash). Of course, his columns would end up more links than plain text. It […]
[…] as my girlfriend. Hilarious —> Stuff White People Like But they might have me on this one: #41 Indie Music “To a white person, being a fan of a band before they get popular is one of the most […]
Do I get extra credit for working indie snobbery into my reverence for music from the eighties?
When other white people mention having been to an 80’s night at a club or 80’s music in general, I’m very quick to denounce the “lame, commercial” music from that decade that gets played at 80’s nights and on the radio. Next sentence involves pointing out the injustice of the way that “crap” like The Police and Flock of Seagulls is what comes to mind for most people when they think of eighties music. The only widely known 80’s band it’s okay to listen to is The Smiths.
I also like to spout off about how music that passes for punk rock today is so soft and gutless and radio-friendly compared to the “real” punk rock of the late seventies and (very) early eighties.
Do I get extra credit for working indie snobbery into my reverence for music from the eighties?
When other white people mention having been to an 80’s night at a club or 80’s music in general, I’m very quick to denounce the “lame, commercial” music from that decade that gets played at 80’s nights and on the radio. Next sentence involves pointing out the injustice of the way that “crap” like The Police and Flock of Seagulls is what comes to mind for most people when they think of eighties music. The only widely known 80’s band it’s okay to like is The Smiths.
I also like to spout off about how music that passes for punk rock today is so soft and gutless and radio-friendly compared to the “real” punk rock of the late seventies and (very) early eighties.
[…] best way is to look at your iPod, and see if your music is seriously math core, or only has a passing fancy for math. Is your […]
So true. It’s so important for white people to have seen/liked a band before they became popular. Once they become very popular, th band has “sold out.” Though there music hasn’t changed; more people have discovered them.
It’s all about Jandek, who is about as indie as you can get. Yes, I am white.
I am white, and I am an indie musician. I have discovered the new wave of indie music for white folks – a place where you can actually discover and finance unknown, cutting edge indie artists.
Since you white indie lovers really like to be the first to “own” your musicians, this is the place to atually be a part of it all.
Check it out, you can actually sponsor your favorite indie musician by buying “parts” in their album, when they reach a certain budget they get to record a professional album:
http://www.sellaband.com/marcsupsic
It doesn’t get any whiter than this!
All of my friends in a nutshell. Amazing. I also like how the first comment mentions Jens Lekman. Jens is the background on my computer! Haha. I’m guilty.
Stuff white people like: This blog. Srsly.
Oh yes. And as an “indie musician” who has played at Spaceland more than a couple of times in various bands, I’ve got to say that those crowds are so terribly tame and inhibited; so self-absorbed, so busy looking around to see if anyone’s noticing.
Nobody is free to openly “like” the music that is playing, save for a rhythmic head nod along with bending knees, arms slack at their sides. It’s mainly because when indie musicians take risks, they’re socially acceptable risks that don’t excite anyone much.
[…] #41 Indie Music […]
You should write another post about how white people love the Velvet Underground. As a white person that works at a college radio station, not a day goes by where I don’t hear Lou Reed, Nico, and the gang on the air waves.
Guilty as charged. I TOTALLY acted this way about LCD Soundsystem in 2006. Totally.
I love indie music, but I’m not white. The thing is I dance to most of it. I still enjoy them even when they switch to mainstream labels or become “mainstream”. I think most people need to get off their high horses and learn that music is supposed to be enjoyed not some sort of thing that only you are supposed to like. I love finding other people who like the same indie bands that I do, but hate how they talk about how they hate them after they become successful. I am also guilty of liking the Strokes, Bright Eyes, and the band in the title image(Stars). I go crazy while listening to music, though, and start jumping around.
indie music is boring
jst like white folk!
Wasn’t Spaceland a gay bar back in the day?
damnit, i am so white.
i have joanna newsom on my myspace right now.
Most white people in America don’t have a clue about Indie music. Most white people in America shop at walmart drink budweiser and listen to whatever they are told to listen to by record labels and radio stations other than NPR.
Bands that have had their songs in ads for other companies are not acceptable
Except for U2. U2 is the one commercially successful band that every white person is obligated to like and have on their iPod. However, it is true that the less well known your favorite U2 song is the better.
ummm…. what if I know a ton of non-whites who like indie music just as much as many whites I know??? Sorry I don’t buy this one, at least not living in the Philly area.
an African American friend introduced me to the stars (the band in that picture above), and when I saw them live there were a great amount of non-white fellows there. I think this is a little over the top
Indie music is shit. People only listen to it to try and seem individualistic and special because OH, I KNOW MUSIC THAT YOU DON’T KNOW, HA I’M BETTER THAN YOU.
Indie music sounds terrible, usually has 238 different instruments playing in them, non-rhyming lyrics, a monotonous sound and no catchy beats whatsoever.
Why the hell would you want to listen to something like that?
I remember the day I said to myself, “I hate this crap.” Then I listended to Neal Diamond unironically for the first time in my life.
I agree with the article for the most part, but they forget to mention that many indie rock bands lack rhythm, are completely atonal (not for art’s sake, they just can’t sing worth a damn) and tend to cover songs made popular by minorites. For proof of this as not just an indie rock phenomenon, but rather as a widespread affliction of the caucasian race proper, go to any karaoke club or frat party sing along. Hell, even a middle school talent show will do. No rhythm, atonality and an unrequited love for Lionel Richie.
“40 Maddy
I have to say this, Mr. O’Keefe, before you go chastising people for being ’stupider,’ you should check your grammer so you don’t seem ‘more stupid’ than you are.”
How ironically white of you to misspell ‘grammar’ in that sentence!
Since the word indie didn’t exist when I actually cared what others thought about the music I listen to, I think I’ve finally found something on this list that doesn’t directly apply to me.
“joanna newsom’s voice sounds like a tortured cat parade. ”
ROTFL!!!!!!
You should have mentioned that if someone’s music is featured in a popular movie, they are dunked. For instance: “I loved The Batshit Hooligans (made it up) until they made that song for that Ironman movie.”
However, if the song is featured in an indie film, it’s okay. So far, it’s okay if your song is featured in the below listed films:
Once
Juno
They can be in other films, but only if it’s in limited release and no one goes to see them except indie hardcores who want bragging points for next year’s Oscars. EX: “Oh yes! I saw Flatbutted Doghead at the (insert name of arthouse theater)! It was FABULOUS (never fantastic, never wonderful – always fabulous)! Sally Von PoodleWink (has to be a name of some obscure actor who wasn’t known before last year) was FABULOUS! LOVE HER! She shops at Whole Foods!”
Juno is on the edge of being uncool because Oprah liked it. But it’s still okay for some reason. This is normally unacceptable in the Book of White People Cool. We are investigating the reasons behind this and will report back with our findings ASAP.
Swedish folk is so over. Labrador records is dead. It’s all about Estonian shit now. Seriously. You can find good stuff coming out of Talinn.
i like the nephilim, not realy “indy” but absolutly obscure…. hear of them, thought not.
the term “indy” is not in the least indy, a new term is required… how about obtuse.
White people love:
The Mother.
Fucking.
PIXIES.
Wow… just like high school…
[…] a “whitened” Asian – guilty of quite a few things on that list. (tea, yoga, traveling, indie music, Juno, Arts degrees, t-shirts, living by the water, etc.) Not good! Ok, I’m kidding. I […]
[…] #41 Indie Music […]
If the Nephilim you speak of is an east coast metal band, Ive heard of them. I miss the NC metal scene sometimes, then I remember the “Scene Kids” that frequent those shows, and then I move on.
Jens Lenkman is horrible, I’ve got a friend that tries to turn me on to the likes of him. I found it to be garbage.
Don’t get me wrong I’m all for independent musicians, but kids simply trying to top each other by listening to obscure shit doesn’t do anything for music. This is the reason that (most) pop music sucks today.
Also, this blog is hilarious and I read it daily. Though you did nail me with #25 David Sedaris.
There is no way in hell anyone actually likes Joanna Newsom. It’s just said so a person can be deemed “cool enough” to like getting needles stabbed in their ears.
this is so me. i have no respect for myself when my music is wholly mainstream.
and to think i still have friends that manage to make me feel bad because i don’t know the obscure indie band they are referencing and they had heard most of what i was listening to. they are the geekiest, d&d playing, no girlfriend having losers, HA i said it.
really seriously? this is only cool in white culture? other cultures don’t do this? dammit, i need to get out more. i am so frickin white.
I can’t believe Pete up near the top mentioned Kentucky Headhunters. Frickin’ Awesome, Pete!
I listen to bands that don’t even exisit yet.
Hahaha
This is the greatest blog!
too true, too true.
machete avenue now theres a great band
I prefer Jens Lehmann to Jens Lekman. But I guess that doesn’t help me with my whiteness problem.
Haaha, I’m a total white wash mexican. i’m light skinned, light eyed, and i speak english. I connect with this topic completely,haha. although Arcade fire does register with the strokes, I’d say you could’ve mentioned Of Montreal, Handsome Fur, Giant drag, bad dudes….haha. This website is great.
I love the Horrorpops…ever heard of them? Ha! I wiiiiinnnnn!
So if I saw Arcade Fire at a Barack Obama rally. Does that make me Uber white?
[…] and offers insight into why white people like: t-shirts, graduate schools, multilingual children, indie music, the idea of soccer, Wes Anderson movies, and much more. Basically, if you want to understand me, […]
Despite the “whiteness” of indies– the more multiethnic the band, the cooler. And indie’s bring in asian girlfans- white heaven.
If you want to get technical, metal is whitest. Not in “whiteness” as a lifestyle.. I just mean actual numbers of whites. But metal is probably one of those “idea of..” things, as in claiming to be metal in the 80s (despite a scarcity of photoevidence). Concomitant with that– claiming to see GnR “before they were famous”.
I can pronounce “Carlos Lyra” like a Carioca, and you’ve never heard of him, so I’m whiter than you…
how are the strokes and bright eyes unpopular?
If you’re ever in a jam just mentioned David Bowie and everything will be okay.
[…] Indie Music […]
[…] sure to check out their thoughts on indie music and Apple products. Comedy […]
yea….let’s just be clear that there’s still a TON of white people that like mainstream music.
there’s definite “indie music people” that this post refers to, definitely not white people in general.
…but that’s like most stuff on this blog – it seems to be more about snobby rich white people, not necessarily just “white people.” while i’ll identify a lot of this stuff as “white,” most of it is stuff i can’t stand cuz, as i said, it’s all liked by rich, snobby, pretentious white people…..
hi
you have a nice work here friend
come visite me on my site
http://www.just4zik.com
Do I get extra credit for having seen Joanna Newsom perform with the symphony? THAT is so white it’s blinding.
Also, I am slightly obsessed with Jeff Buckley and World Party (old skool indie). And I discovered Damien Rice in 2003 while sitting in a little cafe in Dublin, Ireland. I bought his CD in Ireland. (neener, neener)
Indie True in the privacy of their own home…unfortunately there is also a breed that is 5 kinds of in love with seeing jam bands…ugh.
http://westofwabansia.wordpress.com/
Heh. White people love indie music, yes, you got me in one in this one. And Tea. And The Colbert Report. And Arrested Development. Curse my exemplification of the white cliché!
But what about all the white boys who listen to Fiddy and Snoop Doggy Dogg? They’re the whitest white people of them all, because they so visibly want to be black. I’m surprised Rap Music hasn’t been done. Yet.
I went to a show at Spaceland in Silver Lake. Everyone else there was like 40+. There was certainly no stigma in being the old guy at the club.
I’d like to point out that there are those of us who fight this snobbery at all times. Having been a record store clerk for a long time I decided the world would be a better place without musical arrogance. Come see what I’m up to.
What you are describing on this blog is not white people. 94% of white people in America don’t even know what indie rock is, and 76% have no gay friends.
You are describing white, urban, liberal, college-educated people. BIG difference.
Most white people love country music, American Idol, Nascar, Wal-Mart, church, and making fun of gay people with their exclusively straight friends.
anyone want to talk about beatlesmania/bob marley mania in the 21st century
Indi is so mainstreem lol, and whit people don’t like mainstreem …. i’m confused
Totally busted on this one. Complete music snob starting at 14 and still today. All you people dissing Nirvana should at least give them credit for killing off that hair band crap.
Hahahaha.
I’m so guilty of this.
And, sorry, if it’s on an apple commerical, it’s dead. Except paolo nutini + the shins. THEY LIVE ON. (But only because they were already getting popular).
… By the way, it’s the GLASGOW scene. mhhmm. You heard me. It’s amazing. (Not fabulous. It’s only fabulous if you’re gay.)
… I feel so white.
By Nephilim do you mean Fields of the Nephilim, the UK goth band or Carl McCoy’s death metalesque later outfit the Nefilim?
OMG, it’s true. I love indie bands. I was listening to John Mayer constantly (Sorreee!) until I did X in Newport last summer. We drove to Providence and saw Lightning Bolt, and that experience made me a more open person. I glued my John Mayer CDs together to make silver bar coasters.
What about techno?
Oh god, if you people knew about GOOD metal like Halloween, Grave Digger, Finntroll, and Ensiferum instead of trendy yuppy garbage :))
They are very much into independent bands. They won’t go for the mostly commercial let’s cut it down to 3 to 4-minutes mentality on mainstream radio. But they want bands that have their own identity and originality. If one of their favorites signs up to a bigger label like Warner Bros., that kills the moment. Or if it gets on YouTube, forget it–they’ll throw every CD that band made and move on to another artist.
Umm, excuse me Clander, but it’s Arcade Fire, not “the Arcade Fire.” That’s a common mistake that I don’t think white people would appreciate.
A year after college, but before grad school : ) I was with a friend and her boyfriend. They were going to a zero 7 concert, and boyfriend says, “do you even know what that is?” to me, my dear friend jumps in and says, “of course she does, she is the one who told me about them 4 years ago” his expression was priceless!!!!! by the time he was going to the concert, i had completely moved on, I still like zero 7, but it was a great moment in one-upping history
also, the aforementioned comment regarding the demographics of people who like this stuff being only from the east coast and california…have you ever been to colorado? apparently not you bumpkin, and austin city limits…texas
I find myself doing two things to remain somewhat up to date, one- i love old artists new cd’s (mark knopfler), and I completely cheat and buy the anthropologie cd’s to hear somewhat current music.
Even shitty music can be good at times…It seems like music is hurting because of what the media & recod lables say.
It’s because radio sucks & MTV sucks. Back then you could just sit and be told what is popular and what is famous and people would buy it.
The only reason bands need to make millions is because the record lables spend millions to make records.
We are a crappy local band…We can make our records for a couple thousand bucks…we can push as hard as we want and get heard all over the world…We make a few hundred bucks a month on downloads and CD sales…maybe we will not be a million doller band, but we can make enough to be a band…That is enough for us.
I’m venting, but excited that things have changed in the music biz. Maybe it will be better for all of us!…so be ready for it!
Fight the Fight!
Damn, I still listen to Bright Eyes.
Even though a lot of white people have heard of them, mentioning Neutral Milk Hotel automatically makes you interesting and / or intelligent.
It’s true, you will see 90% white people at an indie show. And they’ll all be standing still unless The Faint are playing. And I’ll be one of them.
Not sure if anyone has mentioned Pitchfork Media but thats a great source for Cracker music. Very hipster, hype driven dribble. blah
I like Los Hermanos (Brazil). Top that.
Zappa will always be cool!
If Frank were still with us he would be doing musical satires about fools like me that bother to post on blogs like this. But I still enjoy this blog!
Well yeah, I went to school with Delbert McClinton’s daughter. Does that mean I now own you?
Indie music…ugh.
I don’t dislike Indie music as much as I dislike the arrogant fans of Indie music. (To illustrate my point…I loathe the move “High Fidelity.”) There might be a few bands or songs that I like here and there, but they are completely spoiled by the self-righteous snobs who listen to them.
I’m gonna go listen to some Kelly Clarkson now…
You’ve made a keen observation – most “pro-white”people are, in fact, dumb as shit-bricks. What does this say to you?
Joanna Newsom saved my life.
[…] Indie Music […]
Is this post ironic or not? I can’t tell…
Is Rogue Wave considered Indie? I like that song “Lake Michigan” off the Zune commercials and downloaded the song. Very cool and it had a Beach Boys like harmony.
[…] #41 Indie Music […]
You haven’t been to Texas, have you? You know that At The Drive-In is from El Paso, right? I’ll give you upper-middle class though.
Anyone who hates Joanna Newsom needs to hear Ys, it’s beautiful and her voice doesn’t grind eardrums anymore. I predict that her next album is going to be amazing! And then hipsters will pretend to have loved her all along
[…] amongst the general indie community. For some background, check out the end of the post on stuffwhitepeoplelike. Actually, you don’t have to, unless you like to laugh. Then, by all means, check out that […]
[…] advertising for such, but breathlessly-worded justifications for their superiority and importance. This article, and the rest of the hilarious Stuff White People Like site, is a pretty good summary of the Paste […]
Ever heard of the Shout Out Louds? Most obscure band ever. None of my friends have heard of them, and their American concerts generally have less than 150 people. Check and mate.
I find, in my high school at least, that most people have evolved from rap devotees in middle school to scene kids in 9th/10th and now consider themselves “Indie.” I think it’s a phase for most people, and they’ll get over it soon. Besides what they consider Indie is really just what every other indie wannabe has on their ipods. I might sound ridiculous for saying so, but I really do like the most underground shit in the world and I DO get pissed when people I know learn about the band/artist I’m digging at the moment. I do because I’ve noticed the minute an indie artist gets attention, critics and listeners deem them NEW when it might have taken them years for just a little bit of mainstream recognition. Instead, their years of work are ignored and people think they’re brand new musicians. It’s kind of like the case with The Funk Brothers, the true geniuses behind Motown music…they created the music for HUNDREDS of hits and never received proper recognition. That’s why I support the true underground scene because those artists don’t give up when they don’t have their names plastered everywhere and actually work hard to make their music.
I think I might not be white anymore.
Basically, as soon as I find out about something and like it, it’s not appealing to other white people anymore…and that’s not appealing to me.
So, if I act on that and cease to like all the stuff that I like because other white people might want to keep liking it, do I lose my whitability?
Yup…I was just on “Stuff Black People Hate”, and I agreed with just about everything.
WHite people we love the smiths and morrissey.
And as indie fans rockers age, they get more and more into country music, the other white music. Of course, they only listen to REAL country music (which is made by other aging indie rockers), not that corporate Nashville crap. Later they discover accordions.
That’s really strange Dmitrir, because I now Like country! I have George Strait’s “Run” and Alan Jackson’s “Small town Southern Man” on my Top 10. The latter reminds me of my pops:( although he was from Hungary.
Whoops I guess I read too quick, I’m a fan of the Nashville crap, but I guess that fits me–as I’m a conservative.
White people will like Crystal Castles.
Goodness – I only really listen to mainstream pop and rock and loathe and detest any band that plays songs that go on for 17 minutes – do I loose my badge of whiteness or something?
Oh, and I just had to add that I don’t own an Ipod. Oh, and I live in one of the Indie capitals of America – Athens, Ga and have to listen to wankers constantly spouting about going to watch “the Panic” tonight. Hate it like the Pestilence.
I pooped my pants
White people would buy tickets for a concert featuring the premier performance of Jesus Spielberg’s “Concerto in A for Harpsichord, Five String Banjo and Turntable”
Jens Lekman? I was rocking out to Komeda and Arling & Cameron back in ’98! 😉
that’s me
Is MGMT an indie band? They have that one song “Fated to Pretend” the video is just awesome. It’s a psychedelic tribe of WHITE ass white people using bows and arrows to destoy these alien pinatas. The pinatas explode and the white people ride off on the kittens and dolphins that emerge from the corpse. It’s just cool…
From someone who cannot spell and who lives in Alabama…
“stupider”…
Ha.
Wow, you tried so hard and then tripped.
Wow, I think that reading your comment made my DAY. You can’t be serious. =]]
Amen.
No longer cool, BUT a song that makes you incredibly happy in the middle of a long winter. Staying power: zero.
Totally guilty. I recognized 99% of all he band and artist references, and even DJ (myspace.com/britpoptarts) while playing white music that white people like.
I am the person who IDs covers at shows.
I am an apologist for vinyl (just bought a new turntable in a retro-Mod suitcase…very white!).
I haven’t listened to commercial radio since ’96. White! Snobby!
I am always into stuff before everyone else, and used to get indignant about it. Pretentious!
My collection rivals Rob’s (from High Fidelity) …though I’m not keen on Solomon Burke. Geek!
I own world music I only understand 10% of the lyrics of, and like it.
Guilty, snotty, picky, and probably fucking annoying about it.
Though I won’t ever enjoy country…oh, wait…unless you mean Johnny Cash or Patsy Cline. ;P
My mom plays in an accordion band.
I think I have been thoroughly busted.
Should I expect anthropologists lurking in my shrubbery now, studying homo sapiens albus? Le me know so I can buy a bike or Prius, start enjoying camping, and begin recycling. Oh, and buy old tees with words on. And start liking wine and coffee.
Don’t want to be a bad example of white person behaviors and habits, now!
LOL.
Aaaaaand the “T” key on my lappy is borked. Sorry for typos.
(White people resent looking illiterate when they are in grad school geting their MFAs.)
Hi, an Aussie based in Singapore here, I think all the comments here are a bit US-centric so I thought I would restore some balance. I’d like to make a few observations:
This White People Stuff blog is mildly amusing, but it somehow just seems OLD and STALE, I can’t quite put my finger on it, but I guess dedicating the subject matter to a category of people which about 80% of people are in, might have something to do with it. Most of what I read would apply to a tiny subset of white people you’d find in the inner city, champagne socialists, sometimes with beards (the blokes). Those particular people would be amused and proud to read about themselves in this blog, and the masses who don’t fit into that category, well they would be perhaps be blushing with pride at being associated with them through their skin colour. Bingo, I’ve found out why this blog is so popular. Christ on a bike, even blacks like it ?!
Now indie music ,,, from reading the blog I can tell the, um, blogger, isn’t an indie music fan, in fact if anyone mentioned the names of the bands he suggests in a conversation with me I would probably think they were dickheads. Indie music is a philosophy guys and girls ! Sure it sounds heaps better than Celine Dion and is more “honest” and doesn’t give you that vomity feeling when you hear a Michael Learns to Rock song, but it’s like a club. The people in it have more character, they’re more interesting, and I think they are better looking. They’re also, umm, exclusively white, but that’s a slightly different point.
And hey, I can’t believe no one has mentioned The Decemberists ! [well someone did mention Portland Oregon]. I think the US has punched well BELOW its weight with PROPER (read “indie”) music but it’s come good lately: Decemberists, the Shins, Flaming Lips, Azure Ray, East River Pipe, oh the list goes on. And interestingly, for a nation of bad spellers and semi-illiterates (yup that’s you guys, I’m all charm aren’t I ? haha) up pops Colin Meloy, possibly the most hyper-literate lyricist on the planet. I’m not gay, but I want Colin to bear my child.
you have a generic pretty ethereal voice?
I’m Asian, and when I saw the Weird Al song “White and Nerdy” I just thought – good god, this song could be about Asians!
White people also like:
-Johnny Cash
-Ben Harper
-Feist
-Dave Matthews band (everything this asshole does is just a fuckin live album of shit he released 10 years ago – Also reminds people of the time they made out with the guy/chick of their dreams at summer camp and/ or lost their virginity to “crash”)
-Prince (even though they never really listen to him)
-Radiohead
-Bjork
-Interpol
– The Beatles (this is a must and you lose major points if you don’t really care or like them)
Dear God, you’ve fallen right into it.
If you would all please stop trying to force your “indie cred” upon by means of this thread, to be honest I don’t think anyone who can look in the mirror and feel good about themselves honestly cares. That said reading the comments have provided me with a considerable amount of mirth.
Though if you still wish to indulge yourself in this petty indie name-drop jousting – be warned that I’ll take you down.
Yours faithfully
N-Sync-fan#1
(Yes, that is sarcasm, I thought I’d be a little altruistic and save you from making further mockeries of yourselves)
Why did you type a whole story to tell us about some band you listen to. Why did you try to make it some profound statement, and use proper grammar. I have made several grammar errors here, but guess what…. I can still tell you went to state school. Dumb son of a bitch
By the way retard, IQ is a made up quotient. More likely than not made by a similar retard to make themselves feel good. Man I hate people who went to state school. I mean seriously this is just stupid. Get over yourself and stop trying to pretend to be smart, douchebag.
Nice observation
True hipsters collect records. Especially of obsure soul/funk bands.
Many hipsters listen to some of the most soulful music ever created, then go to the bar and stand around smoking cigarettes and try to look cooler than everyone else.
Appreciate your music my indie comrades, its not like your shoes are new, so why should you care if a pretty girl steps on them while shes dancing!
Dave Matthews is not considered “indie”
Girls that wear flip flops with designer dresses and white boys in pink polo shirts listen to dave matthews
Stop insulting our whiteness!
I much prefer the Decemberists to the Arcade Fire
no comment
I once was at an Interpol concert in North Carolina. As the common joke goes, I yelled out “play freebird” as they hit the stage.
Someone replied, “you don’t belong here!”
I felt a deep sense of superiority that I had not yet had before or since.
I cannot stand Interpol…….WHy would I wantto pay to hear somebody whining about themselves and “how’s the weather on the west fucking coast”….WOW soooooo innovative.
Plus everybody that likes them is just doingit to be trendy.
I put interpol on the same level as Hilary Duff.
you like n’sync!?! you know they are not very good right?
Hmmm, I find the Indie scene really pretencious. More so than the club scene. These indie fans pretend they have their feet on the ground but they walk around with their noses in the air dissing anyone who isn’t ‘cool’ like them. And there are SO MANY of them that they are too self-righteous and boring to even realize that in fact it is THEY who are the mainstream.
I’m white and I’ve heard of Indie music.
Bet I never figured out what Indie music is.
Can someone please tell me what Indie music is?
Try Lekman instead of Lenkman. Foolio.
Idiot… don’t you know that white people created & maintain this site?
hahahahahahahahahahahaha
you wrote “wearing sombreros” twice.
Buddy Holly was emo? um…. no he wasn’t.
I’m on to you!!
His choice of music is probably Kid Rock or Toby Keith.
LOL, you mention Nirvana as if that was not almost two decades ago.
[…] true. Most of my music is “white.” But, fortunately, we’ve all got this guy to keep up the fam. And Chris and I merge our music […]
That’s so funny! That’s exactly the song I started thinking about!
i have no clue what they are talking about. are those band names or diseases? clearly, white people even have control of the websites that parody them.
affirmative, in person and on jimmy kimmel live.
si, arcade fire = jotos.
When Shout Out Louds toured, I was too embarrassed to go see them because they were too ‘generic indie’. How white does that make me?
I think it’s whiter to not like indie music, these days (unless you mean ‘These Days’ as covered by Nico, but we’ve discussed Wes Anderson movies already, and of course that’s why white people love that song). Indie music is no longer obscure enough, and too much of it sounds the same. Ethiopian jazz, MPB, yé-yé, etc. The later examples are the best, because if the entire genre of music you’re describing is unfamiliar to a fellow white person, you win. This goes along with white people’s interest in diversity. International music is the new ethnic food.
Greetings from Buenos Aires…
Try some St. Etienne… Air, and stuff…
Or maybe you’d like some Electronic tango, or japanese bossa jazz…
Love this blog, my Darjeeling’s waiting for me… regards!
beautiful. and so true. it is ridiculous. but i love it.
i was going to announce this band i like – but i might run into someone at a show who reads the band that i like and thus… they would own me.
[…] list of entities for which Caucasians stereotypically value. My personal favorite would have to be Stuff White People Like #41 – Indie Music. Obviously, this is meant to be interpretted as a joke; please attempt to utilize your […]
Not true. Bashing Nirvana is so white. You loved em.
Making fun of people that went to state school? That is pretty douchy. Fuck you, you little trust fund ponce.
[…] #41 Indie music […]
[…] #41 Indie Music (Spotting a trend here?) […]
As one who is third-generation on the maternal side and has poor Ozarkan roots on the paternal side, I’m persistently tormented by the thought that I’m not whiter enough, that I haven’t suffered through private school, violin lessons since the age of four, or being an only child. Sure, I may play soccer or have gay ‘friends’, but identifying United’s team captain isn’t something I can do off the top of my head, and try as I may, I’m really only acquaintances of those gay guys as I have so little in common with them.
But a realization has helped assuage this internal conflict. It might even be enough for me to stop being such a conspicuous Japanophile. See, I’ve been into the whiterest band of our time since I was in elementary school. I even pulled back with the death of the Lillywhite Sessions. That’s right, I learned to play Grey Street when it had four verses, not two. No, I don’t think it has anything to do with Julia Grey. She was flushed out for good in the cathartic Halloween. No, it didn’t torment him for seven year’s of the band’s existence. It was included on BTCS, but it first appeared on Recently, the band’s second independent release back in early ’94. Anyhow, I smelled the selling out years before it became so blatant. And don’t ask me about Stand Up, because I. Don’t. Even. Know.
Why is the Dave Matthews Band the whiterest music act ever? An immediate objection is that the point of following the indie scene is to identify and become familiar with a band before anyone else knows it exists. Thus you will already be familiar with the band when it gets some mainstream attention, when other whiterpeople are hearing about it for the first time and simultaneously voicing their skepticism of such a commercial enterprise, nervously trying to play it off as though they knew the act before it was big, too. They’re hoping that the band’s revelation is enough to deem it unworthy of being further discussed, thus allowing their cluelessness to go undetected. It is an unspoken rule, of course, that if you do not call them out on their previous ignorance*, they will be indebted to you in the future (this is what the whiter status game is all about).
Fine, but by its very definition this eliminates the typical indie band, because by necessity that band loses its hallowed position among whiter people upon hitting it big. It’s virtually impossible to talk about the contemporary whiterest band–by the time the conversation is over, that band has been abandoned to the mainstream rabble. A popular whiter band of the purest stripe is a tautological impossibility.
What we’re looking for is a band that lots of whiterpeople like (or liked)–because of a variety of factors to be discussed below–enough to hold their (status-sniffing) noses as its mainstream popularity grows. That is, it has the characteristics that make various obscure bands attractive enough to garner the elusive whiter early adopters, early and late majorities, and even laggards. In the case of the purest whiter bands, only whiter mavens exist, and then the entire whiter product distribution collapses as the mavens re-emerge on the myspace fan pages of yet undiscovered bands.
With that out of the way, here’s the untoppable list of whiter-approved attributes the Dave Matthews Band (primarily on the back of Dave himself, who is the band’s whiterest whiter guy) enjoys. You’ll see they simply outgun other whiter favorites like Elton John (too commercial), Phish (too hippie), and Dream Theater (one Korean guy doesn’t stack up against three black guys, and anyway DT’s mainly male appeal is too chauvinistic).
– Four of the five permanent band members can claim to be African. LeRoi, Carter, and Boyd (the black guys) were born in the US and thus have suffered from institutional racism throughout their deprived lives. Dave was born in Johannesburg, South Africa. Stefan, though the odd-man out, has a couple whiter-approved attributes of his own. His parents are both musicians, and he joined the band at the age of sixteen. And he’s big into one of the whiterest sports of all, snowboarding.
The fan base has always been primarily comprised of white pre-college and college kids along with the white collar professionals they become, but that describes the crowd at virtually every whiter pleasure, from snowboarding in the Rockies to shopping at organic grocery stores downtown. So this doesn’t set the band back much.
– The band’s first public performance was at Charlottesville’s Earth Day Festival in 1991 (to have been there is to have the biggest dick of all, and allows one to immediately get other lesser fans squabbling over who’s been to more Gorge concerts to submit in deferential silence). A lifelong green, Dave pushed the band into “raising awareness” (always whiter gold) of global warming before it became fashionable to do so, back in ’02. The band even teamed up with Ben & Jerry’s (whiter gold) to launch the One Sweet Whirled campaign (a clever play on one of the band’s earliest songs) aimed at getting people to reduce their carbon footprint (in ways other than foregoing long drives to see the band perform at various venues throughout the country).
– As aforementioned, Dave’s an immigrant. Always a plus.
– Raised in a Quaker family, Dave’s always been a pacifist. His family left South Africa for the US ahead of conscription obligations that would’ve put him in the service of the apartheid government. Further, he grew close to LeRoi through conversations the two had about the evils of South Africa’s governmental systems.
– Several of the band’s songs are laced with biblical allusions (“Climb on two by two”, “I am who I am,” “Eat, drink, and be merry”, “The wine that strung Judas from the devil’s tree”, etc). Dave is biblically literate, which could get him in a lot of trouble were he a pious Christian. However, as an agnostic (or even an atheist–there’s an ongoing debate among fans over this), the literacy earns him bonus points. It expands his philosophy of, uh, love, all you need is, all you want is, all you need is, love. He is thus obviously qualified to assert that Jesus met Mary Magdalene after paying for her services (“He met another Mary, for a reasonable fee, less than reputable, she was known to be”) and lament how the beautiful message of Christ has been violently perverted by organized religion.
– The band allows live recordings of their shows, and even sets up a section to facilitate dubbing at each of their concerts. All that is asked of fans is that they share the recordings (that is, they don’t sell the recordings but instead let others listen to and copy them for free). In other industries, providing cheap or free content once you’ve established market dominance is often called predatory pricing, but this is about the music and thus is purely altruistic behavior. Anyway, they did this before they were big (it was, in fact, key to building a nationwide grassroots fanbase).
– Dave’s experienced a heavy dose of family tragedy in his life. His father died when he was ten, and his older sister was murdered by her husband in South Africa, leaving Dave and his younger sister to share responsibilities for raising their nieces (or niece and nephew? Oh God, I should know! Crap). He has on multiple occasions and in his music pondered skeptically how an omniscient, omnipotent, omni-benevolent God could allow such tragedy to exist in the world, a favorite topic for whiter people to wax philosophically on. Stefan has also suffered, losing a daughter to SIDS.
– Speaking of doses, Dave used to be into some pretty heavy drugs. No harm done, of course, and he gave them up as he matured, just like any fatherless black kid roaming the urban streets while his crack-addicted mother sells herself to feed her addiction would if not for the oppressive white corporate structure that surrounds him. Now the bandmates just toke up on occasion while in the studio. It’s all good. Helps them get creative.
– Dave was a bartender and local actor before forming the band. It’s rumored he choose those sporadic lines of work to facilitate easily leaving them for an extended period of time to travel around Europe on foot until he’d burned through his savings. He’d then be able to return home and pick up where he’d left off (just kidding, I made that rumor up. But being a bartender and aspiring actor are both whiter gold).
– Despite a gentle southern drawl, an identifiably masculine persona (relative to the non-country music scene, where androgyny is often the rule rather than the exception), being married, and having three children, rumors that Dave is gay or bisexual remain. The recalcitrance of such rumors is in part a result of Dave’s failure to dispel them. He’s probably not gay, but gay is a-okay with him. Thus the rumors (which are more fawning than malicious) project an image that says, “I’m straight but not narrow”.
– As if the band’s multi-racial composition isn’t enough to prove its diversity merits, tours frequently include black women as back-up vocalists. Okay, this is Philadelphia-style diversity, not LA-style diversity, but as far as Philly goes, DMB has it maxed out! The music video for the song Stay solidifies this off-stage and in-studio as well.
– The band’s most infamous logo, the firedancer, is a curiosity that can’t really be tied to anything in particular that the band has done. And it’s eloquent and influenced by abstract works of art. As only true fans are cognizant of it, the firedancer helps reduce the dissonance whiter fans suffer from being involved with a band that has become this mainstream. True votaries, or “nancies” (note the tolerance of such a noun choice) as we call ourselves, are indeed an elite group, closed to new members by the passage of time. See, you really had to be around before UtTaD, or Crash at the very latest.
– Dave’s wife is a naturopathic doctor (more whiter gold), and his three children have the following names: Stella Busina, Grace Anne, and August Oliver. His green credentials offset his planet-threatening fecundity, of course.
– Despite being born in South Africa, having lived in the UK, and having spent most of his time stateside in Virginia, his favorite city is Seattle. He even owns a “cottage” (that I could probably fit my house inside a few times over) there. Save perhaps San Francisco, it doesn’t get any whiter than that.
– Dave owns more than 1,000 acres of land in Virginia where he grows organic produce through a CSA program (essentially the application of communitarian practices to local farming) in addition to a wine vineyard where gravity flow techniques are used to make the wine less ‘artificial’ by reducing mechanization.
– Dave’s on Farmaid’s board of directors, and the band has played the benefit concert regularly since ’95. It supports family-owned farms their mortal struggle against mega-farms (think helping inefficient mom-and-pop retailers survive in the face of a Wal-Mart moving in to grasp why this is a noble whiter cause).
– The putative achilles heel of this otherwise impervious outfit is in what it calls itself. Unlike say, the String Cheese Incident, the Dave Matthews Band name comes across as pretty vain. So the lead singer is the band, huh? Hell, even that warmongering John Ondrasik had enough sense to give create the veneer of modesty by naming his solo act after one of our (whiter people’s) sports.
Joke’s on the fool who goes this route, though. The band toyed with the name Dumela, which means “hello” or “greetings” in a Bantu language. But even something as golden as projecting tolerance and friendship through the use of a foreign word (African, no less!) was too tainted. The band didn’t buy into the whole corporate entity thing. They didn’t even have a name when they first started playing local gigs around Charlottesville, and that was after the EarthDay performance.
However the name came about, it was by default. Some say it was due to an employee generically booking the group as Dave Matthews band because he wasn’t given anything to call them. Other explanations are equally obscure. Whatever the case, it wasn’t even an after thought. It just stuck). Even though the band’s collective hands are clean of any wrongdoing, they still frequently refer to themselves as DMB, or more precisely, dmb (presenting the acronym in lower-case letters creates a nice left-right symmetry and is less pretentious than using all caps).
– Clander, the authority on whiter people, clearly had dmb in mind when he posted on the musical tastes of whiter people. A nancy will immediately notice the post is Clander’s 41st. Coincidence? I think not, as #41 is arguably the best in the band’s arsenal but largely unknown outside the nancy ranks. It’s blatantly non-commercial, too–live performances can run half-an-hour in length despite the song having no chorus.
Is there any other musical enterprise that could beat dmb in a head-to-head preference poll of America’s whiter population? I don’t think so.
* For those who are not whiter, do not be confused by how the passage of time effects this ignorance. It is embarrassing to be ignorant of the band when everyone else is ignorant of it, but once people have heard of it, it’s embarrassing not to be ignorant of it.
i dont think of music in terms of color … but I think ill go grab me some spinners I got 22’s on dat bitch… crack and shiny things
uno wut, dis site iz fuked up man, a site call what white people like, muva fuka im white n i dnt like half da fukin thingz on here, i like sum indie muzik as long as its stuff like Arctic Monkeys, The killers, The kooks, razorlight and other brittish band, u carnt get better then brittish musik especial the band music cuz we r the one who introduced america to rock music, so we gotta be the dogs bollockz really, download sum of them bands i put up there, u will proberly like them
JD
i think maybe the only thing white people like more than indie music is rap music. especially indie rap music “it’s just so different from anything out there. did you go to that busdriver/atmosphere show on friday???”
oh and being asked “what kind of music do you like” and responding with “i don’t know a little of everything, mostly indie music”, then being met with “indie? like indian music??”
sweet, sweet ecstasy…
“speaking in ebonics” and “making up music genres” should also be added to this list.
THATS WHY THEY LOVE IT!!!
since when did bright eyes become un-cool??? conor oberst enlightened my life.
nah man, that’s EURO white people…i think you mean ELECTRO.
pshhht i’ve been listening to the horrorpops since i was nine…ever heard of conscious eating project??? I WIN
Damn i’ve listened to the horropops since i was like, nine… ever heard of conscious eating project??? they’re like, not even a band yet. i WIN.
If I EVER read a “Things White People Like” post and you have not posted a comment, I will cry, Mr. Poop
oh yes. of course. Chamber pop. Chamber indie. Techno-trip pop. The list is unending.
i want to marry you
You should give a real unsigned band a listen! go see a real indie band
Real music lovers should give these lads a listen! F ing infectious im telling yah!
Must agree with the guy who says white people love the smiths! Mr Marr is a legend!
I always laugh until I cry when I read “I pooped my pants.” Thank you sir or madam. Thank you.
lekman, lenkman, venkman, either way it = crap.
best new band…
fleet foxes
I think this statement about indie music is very racist. and i dont think its fair that if we said “black peoples music …blah blah blah” then we would get in huge ass trouble. FUCK THIS!!!!
phenomenal. greatest idea ever
Plague of Lollipops changed my life.
http://twp3pf2.deviantart.com/art/Plague-of-Lollipops-T-shirt-79180659
http://twp3pf2.deviantart.com/journal/17192657/
Black people get made fun of all the time. Black people also know how to laugh at themselves. I think the difference with white people is, they all get so goddamn sensitive about it.
Does the kind of Stuff White People Like include things like
Truth, Equality, and Justice?
http://www.survival-international.org
Cupid Mount Etna
To quote a meme…NO UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!
(facepalm)
Hipsters are the AIDS that’s killing music.
UP THE CRUST PUNX!
Linkin Park
Stereogum DEFINITELY is NO LONGER COOL, as is their OWNER BUZZNET (definitely not cool), as is one of their investors INTERSCOPE RECORDS (definitely not cool)
[…] admitting you’re a big fan of Feist is pretty much caving to the hilarious stereotypes of “Stuff White People Like.” I’m okay with that. I happen to play “The Reminder” all the time at home, and […]
check out http://www.takesolace.com then you hippies!
What’s this about? I don’t get it. Is it serious? Oh wait it’s the internet.
Yes, it’s predominately white in it’s fan base, although there must be exceptions.
I’m native american and mexican american, I LOVE indie music of any sort. But I also like pretty much everything.
It’s just basically an obnoxious blog, posted simply for the sake of being facetious, I know.
IT’S FUNNY I LIKE IT!!! KEEP IT UP!!!
[…] much of it on vinyl. (Which reminds me of funny blogs on “Stuff White People Like”: https://stuffwhitepeoplelike.wordpress.com/2008/01/30/40-indie-music/ and […]
Hello! everybody , I think everybody can find Discount
iPod Touch iPod nano iPod shuffles ipod classic
and Discount iPod Touch Accessories from this link
http://astore.amazon.com/ipod-touch-nano-shuffles-classic-accessories-20
Please Visit
thank you very much
If it isn’t boring, it isn’t indie.
Ahahahahaha! This is great, but I must tell you something.
I’m black.
I listen to indie. Email me and I’ll prove it.
I think white people actually are tuned on to mainstream rather from it. They also like to listen to music that has nothing to do with them like Hip-hop and Rap; music that even puts down white people.
White people are hilarious.
Annoying, elitist snobs come in all shapes and colors…
this is too funny! wish I could have seen that!
[…] Used to be I had to know every act, what they sounded like. But today there are just too many. And too many fall into the category of indie/white boy rock that makes me laugh when I listen to it Stuff White People Like […]
White people are the biggest followers in the world; Most are John Mayer, Ben Harper, Dave Mathews lovers and they wear and listen to the same things. give me a break.
Bright Eyes is totally INDIE!!! Dork!
Whatever…
Joanna Newsom is awful. Bright Eyes has like maybe 5-10 good songs.
This blogger is completely right, I hate that crap about knowing bands before other people know them, generally that means they suck!
When it all comes down to it it’s fashion over passion. Hipsters, scenesters, emos, fags, fags, fags.
I download those VA indie playlists and then condense them into 15 songs which are actually moderate to downright good.
There is good stuff out there.
Ha fucking Ha! I would buy tickets to that, for me and all my white friends…
Damn. You got me. I am the stereotype…
Ha. Most white people encounter identity crisis especially artists since they all live tragic lives. Of course we all know, most upper class white americans are spoon fed and feel the need to be creative to rebel from their parents six fig incomes..when they make a point of that, they are considered cool regardless of their age. I mean cmon who wants to see a balding old white man at a club, let alone Asian persuasion club. thats fucking sick
there’s no “The” on Arcade Fire.
and i’d rather listen to indie music than thoughtless bullshit that I listen to just because someone TOLD me it was cool, and has now been beat into my brain because the radio plays it every hour.
for me, there’s really no toss up between mindless lyrics almost always written by someone other than the “artist” meant to be taken for face value with poppy musical composition that lacks creativity, and completely original lyrics that are at least written by the person performing them meant to generally cause some sort of thought process and use of brain cells with usually well-written, well constructed musical compositions.
*cough*spinto band *cough*
you are racist and you suck.you are not funny, you have no wit and you sound like an ignorant asshole.what do you know about peoples music tastes and their reasons for listening?nothing.so shut up idiot.
It’s Jen Lekman, and he is mainstream.
grow a pair.
Wow! sounds like Liz is white, mildly unatractive, extreme liberal, berkenstock wearing, leg hair braiding, Hillary voting, peta member who locks the car doors on her hybrid when she sees a brotha on the corner but holds up a line of 30 cars in a left turn lane so we can all see her give dirty ashtray change to the guy with the cardboard sign. Friggen hypocrite……. It is fun to judge people on here though. Hey Liz, I diddn’t mean mildly unattractive like a bad thing. You wanna hook up some time Baby?
wow, I’ve never laughed so hard in my life.
this is SPOT ON
I can’t wait to show this to the pretentious little indy pricks in my town. They’re gonna flip a shit.
Ryan Adams? You’re joking, right? I can’t tell… srry.
Go find an Indie kid wandering about (true, we are a wandering people…) and talk to him about Arcade Fire then Ryan Adams.
If he doesn’t laugh at you, he’s trying not to hurt your feelings.
JENS
JENS
JENS
Any Zepplin concert is worth going to. I just miss the old days, when you didn’t really have to pay… you just showed up.
Not many. I know, I’m certifiably lower-class. Cop salaries blow. Twenty-five years later, and I still regret turning down a job in a steel mill.
It’s hard to brag to younger kids these days about the fact that you went to a Whitesnake concert twenty years ago and got totally wasted. Or an AC/DC concert in ’79 when you were nineteen and got… you guessed it, absolutely wasted. 😀
[…] Obama’s rally was actually a Decemberist’s concert Posted on May 21, 2008 by bishop No, that isn’t just a joke about hipsters (or as my roommate said this year, “modern bohemians without the art”). It’s the truth. Apparently the New York Times and various other news outlets failed to mention that the gathering of nearly 75,000 was preceded by a free hour long concert (as described by the band’s website). They’re a pretty popular bunch that everyone seems to love (or hate). It’s no surprise that a first-come first-serve concert would generate a lot of buzz for the hometown (Portland, Oregon) celebrities. Their latest album was voted the best of 2006 by NPR listeners and I have to say it’s not half bad if you like that sort of thing. […]
settle down antler is pretty awesome too
Before the term ‘Indie Music’ was popularized and ensconced in our modern urban vernacular, and before the profusion of body piercing and tattoo ‘art’ regained popularity as a form of youthful self-expression, there was Steely Dan – Indie Music for hip white people who are now your parents. Oh yeah, about that Barrack thing – check out Extra Golden’s (two band members melanin challenged, two not – how perfectly equal!) ‘Hera Ma Nono’ CD and the cut ‘obama’ dedicated of course to you know who.
the south is and never can be hip since cotton
Its Zeppelin guys
similar in sound to joanna would be CocoRosie. both encompass a sound i like to call Freaks Folk
score: 1-me 0- music gentiles
agreed. the decembrists are at least a trillion times far more superiour
I’m 14, love indie music and i have been to many gigs and fest’s.. And Yes i am “white”. But i have loads of black friends that also share my taste in music! They have all been to those gigs and fest’s with me! I have also met loads of black people at gigs.
They are no different to you or me, or to anyone else in this world.
How can you be so stereo-typical and racist! There are so many white people that love hip-hop music.
Why do you people have a problem with the colour of people’s skin? How woud you feel if you were in a primarily black country and you had people like yourselves being racist and basically bullying people who have just as many rights as you!
I think this is apsiloutly discusting. And i don’t know how you people can sleep at night knowing how much pain you have caused in this world.
OMgosh, exploded
indie is shit.. for white ppl black ppl any ppl… boo.
They like it THAT much!
I heard of “I Pooped my Pants” before you.
and hispanic chic as well. i like the things white people like but for the wrong reasons, to hold over my hispanic “friends” heads. nevertheless, its good to like things just because too. that’s my take on things.
That would be attracting the wrong kind of white people.
perfect.
or we got sick of them.
heard of them a looooong time ago. trust me. obscure they are not. They were in the New York Times in 2005. fail.
once again, the wrong kind of white people.
you know we all skipped this because of the way you wrote.. Right? all I read was: “uno wut” and I just decided to do you a favor and leave this nice little reply.
hate all 3.
FUCK YOU.
BURN IN HELL OLD MAN!
Are you kidding? That’s the EASIEST thing in the world to brag about! I’m strongly considering to start lying about having done all those things. The young people are ALWAYS impressed, and will NEVER, EVER, EVER question or bust you. They’re much too self-loathing over having nothing that special of their own.
Purrrrrrrrrrrr-fecto
Florence and the Machine.
yeah, but I pooped my pants 1st!
its called stuff white people like…not stuff black people don’t like
A warning: don’t ever equate metal that is not mainsteam to indie. Indie people HATE metal, and “white people” will look at you funny 🙂 Though you have a point about what happened to just liking things.
Haha, thank you for that, those rules are perfect and so true.
I “discovered” Kimya Dawson about a month before Juno came out and I went to see it because of her. Imagine my surprise when the soundtrack went number one on itunes and EVERYONE had heard of her. It was quite upsetting to my white sensibilities.
Also, how about the whole issue of liking a band’s older stuff which is more obscure? People always talk about bands that were good back before they became popular or “sold out” and insist that their first album was their best.
http://death-sentences.blogspot.com
l
Haha, first off, I am not white, and I’m a very big fan of indie music. And also, the “white people hate anything that’s “mainstream” ” thing, um yeah no. They try to follow the mainstream. Rap for example, basically everyone I know is into rap, which is very mainstream at this point. Also, many, many people are definitely into MAINSTREAM, rock, pop, and ect. And, really, I believe that a lot of people want to get into something that no one else knows about. It’s the human race, the human race is very curious. I really don’t know what this article has to do with white people, or indie music. To me, it kind of seems, ignorant, naive, and discriminant.
This is racist cuz it is singling out black people
THE BANDS ,,,,,,,,****Black kids*****,,,,,,,,,,,******The Kooks*****,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,GO:AUDIO***********scouting for girls
ECT.
STOP STERIOTYPING people cause at the end of the day you like what you like no matter what coler and what race so all haters out there carry on cuz you’r the one’s that when you die no1 can be arsed 2 turn up 2 your funerall lol
:p
its arcade fire not ”the arcade fire”
nd indiee is bland nd bland
wat u need is sme prog nd black metal
Then you know the wrong kind of white people.
Here’s a band for you. Sevenseason Hush. 😛
omg,how obsessed everyone is with stereotypes..i know several blacks who are into indie!most whiteys i know liste to mainstream music like pop and hiphop..
Hey don’t forget the concepts of 1) getting your music ideas from Grey’s Anatomy and 2) listening to KCRW and considering Jason Bentley to be a global taste-maker….
oh no. i guess im a white person in a mexican body. ):
i’m a vegan. love sushi. love cocorosie. love grammar. and i’m wearing a sweater and am voting for obama. oh and i work at starbucks. who knew?
unfortunately, i live in mississippi! it really isn’t cool. and just so you know, not all people from the south are stupid like alabama.
[…] ones that were probably my favorite were the ones referring to Wes Anderson and indie music . It’s so […]
OOOOOOH
BUUUURRRRRN!
LMAO!!!
hey I LOOOVE MY SOMBRERO!!!!!!!!!!!!
=D
We eloise, are actually called chicanas,
a real mexicana, (some one born and raised in, actually, MEXICO) would not willingly admit to any of this! to ashamed of being called Malinches or whatever other derogatory name can be used, would prefer to suffer their burden in silence.
WE are mexican parts, assembled in the good ol’USA…..
Damnd shotty american craftmanship!…..ha ha ha!
This explains why my white friends love the Shins.
U dont no how we think. i dont even like indie music. just shut up tryin to identify us and admit that were the best:P
“You sir, take those headphones with that terrible rap sound emanating from them and clean my boots!… No you don’t get paid! Why would I pay a slave money! Gosh! You have no idea about the sheer strength of the white world… Go educate yourself in the ways of the white and someday you may become cool.”
cocorosie is amazing (heh-heh) you lose. you know who else is? brian jonestown massacre. yeah i’m white.
please, Brian Jonestown Massacre is so 1996. Try listening to something new, like The Easy Tease. (I win)
you need to talk about super hipsters who have now almost fully denounced indie and have moved on to rap or underground rap (e.g. aesop rock, immortal technique, ect.) They like to make fun of people who say they like indie b.c it is too mainstream. ect. I think you get the jist.
[…] Indie Music […]
Wow! I know so many people like that it’s amazing. I went to an art school so they were everywhere.
hahah this one should b higher on the list. my white friends get on my nerves with this…and warperd tour. I actually started likin a band that they didnt like and they hated me for it. and it aint just indie they loved Soulja Boy when he was internet only. but after he went mainstream wit Crank Dat they hated him. then all the other white ppl who hadnt heard of him started doing the Crand Dat dance like it was the coolest thing ever.
Im black. I love indie music – all i listen to. bands such as the little ones. sambassedeur, the 88, oasis, andrew bird, bakers at dawn, the zutons, youth group, a weather, wheatmonkeys, and the walkmen. and sooooo much more. I own a zune. Correct peoples grammer. Own a death cab T. chill at the local coffe and records shop, and read comic books.
did i mention im black?
[…] I’m a vegetarian, I am working up to running a full marathon, I listen almost exclusively to indie music, and I’d marry Stephen Colbert if I could! The list goes on and on and on! Like my […]
I played Laibach on my college radio show (1987-91) – I used to scare the frat boys who liked Phish by playing Laibach’s cover of ‘Get Back’. That and Dean & the Weenies (nothing scares a frat boy like a 6’5″ bald drag queen).
Yeah…guilty as charged. Of course PDX used to be known for its punk scene in the 80s…
Yes you did, and none gives a good godly fuck you ethnically challenged bastard.
cocorosie is so 2 1/2 years ago…
if one more person fucking mentions arcade fire im going to slit my wrists.
lost at sea is a pretty sweet website
fuck yeah
vampire weekend sucks so hard. the sound sucks, the songs suck, the musicians themselves suck and you suck if you find them even mildly amusing. kill yourself if youve seen them live and are proud of that.
some douche yelled that at a silver mt zion show
can someone please share my hatred for hot chip?
sap
NEUTRAL MILK HOTEL?!?! go back to 8 years ago and kill yourself
those two things mixed with using the word uber as an adjective just makes you retarded
yeah you pretty much suck at life
guilty
die
I tried listening to some of the bands mentioned in this thread (and all over the internet, Indie music lovers stink up every website). Man this stuff sucks. Pop music may be “mainstream” and “uncool” but at least it’s fun to listen to. Joanne Newsom? WHAT THE HELL IS THAT ABOUT?? She can’t sing, y’all know this right? She can’t sing even a little bit. All a bunch of lemmings, liking what all the other white people tell you to like. Don’t read anymore Pitchfork, just stop doing it right now. Christina Aguilera’s last album is better than half this crap.
i love indie music. i love things that aren’t mainstream. but if you do an i-pod ad, your’e out. now of Montreal on the other hand, did an outback commercial but will never lose my respect. some white people still like c.d.s or vinyl. but i’m sure you have an article about that, too. speaking of ads, funny how there are so many on this site.
Of course other ethnic groups enjoy the things on the list- it’s just ANNOYING if WHITE people like it. That’s the point of this blog. Besides- all this stuff sounds like what upper middle class whites like…or Upper Middle class folks in general.
I don’t see NASCAR or HEAVY METAL or FORD PICKUPS or COUNTRY MUSIC or WRESTLING on this list. that’s the hillbilly things rich white folks like when they’re being ironic…
Soulja Boy is right up there with Vanilla Ice’s music.
Let’s see: inexperienced musicians, mimicing their predecessors, still wet behind the ears. Um, no thanks.
Its funny how alot of people really get offended when I mention during conversation (at a pub or during dinner) how Hot Chip sucks. The entire table goes silent and everyone looks down at their unfinished glasses. Alot of these people actually do enjoy some good bands. Its like they have this intimate connection with Hot Chip because within their limited experience with music they don’t sound like 30 other groups (usually from europe) that are much better and have been around much longer.
Nothing special about Hot Chip. Bland and boring. Sorry.
Oh, and I forgot. Hopefully rap music goes the way of the dodo like, “what white people use to like”, heavy metal.
hot chip fucked your mom last night
-she said they were amazing!
fuck this person in the asshole!
GET A PERSONALITY BITCH!
hahahaha!
can someone please share the hatred for this gay lord?
no really but really but not really but really.. .
this is a funny list.
standing still at concerts-DANCING AND KOOLAID
ONLY FOR BLACK PPL
being offended-I AM RIGHT NOW
im half white – and it’s so true
(please sense my
sarcasm)
Nice, I like your style
It makes sense that when ever I goto a concert, I see them. IT’s like a dating service for them
[…] Musik (sort of), really sort of, und da wir grad beim Thema sind: Hitlervergleiche und Beleidigt sein (als Satire gemeint, deshalb […]
[…] on Cartoon Network, it’s not “good” anime. Many of the same rules that apply to white people and Indie Music apply to nerds and anime. The harder it is to get, the “better” it is. Bonus points […]
I’ve found that the best way to con people on the Indie Music topic is to just make up a band. Your best bet is to pick a name like The Paint Brushes, since nearly every inanimate object (plural) preceded by the word The is now an indie band. So for example be like…oh my favorite band is The Paint Brushes. They’re so hip and underground and whatever and opened for The Islands. Then they’ll feel like a d-bag because they have no idea what you’re talking about, and you’ll seem hyper cool. The only trap you can fall into with this one is when they try to find evidence of this band. Just say that they went to your high school and are shopping around with small indie labels.
You sad little person. Yes, fuck someone in the asshole for not liking a band which suck.
Of course. Especially “Low”-era Bowie. Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, and Brian Eno will always get you out of a pinch as well.
Nice ashley. I just use names of high school bands that I don’t really like but they’ve broken up and people haven’t heard of them ever. But they usually still have a no-longer-being-updated myspace or something that is proof in case anyone looks it up
I love smart people!
sucks to have your taste in music. go listen to hot chip and eat glass and cry
ahahah yes we do love indie music, speaking of which take a look at my new indie music blog 😉 yes you guessed, im white
http://songofthedayand.blogspot.com/
[…] or nationality, which makes the list, the jokes and the people themselves even more hysterical. The indie music entry is particularly delightful as people, seriously, start doing the old piss-war about what […]
Yes inventing indie bands always works – my particular favourites are the Jeremy Paxman Experience and the Flaming Squirrels. “What you’ve never heard of them???” Shake your head disapprovingly, smile smugly, and then say “and please… stop playing a Tribe Called Quest”.
This is truly a waste of time and of the internet.
Oh.. lighten up……..Whats wrong with A Tribe Called Quest?
I dont understand why people often feel the need to criticise, when they obviously are not informed? A Tribe Called Quest is one of the most innovative hip-hop bands of all times, just like OutKast.
I personally dont have a problem with indie music and I’m black. I happen to like a variety of music, and im not restricted by race. The fact is good music doesn’t need approval.
yeah because the internet is all about efficiency. you must have gotten that impression from all the porn and videos of stuff blowing up.
indie music sucks and i can guarantee it will have no staying power.
i’ll take classical or Led Zeppelin any day or this basic indie prog rock crap.
I love the Arcade Fire. I had Funeral and Neon Bible for a while now, and its taken me a long time, but now I love them.
Indie music is really my white pitfall. I get worse with Britpop.
I listen to the obscurest music ever. I win at being white.
WHITE MAN
Your day’s never over,
Your work’s never through!
Though you’ve tamed most of the heathen and the barbarians too!
‘Massa, thanks for ‘lectricity and the (Ah So!) internet too!
WHITEMAN, THE WHOLE WORLD’S DEPENDING ON YOU!
They tried to say that ‘you can’t jump’.
But, you made it to the moon without having to dunk.
You might not have much rhythm,
But you can (steal) carry a good tune,
WHITEMAN, THE WHOLE WORLD’S DEPENDING ON YOU!
You made it through civil rights and women’s lib too,
You’ve been through a lot, good buddy, no wonder you can sing the blues!
If the world’d open their eyes, they’d see that in the past you’re not really stuck,
Even though you still fly a rebel flag, at least it’s on a Japanese pickup truck!
Black may be beautiful, and tan may be grand,
But white’s still the color of the BIG BOSS MAN!
’Ask not’ (J.F.K.) whether it’s true,
WHITEMAN, THE WHOLE WORLD’S DEPENDING ON YOU!
The world doesn’t understand your level of stress,
Every minute’s a Malox moment, but that’s the price of success!
You watch your laptop for the first sign of loss,
Well, it’s time you paid the cost to be the boss!
Don’t drop the ball now and lose the home court advantage,
Or we’ll all have to say the pledge of allegiance in Spanish!(‘Press Uno for English’)
Only you can straighten out the world’s condition,
‘Cause you were properly conceived in the missionary position!
Stand up like a white man and do your white duty,
Or we’ll all be blown to hell by sheik your booty!
ASK NOT whether, Hillary or Obama can rule,
WHITE MAN, THE WHOLE WORLD’S DEPENDING ON YOU!
Sincerely,
Uncle Sambone
(The love-child of Uncle Sam & one
Of his female slaves)
In memory of Col. Paul Tibbets, Pilot of the Enola Gay, and all the faithful sidekicks of
‘Bwana’ …..(next page)
Jimmy Olson (Superman)
Lightning (Amos & Andy)
Poncho (Cisco Kid)
Tonto (Lone Ranger)
Robin (Batman)
Pepina (The Real McCoys)
Cheetah (Tarzan)
Trigger (Roy Rangers)
Birmingham (Charlie Chan…A whiteman in disguise)
Mingo (Daniel Boone)
Kato (The Green Horne)
Rin-Tin-Tin (If Custer had had him, he might have won!)
Rochester (Jack Benny)
Timmy (Lassie, was a ‘white’ dog!)
Uncle Ben/Aunt Jemima (Betty Crocker)
Chester & Festus (Mat Dillion, a protégé’ of John Wayne, who didn’t need a sidekick!)
Barnie Fife (Andy Griffin)
‘Condor’leeza Rice (W.)
I am white,
but i can’t afford and ipod like black neighbor’s teenage daughter has.
however you are correct! my Mp3 player only carries indie tunes!
God I love white people and Indie music. wait till Lykke Li comes from Sweden and you all hear it but i heard it first hahahahahaha. when fireworks becomes big in 2010 i heard them first hahahahaha. can we make an island where only we can go?
wow, indie music lovers are a bunch of sell outs. the fact is true that you think you have good taste if nobody else knows who you listen to. actually that means the music you are listening to is GARBAGE. indie music and the emo movement need to gooo home. that shit is tired. then again if you THINK you feel the music and actually believe that indie musicians know jack shit about the feelings they cry about then go buy a ticket, put on your tight jeans and eyeliner and be happy.
so stereotype… african american people like indie music Japanese people can like indie music. Very narrow minded.. White people can adore “mainstream”. Probably more than half “white people” can shake their ass’s to justin timberlake all the time. And just because singers made it big doesn’t mean they suck they made it for christ sakes they did what many strive their whole musical careers to do. This is a very pointless blog. Ignorant white males! to bad for you its the 21st century, and guess who’s runnin for president!
Your forgetting Death Cab for cutie
whoa…this is a humorous blog…you people all need to lighten up!
finally, white people jokes.
Shut up Emily. It’s a very accurate dichotomy, one that most of us can relate to.
indie music admires are such faggots, all that rock folk stuff is OLD and BORING.
plenty of obscure electronic music out there that would bother your parents and neighbors.
and also lots of avante guard shit.
meridith monk bitches, jewtube it.
Is everything funny pointless?
The blog is called “stuff white people like,” not “stuff only white people like.”
Stereotypes aren’t 100% accurate to everyone. That’s why minorities hate them.
The author was satirizing the idea that people will dislike a band only because it’s mainstream. It is a foolish thing to do, and no reasonable person would disagree with you.
This blog is meant to be funny, and if you can’t take it that way, I don’t suggest reading it.
At first glance, I thought this post said “Indian Music” and got very upset since I don’t know a single white person who likes Indian music. Even my one Indian friend (I’m one of those white people) doesn’t like Indian music. As for Indie Music, well…yes, of course, but only if it’s part of an indie films soundtrack.
http://twowhiteboys.com/2008/
chicken nuggets.
HA!
I saw a guy wearing a t-shirt that said “I listen to bands that don’t even exist yet.” I almost bowed to him in respect until I realized the t was faux vintage.
You know something! I noticed that things white people like does not generally mean “White People”. I noticed also some Blacks and Hispanics that loves “Whitemusic”. I am one of them. The Puerto Rican that I am, I hate Spanish music. Which also includes Salsa, Muerengue, and Spanish Ballets. And yes I am also into bands that you would never heard off either. I also meet other Hispanics and Blacks that are the same way.
I think that it is sort of a stereo type issue. I also meet white people that loves Hispanic music as well as Soul and Disco.
But according to this website. I would be White altogether.
Thank you for your time reading this. I hope that this is an inspiration to some of you out there.
Best regards,
Frank
You know something! I noticed that things white people like does not generally mean “White People”. I noticed also some Blacks and Hispanics that loves “Whitemusic”. I am one of them. The Puerto Rican that I am, I hate Spanish music. Which also includes Salsa, Muerengue, and Spanish Ballets. And yes I am also into bands that you would never heard of either. I also meet other Hispanics and Blacks that are the same way.
I think that it is sort of a stereo type issue. I also meet white people that loves Hispanic music as well as Soul and Disco.
But according to this website. I would be White altogether.
Thank you for your time reading this. I hope that this is an inspiration to some of you out there.
Best regards,
Frank
[…] AND discovered that my taste in music is described as Vintage Psychadelic Alternative Folk. As a Typical White Person, I love knowing that my music tastes are unique! Sign up and we can share […]
What I don’t get is how someone can bite their lip and listen to music they don’t like. Even when I’m old and gray, I’ll probably still listen to classics like The Yardbirds, rock is rock.
The juno soudtrack was great I thought. God am I that white. Guess so.
There is no such thing as “White Music”. Music is music and should be enjoyed by everyone.
This is hilarious! I stumbled the article.
If you need to understand idiots, you only have to read this article. Under all the supposed sarcasm, irony is just a bunch of generalizing and stereotyping, just like saying all black people listen to hiphop or funk and nothing else. Good think there’s many of us that listen to way more then just that. But this is just the same old bullshit all over again (white people, black music, black people, white music tripe) In the end its just your own taste in music, there’s only the one you see as good and interesting and the one you dont see as such. Colourising it, even under pretext of sarcasm or whatever you wanted it to look like is just idiocy.
Is indie music as racist as it seems or is it just generally misunderstood by non-white. Really want to know the answer to this.
Blaz: With that sort of attitude I can tell you’re probably a fan of Steelchime’s third album, after they sold out.
yea, so this pisses me off. i don’t care who wrote this but i garuntee that if someone were to put stuff black people like, there would be a lawsuit going on. this is totally racial and i don’t agree with it. it is a load of bull shit and personally, not all white poeple like indie or screamo. i have been to shows, i see a TON of black people there, and for your information, not all white people like the crap either. it is not right to jsut say crap like this. not right.
haha im white and i think this is hilarious cuz its really true. i love indie and all the apple commercials. i am putting this on my facebook under my favorite quotes cuz m friends will like it cuz they say i am exactly that way.
Indie bands are TOTALLY racist! Especially Skrewdriver and Dead Prez.
Skrewdriver is punk, dead prez is hip hop…. not indie.
I love that songs I’ve been listening to all my life are just now becoming acceptable listens.
I’m black/asian-cuban (why do I have to keep saying this shit?) and I’m mad someone’s making money off what I’ve known my entire life. It’s sad/hilarious that this is so true.
Everyone cool knows that this site’s a joke. Idiots can’t just ride with it and understand that music is music.
This is very true. Some people might not think it. But the “rap” in this society has failed us. All it talks about is raping and killing shooting up people selling drugs and making money. Indie is more calming and it is actually good to listen to. This is not idiocy or ridiculous it is only true. But you forgot Sufjan Stevens. Good shit white people listen to.
Don’t forget that you can love Mainstream white music if it’s over ten years old. I instantly recognised and danced to a Rick Astley song in my work reception before. Needless to say, there were other white people in stitches.
wow. Are u guys seriously so bored to blog about shit you know nothing about? Anyone can like ANY music, and believe me they do. If u were to say rap was for only “blacks” how do you think eminem would feel? You can’t classify the people with the genre because its your personal belief. Fiction not fact, opinionated by the angry person, or sane person you might be.
and reidabook you’re not white, your just a 10 year old prep.
can you please just grow up?
yea dude. thats pretty racial. i mean i agree that indie stuff is more original and rap is ruining our music society. well most of it. i still like eminem and some earlier rap groups. but like lil wayne and t-pain suck. and they try to act gangster but if you look gangster up in the dictionary you’ll see they’re just wannabes. and not just white people like indie music and a lot of white people dont like indie. music has a million genres. i like indie and im half white and half asian so i should consider you being racial. and i dont like all indie music either. i looked up johanna newsom and she is weird, no offense.
Do any of you understand the concept of SATIRE?!?!?!?! There is nothing racist or offensive about this site, unless you’re a hipster.
honestly what the fuck at this site. its attempt at funny is leaning way heavy on the ridiculous side
I think it’s brilliant and I can’t get enough.
https://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/05/28/101-being-offended/
Hear hear!
one of the best sites ive ever ran into
NO JOKE! This guy’s humor is absolutely brilliant, and hits the nail right on the head!
Haha! spot on!
[…] only one who saw nothing in Vampire Weekend. Just like every white person, I enjoy my fair share of indie rock. But a band like Vampire Weekend just absolutely kills the point for me every time – it creates a […]
You should also add this to the rules.. (this goes well with the Arcade Fire statement)
“If you feel that you might lose the respect of a white person. Fall back on Radiohead.”
Aerosmith,
Tom Petty,
ZZ Top,
Metallica,
All of those Indie bands that I like…
i loveeee this site!! haha its too funny! :o)
If you want to survive a throw-down with another indie hipster, you’ve got to mix it up a bit and hedge. You don’t ever just offer up your desert island list or your most recent acquisitions. Rather, you throw out a “lately, I’ve been listening to a bit of Merle Haggard, The Skatellites, Stone Roses, Destroyer….” or “Lester Young, ELO, Jesus & Mary Chain and Caribou…” If the opponent doesn’t recognize one or more of these, you score. If they like one or two of them, but previously did not like one or more of the others, they may feel driven to reconsider their own taste. If they throw out a better list and start picking at one of your picks, you can always pull out the “guilty pleasure” card.
I think this site’s name should be changed to “Stuff Hipsters Like.” I’ve met Asian-Americans who act like the people described on this blog, just as I’ve met white people who have no idea who the latest indie band is and think fixed gear bikes are ridiculous for daily commuting.
Wtf, I’m black, but The Strokes still are the shitt, and they still have a lot of fans. They actually have a new album coming out early next year. Its not always great to be soo mainstream, since a lot of mainstream things are crap.
TO:Destiny, and others
People you are taking this list TOO seriously. It is supposed to show that what we “like” is in fact a product of our socio-economic, ethnic upbringing NOT a conscious decision that was logically made. i.e. if your parents listened to Paul Simon, Manhattan Transfer and the Who, and never threw parties when you were young and danced with you, you probably like indie rock music.
If your parents liked to dance you probably don’t like music that has no rhythm, e.g. indie rock. Some people may even say jazz and classical music achieve the same goal as indie rock, harmonies, etc. with better music sophistication and cultural relevance.
Point: try to see truth in what you read, laugh at it, and stop denying everything. And stop being so uptight and breathe. This isn’t supposed to be sociological theory, Why are you visiting blogs looking for sociological theory. If you want that read a sociology book, a Bible, not a dern blog.
Just wanted to share some things in reaction to this post:
1) I’m in an obscure indie band called From Monument To Masses that white people have at times admitted loving, most likely because their friends have undoubtedly never heard of us and we’re mostly instrumental (aka +10 on the obscurity scale). Shameless self-promotion.
2) I’m Filipino. This confuses many white indie rockers who come across our music because they read my name and think “Is he ‘Hispanic’?” but then they see a photo and they think, “He looks Chinese / Japanese.” Kinda confusing.
3) The drummer’s Korean. How cool is that?
4) This website’s the shit. Thank you so, so much. I really appreciate the humor. Good stuff.
Arcade Fire!!!?
Sorry dude. It’s no longer cool to like Arcade Fire. The new answer is “MGMT.”
actually that was last years answer. this years answer is shut the fuck up.
actually during a throw down with a hipster i would win by default because i’m not a hipster.
ok for one thing, what is your definition of ‘indie music’? because my definition is ‘music that is independently produced and distributed’. its not a certain style of music. i agree emo sucks leper balls but don’t knock indie music just because a few bad apples (like hipsters with their girl pants and anime hair cuts) ruin your perspective on independently produced music. and just because an album is available at best buy doesnt mean its good. it only means that a board of directors at a record label gave the green light to a band who fits their pre-existing, established niche that they have manufactured to SELL ALBUMS based on what has already been selling, which has mostly been mediocre at best. just because 90% of people dont have the resources and interest to seek out an alternative to mainstream music doesnt mean that what isnt on their radar isnt good music. but you probably wont see the logic in this since you are part of a programmed target market.
so go put on your abercrombie shirt and buy some ointment for the herpes you got from sucking off a frat boy.
wanker.
the new answer is actually “Kovacs & the Polar Bear”
Anybody heard of them? Nope. I guess Im the coolest white guy of all!
Gangsters dont sing/rap/dance e.t.c
It is not very uncommon for any type of musician to create a false persona while perfoming.
Therefore it’s not weird that some one born and bred in housing projects would use a gangster as his music persona
what about gregory and the hawk? :]
Hi, I’m a white guy, and I’m calling your indie band on its blatant allusion to Depeche Mode in its name.
Since this has been recognized, the band is no longer acceptable to white people. You may break up now.
you are so right! Okay, I’m white. I like indie music.
I say–if you’re confident in the music you like, then who cares?
nah dude. sup daphne loves derby? best band. betcha havent heard of them.
Sorry buddy, but Daphne loves Derby is old news. I started listening to them over 3 years ago.
I like Celtic music. It just doesn’t get whiter than that.
Haha, I’m like, the whitest girl ever, and I actually listen to most of these bands. I guess I’m cool. Stellar.
I like the pop music I heard on the AM radio when I was kid back in the late 1960’s and early 70’s; Dionne Warwicke, Barbra Streisand, The Stylistics, The Beach Boys, etc.
This must make me white and gay.
LOL I’m Mexican and most of the music I listen to has been labeled “indie music”.
I don’t like this music because it’s “cool” to like obscure things…I actually enjoy what it sounds like!
Top 3 Bands:
Gorillaz
The Shins (remember Garden State? I knew about them before that! ahahahaha)
The Hoosiers
[…] than the previously mentioned indie band. If you’re still unsure about what this means then this is the place to look. Usually I would win (because you know I’m as indie as the most obscure musical references, […]
wow u fail..
i think white people just like indie music because it’s rock that doesn’t sound like shit…
Indie music is just as dull, flacid and banal as the people that listen to it. A dinner conversation with Jimmy Page and company would have taken you on a magic carpet ride to exotic and esoteric destinations. A place at Death Cab for Cutie’s table will ensure you are subjected to a litany of trite regurgitation and mind numbing pc pandering.
Simply put, Indie rock is the soundtrack of the most protected and pampered generation the planet has ever seen. This is why white people are so desperate for authenticity. They are tortured by the knowledge that no amount of sushi or contrived artistic leanings will change the fact that they are incredibly boring people.
It should be remarked upon that white people make good neighbors. They will generally leave you alone and not try to rob your shit.
because there’s nothing bland about black metal…..
well, i’m white and asian and i like indie because of the way it sounds and the lyrics. not really the image. i do think some indie people are stuck up a-holes but its probably just their personality. ah well.
i love you.
[…] has this thing he does on his blog Reformissionary from time to time called New Music Mondays. I, being white, love music, so I decided to do something like that and post something about some new music I’m listening […]
white people dont like indie they listen to gay bands like greenday!
and they strokes might be mainstream but there still one of the greatest indie bands ever
and there ganna be a band that lives forever
Since when do all whites like Indie music?
Everyone in my highschool that I know HATES indie music! And most of them are white!
But, I do have to admit, modest mouse is ALRIGHT, but I found them out in RockBand 2.
Do you know what would be funny. If you were black. Which I hope you are and you not some Imbecile ‘white’ person who is ragging out his/her own race.
Not all white people like indie music. That is like saying black people only like rap or RnB. Give it a rest moron!
If you are black I laugh in your face. You think “white” people are racist because we don’t understand your society, you couldn’t even begin to explain what WE are like as a society!
If you are “White” then grow a brain and open your eyes. You say it like were all a bunch of hippie’s, when the truth is, WE HAVE TASTE IN MUSIC!
We listen to the lyrics and understand where the songwriter is coming from.
THAT my friend, is why we listen to music!
Do some research before you go opening your uneducated, impenetrable THICK head.
Krystie, get a sense of humor. When you get mad at satire, you come off as an idiot.
This list would more appropriately be entitled “What Douchebags Like”
This shit is hot…
http://andthisismyamerica.com/2008/10/01/music-you-need-to-know-fat-freddy%e2%80%99s-drop-%e2%80%93-based-on-a-true-story/
F**k you! cotton was never hip in the south fool.
Fat Freddy’s Drop? Are you serious? I am currently laughing out loud. As Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen used to say, circa Full House, pa-lease.
When I visit this site I am confused by how well this represents me, a white person, but nobody else who I know. Maybe its because I live in the suburbs in Virginia, but when I talk to people about music, its basically the reverse of this article. If your friends don’t know what band you are talking about, then it sucks and your taste in music sucks. The only bands that get you any respect are the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Rush, and basically no band less than thirty years old. The white people I know aren’t impressed if you just found out about this up and coming band. It must be strange with so many people who actually like discovering new music running around. I know only a handful, and I feel unique. This site makes me feel like some sort of plague on humanity
You are unique, Poo Poo, and we love you and your exceptional friends dearly.
No, thats this:
http://www.campussqueeze.com/post/69-Ways-To-Know-Youre-A-Douchebag.aspx
and a refrence:
http://www.hotchickswithdouchebags.com/
IMO, I think it should be called stiff hipsters like
[…] really do love indie music. But, then again, most white people do. I don’t think I’d err make it into the actual business, though. Fine with me, I think […]
probably because you are a douche bag…
I completely agree. This list is definetly for Douchebags.
You gotta be a fuckin champ to compete in hipsterdom. namedropping vampire weekend .52 seconds after pitchfork and NME declared them “indie darlings” got your ass owned. namedropping them after MTV whored them around got you slaughtered.
you gotta start easy before you become a master, namedrop around the rich hipster chicks at your local high school (they only follow, they don’t start em’…so you’re safe to namedrop stupid shit like fleet foxes)
Once you get good you can move on to cafe’s and locally owned book stores. If you got balls you can try your hand at the local record store.
This is the art of the hipster namedrop.
ahaha now you’re the one stereotyping all the sudden all white people don’t understand black people and everybody who listens to indie music is a hippie and all white people have taste in music oh and a black person couldn’t even begin to understand how white people are as a society well last time i checked we all live in the same fucking society its called human society quit splitting up the races ass hole and this blog is called SATIRE why don’t you try to squeeze that into your uneducated, impenetrable THICK head.
[…] I spend all my money on beer. Blah. I’ll just listen to the CDs. But if you’re around, definitely go. I won’t be the girl there in the back, standing around and holding a hand-drawn Yards but […]
Damn, i used to LOVE Arcade Fire until I read this….
ever notice how white people use the word “wow” in a sarcastic manner?
interesting observation, white folks are always doing that.
i listen to bands that don’t even exist yet.
I find that most white people pretend that they have heard of someone when they really haven’t. we’ve all done it once or twice. but i’ve discovered that i feel cool whenever i haven’t heard of a band. gives off the vibe that i just don’t care, which separates me from the crowd.
hipster: “do you like elvis?”
me: “who?”
I throw around Arcade Fire all the time. ::Sigh:: I like 78/111 items listed on this blog. I’m about as cliche of a white person I know.
Another addition to the list: white people who realize how white they actually are 🙂
What about Indie Metal bands? Metal makes me feel tough and brutal. Which is rare.
Hehhh, hipsters!
White people love Tom Waits.
The best thing about indie music are the indie clubs that go along with it. White people can finally feel comfortable biting their bottom lip, snapping their fingers, and busting out moves they typically keep confined to their bedrooms.
hahaha seriously that kept me laughing the whole time.
To be honest, i liked half of those bands and i hadnt actually heard of indie music or knew what it was until now.
but oh well guess im pretty white then haha.
Then again most of the people i know listen to rap/hip-hop or rock and the like so yeaaaaa, kinda annoying when people dont know who the bands i like are and my friends usually hate my music haha.
How white is death metal? Some might call it indie, but its a pretty far cry from emo. I know a lot of people from Mexico like it though.
Is Bob Dylan still indie?
Yes lol Bob Dylan is still indie.
That’s F-ing Spaceland!! er, I mean Dreams. Yeah. I saw the white stripes there before they became THE WHITE STRIPES.* You know that’s a white fav, it even has the word ‘white’ in it. They were ahead of their time, man.
So, I don’t have an ipod. I know. A white strike against me. Hey I don’t need a perfectly timed and orchestrated soundtrack to my every waking minute. Plus, I don’t care what that prick Steve Jobs says. And I don’t have an iphone either. Cram it. However, I do have itunes (because it’s free) and I did a shuffle. Here’s the results; (artist only) Royal Trux, Neil Young, Jon Hassell, Stevie Wonder, DeBarge, Prokofiev, Joshua Redman, Scratch Acid, Nina Simone, Pink Floyd, Muslimgauze, Unwound, Mano Negra, and Paul Lansky.
Soooooo, How white am I? (I’m half white so I’m only half serious about it. I’m not telling you which half.)
I don’t even know the names of the groups that play music I love. Does it make any difference who they are? It’s the music that counts, no, not even the music, but the performance, the moment, the night, that can never be repeated, so it doesn’t matter who they are anyway.
“Is Bob Dylan still indie?”
This is definately the whitest comment i have ever seen on this site.
i love this book
I am really really white…
is this ayron from abc??
Vampire Weekend was terrible . . . another sign Pitchfork is no longer to be trusted.
I’m so white it hurts 😦
I still like Bright Eyes. Guess I’m not cool.
I liked indie before all the hipsters came in and ruined everything. Now I’m perfectly with my led zeppelin thank you very much.
..Hmm I guess this is strange I am Black and my friends are mostly Black with vanilla sprinkled in and this list is like 90% us. this should be like the “Human List” or “Grown Folks” who are cool list.
Damn your accuracy!
DAMN IT!
I agree.
White people also like to comment on things.
So if I don’t follow any sort of indie music & prefer mainstream music & listen to pop music stations or hard rock stations basically anything that plays current or classic music (not to be confused with classical) am I still white?
you’re obviously not white
I’m black and i love indie music, all kinds of music really.
its arcade fire. not THE arcade fire. if you said that i love The Arcade Fire to a white person i feel you’d immediately lose cool points and perhaps never be invited to concerts such as mgmt, the shins or seawolf.
bright eyes ftw 🙂
Now I understand why I’m not able to get along with the white guy I’m dating.. however, open minded he says he is, really he strictly follows the things you mention…. now I get it!!
My white friends like bands that sound good.
So true I had a white person conversation where Arcade Fire and Wilco were both brought up who I had not yet heard of and was ostracized from the rest of the conversation. I made damn sure the minute i got home that night I looked up each of there most recent songs on youtube listened repeatedly and now won’t be out of place when the next white person convo takes place.
Never was a more accurate portrayal of a pretentious-white-american-hipster ever written. I am this person. It’s like from my mouth to your pen.
i loveeeeeeeeeee white people 😀
DC area Bands (some of them are White)…Nothin bout Nothin, Jennie might tell, Secret hole, Paynes of Glass, Fisting Amy, Lil’ Junior and the Pacifiers, Vaginal Discharge,…just to name a few. Sorry, not one Bad-ass Gansta’ Rap mother fuc*er in the entire
lot……………………………I’m just sayin’
Haha this is so ridiculously true, especially the part about trying to find the band/ song and listen to it alot before it gets popular, I struck gold with “I kissed a girl” by about a month.
your a fucking moron. Its not just white people that like to be consitered original, it’s all people in general. All people listen to music that they thinks defines them, for example do you think that some thug is gonna listen to death cab or rilo kily? I think not. Why don’t you take your cliche ideas with you while you plummet to your death, something which we would all be thankful for.
oh, leave them alone they truly do not know any better. they (indies) only know of indie,nothing else—not a clue. let them rob themselves. why should you care.let em be. they know nothing of music anyway they only think they do.
they are all carbon copies AND don’t know it. what does that say? i’m glad you got it, cause the white guy won’t—–they’re all way too arrogant and pompous to see beyond their snub noses. they are a sorry lot.
since when does music DEFINE oneself? what does that supposed to mean anyway??? DEFINE ONESELF!! how silly—how far removed is that conception? you have no idea what real music is
this whole indie thing is clublike–ya know—-childlike kids stuff
indies are not only kids who need an identity they need to be taught before it’s too late. technology is powerful (i would only wish i could read the (never in our day be published) unabomber’s book.
[…] were making fun of indie music. I almost bought the book, I hate them now.” The post on indie music is funny because Yo Lo Tango and I had a conversation along these exact lines while we were in Fort […]
god people who comment on this forum are so stupid
The guy who owns the site is WHITE
It is a JOKE
stop taking everything so seriously and laugh
Woah, woah, woah. I think this is humorous. And those of you who are “blah, blah indie music blows” need to listen to some. It far surpasses the general perception of good music. Give it a shot. It is my favorite : )
I think this is just great. It does take one to know one.
Made think of you 🙂
hipsters.
You forgot the most important part of a white person’s indie music cycle: to be, not just the first person to like a band, but to be the first person to dislike said band. Preferably one album before the band signs to a major label. Then the white person can say things like “I used to like [band X], but their music really went downhill after [2nd to last album before being signed].”
This whole book is a complete description of how I am. And as a genuine white person, i say this: the people writing the rediculously harsh comments like “you don’t know real music”(which as we all know, is one of the most disrespectful things you can say to a white person) should stop. Instead of offending white people(and they do get offended easily) maybe you should go smoke some marijuana, listen to some neutral milk hotel, and perhaps plan an 80s night.
I’m white. I hate hipsters. I hate hipsters that think indie is just a secret band. Any unsigned band is indie. I know that this is just a joke.. BUT I HATE HIPSTERS!!!! =p
Don’t you know music was originated in Africa!?!? I don’t think Africans are white. do you?
Back in the early 70’s when AM music was drivel, white folks on drugs flocked to the first alternative music station; WMMR. When our sisters dropped out to find thier maharaja; little white sister inherited an eclectic music collection that is now used in almost every commercial this decade. What a difference 4 decades make. What was “underground” then is now mainstream.
Then that dark period in music emerged-DISCO. I turned to country music emmylou and blues bbking. The dead, Led, floyd and the who were our salvation. AHHH the good old days before AIDS and post Roe vs Wade.
It is always a coming of age thing that to be cool is to be the first to hear a band. To explore the outer edges. Kurt Vonegut liked the view from the edge.
Don’t take yourselves so seriously. Its gone in a flash.
the strokes are still popular, they just haven’t released a new album since like 2006. when their new one comes out next year they’ll be in magazines, on tv, etc again. they have a big fan base around the world who are really anticipating the new album too so your comment on that isnt correct.
Popular = not good. Keep at your studies kid, you’ll figure it out.
hahhahahah hipsters god i hate thm too!! IDIOTS!! I hate them! I mean what the fuck is up with what hey wear? for shits sake we get it your teenagers who can’t be scene anymore becuase its uncool. i hate you.
HAHAHA, this is a perfect description of me.
Whatever happened to the good old days of liking bands because of the music they played and not how wierd they look, how dumb their name sounds, and how few people had heard of them.
I do have hipster-y music preferences, but I definitely think the whole “I heard about them first”, “It’s too mainstream” pretentiousness is nauseating. Just enjoy the music for crying out loud. It sucks that music tends to become an ego thing so often……
this is silly and true and everyone needs to calm down
HAHAHAH! This is friggin hilarious.
Its totally true of me and all my friends. Awesome!
lol, pretty good points. However, lots of artists lose their following when they go mainstream because they change their music in order to do so.
music is not a competetive sport
i wish everyone would take the time to realize that all music is different and so is everyone on earth, therefore entitling us to our own personal opinions. it does still sadden me to see people going out of their way to make negative comments but there is nothing we can do
everyone should be happy and very thankful that people who have wonderful talents are spending their whole lives devoted to entertaining us
HAHA! This is so true.
I am that White Person, unfortunately I lose that game most of the time.
Seriously though, how dare you group Bright Eyes with Ryan Adams. Gross.
[…] hint at. But regardless, it’s safe to say that everyone who contributed a list is incredibly white. Look forward to a few more year-end lists from the blog, including the aforementioned “10 […]
Haha… gotta love hipsterism. Altan Urag is always my ace in the hole ; )
arcade fire is out asshole.
Congrats on only being eleven months late. things can, occasionally, go “out” in that period of time.
However, I just want to say I’ve liked Arcade Fire since 2006.
No, seriously.
what kind of nonsense is this?
stereotypical! not only white people listen to indie, and white people don’t all listen to indie.
just… wow…
Can you generalize anymore? I am black, and I enjoy indie music and indie film. Most blacks that I know are the same as me, and I trust that I know more blacks than most of you. I also like bluegrass and real country (not cross-over trash like Faith Hill). See Hank, Sr.; George Jones; Jimmy Rogers; Bill Monroe and others. I hope that most of you know that the blacks that you see on t.v. shows are not normal blacks. That is to say, the average black person is no different than the average white person.
sorry…but this was pretty much me in a friggin nutshell! keep up the generalizations…they are spot on!
Holy crap, this is so true. Half of the time it sounds like shitty nursery rhymes too a la Kimya Dawson. And the singers don’t even sing! It’s like half ass talking with a slight melody and four chords. Ugh, I’m done ranting.
Remember kids, obscurity does not equate to quality or depth.
“obscurity does not equate to quality or depth.”
fucking love you.
This should probably be #1, or #3 after coffee and apple.
I’m co-signing with you on this. I’m black myself and couldn’t agree more. I enjoy reading SWPL because I, as well as my black counterparts with similar interests, get a kick out of how much of the stuff listed we truly like and enjoy ourselves. I also agree that you’ll actually find more and more blacks with similar interests and it shows that, regardless of race, we’re more alike in quite a few ways than people may think.
[…] far my quest for obscure local music has mostly been a failure. Modern Chinese pop doesn’t really appeal – aside from this […]
HAHAHAHAHAAHHAAHAHAHA
daphne loves derby hahahahahha hahahahahaha i feel sad for you
Spot on. Ouch.
[…] indie music […]
thats the biggest load of bollocks ive ever read you mugs
“To a white person, being a fan of a band before they get popular is one of the most important things they can do with their life.”
This is amazing.
In europe this is not really a issue, most people i know regardless of their race is like listening to lil wayne,mf doom and n.w.a. one minute and then their slammin to
the strokes, doors and death cab….,
their are black people doing indie music too you know: tv on the radio, Lightspeed champion, the black kids, bloc party, the dears, the thermals
Man, this is so ridiculously true. I can’t tell you how many times my white friends have skewered me for not knowing about “xyz” indie band. Like I have some kind of nerve for liking a band AFTER they get famous. WTF?
Fortunately, iTunes and Pandora level the playing field. Now I can musically pwn some of my buddies without much effort at all. Work smarter, not harder! Woot!
umm… I think this site is confusing white people with kids who are apart of the local music scene. Black or white or red or yellow. Veganism, David Sedaris, indie music, arrested development. Seriously? Have you ever talked to anyone who isn’t under thirty and part of some music scene that is into these things? Go into a Publix and ask any white person is they are vegan and you will get no’s all across.
I know this is a pun site, but I’m pretty sure if I came out with a whatblackpeoplelike.com I would be shut down pretty fast for being racist.
two way street anyone?
“To a white person, being a fan of a band before they get popular is one of the most important things they can do with their life. They can hold it over their friends forever!”
This is hilarious. I’m white and I can admit that this statement holds true for me. lol
*yawn*
Liked the line about people attending indie rock concerts well into their 40s. Man, if that doesn’t describe the “indie rock scene” in Cleveland, my hometown, I don’t know what does. There’s nothing more pathetic than an aging hipster. Grow up!
yeah, this isn’t really what white people like, it’s what indiekids/hipsters/artists/musicians/whatever you wanna call them, like.
omg this is insanely true.
i am exactly the same, before finding this website i never realised how extremelly white i am, its amusing
Ugh, I see myself entirely too much in this. I always feel a bit of pain when music I like is featured in a commercial.
Although I do have to say that Joanna Newsom is not so much “original” as she is “an elf with a harp.”
[…] the tradition of my innate whiteness, #41: If you want to understand white people, you need to understand indie music. As mentioned before, […]
Howdy All… Just figured that all you guys like bands that no-ones ever heard of then you might just be into SIDEPROJECT.
A rockin’ trio coming at you from Canada!
http://ww.sideprojectmusic.com
God dammit. This read me like a book.
Joanna Newsom is on my ipod.
[…] thought this post on Stuff White People Like was hilarious. If you’re too lazy to click (I won’t judge […]
Damn, I must be really screwed, because I’m black, and I fit this profile to a T. 🙂
I’ve always been that lone black kid at the punk rock concert, desperately looking for another black face, needing to talk to another black kid like myself, just so that I know I’m not a figment of my own imagination.
Damn, that was deep. LOL!
Cool…..I need a new black friend to show up at Punk shows with.
Care to join me?
I kid, I kid.
Joanna Newsom…
Yup, I’ve got all her albums. Even the EP
Let’s Not forget Lavender Diamond or did I just out cool somebody? 😉
This is 100% truth….i told a white person i liked linkin park and I havent heard from them since
It’s been a year, but I must.
Indie = Independent label. That’s all it means. Indie music is music that happens to not be produced by a major record company. Therefore, since it encompasses such a *huge* range of artists, all with varied musical styles and skill levels, it’s ridiculous to say it sucks. Learn what you’re hating on before you hate. Also, someone in Alabama kicked my puppy 😦
LOL i am very much guilty here.. Years ago, i used to search music from the European charts and i nailed one!! My youngest sister heard one of the songs i got from those European charts on the radio one day and told all her friends that her big sister (that’s me!!! lol) had that song months ago. VICTORY WAS MINE!!! 😀
[…] of why I love New York is its collection of small, non-chain stores, and though this kind of Stuff-White-People-Like-rant is a cliche, it’s also true. The loss of great independent bookstores (read: record stores, […]
The only INDIE music ive ever heard was on Indiana Jones Movies…. Yep
If this was true then mainstream music wouldn’t be profitable. Unless you attempt to make the claim that mainstream music is supported entirely by non-whites.
and Joanna isn’t the most original. But I do love her music to death!
[…] up my drive from columbia to kansas city. instead of listening to a string quartet tribute or sufjan stevens, i decided to listen to david sedaris‘ […]
Hahaha stuff white people like?? I’m not white and I like indie. But why be limited? A lot of good music is mainstream like many classic rock artists. Anyway that’s a funny generalization because all kinds of people from diverse backgrounds like indie music too. 🙂
I like metal and indie (and other styles of music too). And I just like what I like for the sake of liking it.
I have been compromised. Now I must find a way to live my life without someone writing a blog/book about me.
I love Indie music…well, actually I’m pretty sure most of the music I listen to is Indie. I’ve never been good at distinguishing what genre of music I was listening to. I don’t like country very much or rap all that much, either (though I like an occasional song in that genre, mostly it’s just what I think sounds good.) Admittedly, if I see in the description that it’s Indie I’ll check it out, though… I do that with rock as well, though. Usually I don’t click on something unless it was made from 2000+…stupid, I know.
I’ve never heard of any of those bands, though… Bright Eyes/The Strokes yes, but I didn’t like them very much.
As for the commercial thing, I do like a lot of songs from the Apple commericals but I don’t think I’ve ever had a song from a certain group before it was on the tv and I definitely don’t go hunting for them so I can have the joy of having the song before it was mainstream…who the hell does that?
I’ve never been to a concert…and if I did I’d probably listen to the music and avoid talking to the other people there because I’m too shy…so no ‘awkward white dating’ for me. Sounds funny
This is true-I’ve noticed.
Sadly, most of this is true for me, also. I thought it was just a portion of young people that wanted to fell original and different so they’d listen to original and different music.
If you wanna stump a white person ask them their current favorite *album* or two. You can ferret out the clowns that don’t own compact discs this way. Naming 10 artists/bands doesn’t count. Give it a shot.
God this is hilarious.
You don’t know shit about white people you mixed up like cream it must be hard for you to pass the days if this is the best you can conjure up about indie music my friend I suggest you take up a life flipping whopper patties and stop resorting to half assed stereotypes
Most white people do. I hate Indie, though.
Wow I am amazed at how offended people get over this blog! This is hilarious. Hmmmm, stuff white people like: Taking themselves too seriously. Isn’t that right RoyoBanyon?
[…] and loved her study abroad experience. I want to talk to her, but she is drowning me out with Sufjan having a party in her brain. Wedged between the paper and a novel, she pulls out her journal and […]
HEYY IM WHITEE! and i still like the strokes hahhahaha.
I am black and I live in Denmark and I have a moleskine calender I have taken a year off, I do public radio, the radio show is pure indie music,I had bangs a while ago.. I think this blog is hilarious!!! ❤
i’m brown and this is me.
fml
“White people hate anything that’s mainstream.”
Followed by:
“A white person’s iPod…”
iPod? Good job, brah. In the history of consumerism there has never been a more mainstream item than the iPod. This is typical hipster bullshit. A value system that is based on nothing. A hollow foundation of pseudo-beliefs; all form and no substance. Self-contradictions within every turn. The only thing “mainstream” is this trend of necessarily loving the “undiscovered” indie band. As soon as the band makes some money, they are no longer hip. It’s amazing how much time and effort, words and discussions, arguments and listening sessions, these useless hipsters waste on music that is, at the end of the day, totally devoid of any substance. Talking about it like it’s some Beethoven Symphony or something. IT”S A 4 CHORD VAMP AND A 3 NOTE MELODY LINE ASSHOLE! Claiming to be a “musical expert” with a 20,000 song collection, then you ask him who Lester Young was and he has no clue. Unbelievable. I swear to God hipsters are so hollow, so devoid of meaningful content, it’s like they’re not even solid matter. Just a bunch of gas, about to vanish into the ether, and never be missed.
Of course this website is supposed to be funny and light-hearted. I really don’t think it’s to feed white-supremacy. As for indie music, a lot of it does have Caucasian musicians. Among my friends, I don’t see a lot of Asian-Americans or African-Americans or Native-Americans who listen to indie music. We could call it a stereotype but – again – this website is to just make you smile and laugh. If you’re not laughing (or smiling), you probably need to lighten up and understand that it’s all fun. In the end, music is for everyone.
——–
OliviaB.
Seattle DUI lawyer
Dude wasn’t Lester Young in At The Drive In?
@ Dick Chaunce
“A hollow foundation of pseudo-beliefs; all form and no substance. Self-contradictions within every turn. The only thing “mainstream” is this trend of necessarily loving the “undiscovered” indie band. As soon as the band makes some money, they are no longer hip. It’s amazing how much time and effort, words and discussions, arguments and listening sessions, these useless hipsters waste on music that is, at the end of the day, totally devoid of any substance.”
Strange, then, that should a hollow set of fake beliefs (apparently – this group of people you write so irritably about don’t make up a religion, nor a cult, but a tenuous little culture) should rile up so much anger. You refer to no bands in your rant, and give no explanation as to *why* the hazy group of bands which could be described as hipster are “devoid of any substance”. I think this brain dribble of yours is devoid of any substance. You look for far more accuracy then the subject matter demands, and when you fail to find anything deep you get vexed, revealing more about you personally than expose hipsters for what they are. Judging from that one comment, Dick indeed; though I listen to twee – yeah? – and so have little time for hate. ❤
i think the same thing! i mean, geez people, give it a rest!
it’s because anyone who finds this stuff offensive knows its true and doesn’t want to admit it! hell i know this is soooo true for me, i love being the one to find “undiscovered” bands and share them around… it’s all part of embracing the sterotype
Hmmm. This is interesting but very steriotypical I think that generalizing white people is the same as saying oh well then if you talk to a black person you have to bring up rap. which is totally not true. I hate rap. I for one prefer rock over rap, and I’m black.
I dunno if you see my point or not- but hopefully you have an open mind to see that there are so many possibilities in the world; so you can’t close your mind on one idea ( such as all white people love indie music and are super opinionated)
Not to say that there are many whites, blacks, asians, Mexicans, Indians who all love indie style things.
Be imaginative you guys.
use your heads.
It is mighty white of you to take it upon yourself to criticize white people for stereotyping themselves.
Who is this “white” dude? What an a-hole…lol! It makes me think of Patrick Bateman (played by Christian Bale), in American Psycho musing about the latest, hip record at a party (I seem to recall Phil Collins being mentioned).
Like what you like because it appeals to you and not as a means of social currency. I get the satire here, but its a bit annoying too. Who are these white folks that use music to one-up others or sound cool-other than Patrick Bateman and the creators of this blog, apparently? Seriously though, I’m sure these jerks exist-but mostly, I think, people just sincerely can’t stand Nickelback and are looking for alternatives to the garbage big labels have churned out for years. Is it mainstream, indie, cool?….Personally (as a very white dude), I don’t care if you, everyone, or no one likes my music. I hate this new mainstream one-trick pony: “you’re still mainstream, even if you think you’re indie”. First off-who the f*ck cares? Secondly, stop being such a cynical prick. Some people write blogs and others don’t shop at Walmart (or Target)…don’t like the suburbs, don’t like Nickelback and don’t give a rat’s ass what you think. I say, good on ’em.
Anyway thanks for listening, time to go do 3000 crunches and peruse Metacritic for new records I haven’t heard of with ratings higher than 83.
[…] Sufjan Stevens + music that black people probably don’t listen to anymore = the whitest combination civilization has seen thus far. I feel so complete. […]
“Who are these white folks that use music to one-up others or sound cool-other than Patrick Bateman and the creators of this blog, apparently?”
Answer: White Hipsters. Is there any other kind? They should all be slapped on site.
[…] SWPL #41 Indie Music Because of the availability of music online, a very strict social hierarchy has been created within white culture whereby someone with a large MP3 collection is considered “normal,” a large CD collection is considered to be “better,” and a person with a large vinyl collection is recognized as “elite.” […]
But don’t forget; it’s really cool to not like ‘indie’, and to seem less ‘indie’ by throwing in some mainstream stuff. Hating the obscure but trying to be as obscure as possible.
But I guess that ties into the whole irony thing, too.
Damn us white people.
Honestly, i believe that white people are not always looking for something out of the ordinary, although i would guess that they want to have some sense of individuality inside of themselves. Being “white”, i do have to admit that my personal preference to music does involve some sufjan stevens, arcade fire, and bright eyes, but on the other hand, i like more widestream music such as Daft Punk. My individual likes and dislikes chain me alongside with other people, yet it takes me away from the modern cliques. But i have realised, when searching for isolation from these cliques, you generaly created you’r own clique inside it’s self.
I love Billy Bragg, and therefore have never been, and never can be, cool.
You, sir, are a scholar and a gentleman. Huzzah!
[…] in stuff white people like […]
Metal fans also dislike bands upon hitting the mainstream–at least back in the days of CD’s, tapes, and yes, vinyl. But that’s for the wrong kind of white people, I suppose (and for ageing nostalgic Gen-X-er’s like myself).
The whole indie thing just makes me sick. I dont really get it. I have seen people who act like they are really amazing because they know some obscure band. So what!!!.
By referencing Lester Young you yourself are one of the people you so detest.
I’ve never heard of him… isn’t that the same thing as a hipster referencing a band YOU’VE never heard of?
Some people like to know about musical history, what older artists influenced newer artists etc… and it seems you appreciate that as well, kudos for that, but keep in mind a self prescribed knowledge of the classics (IE: lester young) is a form of hipsterism in itself IMHO.
FYI: I love indie rock, and all other kinds of music; I detest mainstream drivel like Nickelback which is what turned me onto underground music in the first place.
Another point, things white people like: NICKELBACK!… damn, another example of the irony…
I’d say hipsters in general. Not just White.
I’m Mexican and I’m guilty of half the things on this site. It confuses me…
I hate how people try to use “Indie” to define a genre of music. Saying you like “Indie” music doesn’t say anything about what the music sounds like, it would be like saying “I listen to artists signed with EMI”. It’s just an easy way for hipsters to pretend to tell you what kind of music they like, because really they dont know anything about music.
pitchfork is awesome
i’ll tell you that: everyone is unique. but there is NO SUCH THING as unique taste. no matter how obscure band/movie/book/show you like, you’ll find someone who likes it too. or even has exactly the same taste as you.
our uniqueness comes from other things.
fluxblog isnt gonna be about music anymore it may even shut down
I wonder what causes people to stop being interested in new music, and become stuck. This profile fits me to a T! I love indie music, and find lots of really great non-mainstream radio. Mostly because #44, Public Radio, is also true for me.
I think the author should add Radiohead to his list of things that white people like or at least reference them in this article. Every pretentious white person I have ever met considers Radiohead to be the best band in the history of human existence. However, if you truly want to offend the avid Radiohead fan, ask them what their favorite Radiohead album is – whatever their answer is, you should respond that your favorite Radiohead album is “Pablo Honey” and that you really like that song “Creep.” Pablo Honey was Radiohead’s first album and Creep was a massively successful single, which is often played at major sporting events or commercial festivals. This will offend the Radiohead fan due to the fact that they consider Radiohead to be the major anti-establishment musical act of our time and since Radiohead’s first album was such a commercial success and is known by the “wrong kind of white people” they will take this comment very personally.
i completely agree with you. Oasis as well. I hate Oasis!
ironically enough, i worked at a coffee shop and one of my coworkers was an art student who pretty much felt Radio Head was the best thing since sliced bread.
I said, yeah they are pretty good, but not great.
I said I’d rather listen to albums like Songs of Faith and Devotion from Depeche Mode or some old Nine Inch Nails music.
This person looked at me like I was nuts. He was like ” dude, those bands are so commercial!”.
I said I didn’t care because the music was good anyway.
Same here…except that I am South Asian, and I find myself being guilty of more than half of the things on this site! Anyway, it’s good still…being able to poke fun at yourself while you go through that archived list. And I know several people around here who would actually be seriously offended by some of the things here, to think of being laughed at for what essentially “defines” them…and they are all South Asians too!
“I said I’d rather listen to albums like Songs of Faith and Devotion from Depeche Mode or some old Nine Inch Nails music.”
Only a white person would say that.
For all you british people im a 15 year old but it doesnt matter about my opinions, Radio 1 has ruined Indie Music and Rock and Roll playing Stupidly pointless music shuch as N-Dubz
fuck nin
are you kidding me?
NIN is a great band, so is Depeche Mode. Songs of Faith And Devotion is one of the best albums of 1993.
Or maybe they just genuinely think that both Pablo Honey and “Creep” aren’t very good? I honestly don’t know any Radiohead fans pretentious enough to dislike Pablo Honey or “Creep” just because of the success of “Creep”. Pablo Honey was badly recorded/mixed and their songwriting at the time just wasn’t as great as the other albums. Don’t jump to conclusions by saying that Radiohead fans hate the album and “Creep” simply because of the success it got. (Which, really, Pablo Honey wasn’t a commercial success, only the “Creep” single.) The avid fans I know dislike “Creep” because of the dumb comments when they mention Radiohead such as “Ewww. Are you, like, emo? ‘Cus that “Creep” song is so depressing!” and the fact that it’s arguably not as good as their other songs yet represents the band, not because of the success that it got. The fans I’ve met are just happy to find someone with similar taste in music, unless you actually do meet one of occasional pretentious music snob fans.
haha, i was hoping someone corrected the wrong addition of ‘the’ to arcade fire 🙂
Also, “discovering” an artist prior to their commercial success is a MUST for every pretentious white indie fan. Ditto to despising any artists current music, but only liking their music made before they were popular.
And, also, Nirvana. how did you forget Nirvana!!! As long as they move beyond Smells like teen spirit/Lithium/Come as You Are….
This is so true. What stinks, though, is when you’re paranoid about becoming that person who takes pride in being obscure. You still hate everything mainstream, but you also hate being called out like this….it’s a vicious circle!
Anyway, I love The Strokes. But I do agree that Pitchfork sucks!
Bonnaroo beats Pitchfork, hands down. If you want to impress a moderate indie-loving white person, brink up bands like Grizzly Bear, Bon Iver, Beirut, Rilo Kiley (if you’re desperate), Sea Wolf, etc.
William Fitzsimmons is good for the tougher indie-lovers.
And by the wa, I adore “indie” music.
All the bears are pretty much the shit. Grizzly Bear, Minus the Bear, Panda Bear
Oh, and you can’t forget the lions. Pedro the Lion is sort of life-altering.
And top it all off with a nice anecdote of how The Smith’s Asleep is the reason you didn’t die that time when you were sixteen when you thought that Kurt Cobain was a god.
[…] bem característicos de gente branca. A lista — que tem itens como café, vinhos, produtos Apple, música indie, reciclagem, bicicletas, saber o que é melhor para pessoas pobres, vintage, sushi — faz qualquer […]
the real white music is music that can say how we are im british/english and im proud i vote bmp but if i say all this im racist blacks can say how black they are and have black albums we cant have an album say young white and proud yet there is one called young black and proud sort this pc shit out
A person can never be ‘individual’ anymore. Nor can one say they are unique or special because of their music taste. People try SO hard to be that person, to be obscure, to be different. It is what they strive for. They go against the grain just for the heck of it, to say that they do. They take pride in it, but would hate to be called this. Yes, don’t be afraid to be different, don’t be afraid to break this mold society is in and stop conforming to the popular opinion. But indie lovers (not just bloody whites, so stop being so stereotypical) are becoming way to obsessed with this whole idea. Yes, it’s a nice concept, but when you buy things, listen to certain music just because it’s different just because you think it’s unique makes you so similiar to everyone else. You try so hard to be unique that it completely defeats the purpose. Have you noticed how popular and mainstream it is becoming to be indie?? How it’s slowly becoming mainstream to be different, and yet again, we all become the same. Stop trying, just bloody be. I listen to indie, love it, but you know what, i will never stop loving Bright Eyes just because Conor has made it big. It doesn’t stop the fact that he is brilliant.
I agree completely. We live in an era of fake individualism, its pretty sad. People just follow like cattle.
Indie definitively is mainstream.
This is meant to be funny guys. Relax.
“Dude, I’m just saying, I knew them before their song was in the pine-sol commercial.”
Fuck, I am so white.
[…] not buy the book! Take the test find out how ‘white’ you are. My favourite of this is Indie Music. Its extremely true to all my friends. What made me think of using this as an example is the […]
Grizzly Bear!
god.. white and guilty
Thank god I don’t like that shit. (Ok except Of Montreal which I will never admit.)
Perhaps I am the wrong kind of white person, but I will always love my METAL!
YES. now i know im white, because even though i pretend im not listening to ‘indie music’ but just music that i like… i am. because Joanna Newsom, Devendra Banhart, Arcade Fire, Comets on Fire and Black Mountain are all my favorites.
And even worse, i secretly pride myself on knowing Comets on Fire and Black Mountain when no one else does.
And here i was thinking i was black. its ok, i still listen to old school/Alternative/Underground rap…
OH WAIT! ='[
That’s white too.
of Montreal is the shit. along with Grizzly Bear… im limewire-ing them right now.
do you know of a little thing called syntax?
those are the people who are annoying. its not about those people though, its about hearing the different kinds of music that are associated with indie.
LMAO.
haha, im black and my musical taste is dominated by Rock and Roll as well. but i listen to plenty of ALTERNATIVE rap. hahaha.
hahaha listening to of montreal as i read this fucking thing.
So much easier to make fun of a/n artist/band that is just universally disliked than find who these randoms are anyway
Lol just make up a name for a band and say you are a fan of them, white people will think you are cool for it.
http://www.beabetterproducer.com
lmao so true.
ahahaha this is soooo true. some of my friends are like this and think they are soooo cool. and they like arcade fire. ahahahaha
I cannot even express how seriously funny and seriously TRUE this is! I even know people who pride themselves on knowing about bands no one else knows about, and then when other people begin to like them they just call them sellouts to appear cool.
What the hell?!?!? I like a couple of those bands, but only because people TOLD me about them. And they are in magazines…. duh.
How about just liking music that’s GOOD?! Mainstream or not… if it jams, it jams.
this is blog is like looking into a fucking mirror
JONAS BROTHERS AND MILEY ARE SOO INDIE. I LOVE THEM! IN YOUR FACES!!!
who are the jonas brothers and miley? is it a boy band and a singer?
sooooo typical, soooo narrow, ssssso not really knowing a thing about music, only knowing from “the crowd” and what is hip.
i love nevershoutnever! 🙂 his music is very indiie and great 😀
I WANT A MILLION DOLLARS!!! Can one million RICH WHITE PEOPLE send me one dollar apiece, puh-lease????
I don’t want money from any Asians, or Blacks or Hispanics. You guys NEED your money. I only want one dollar apiece from RICH WHITE PEOPLE who seem to WASTE their money on independent music.
Waste it on me instead. Thanks so much! (First person who comments “You ARE a waste.” is a rotten egg. You thought it. I know you did. Stop lying. See? I knew it.)
http://thepighasacurlytail.wordpress.com/million-dollar-fund/
lol
Don’t forget NME.
Hey, I love indie music as much as the next person, but both Bright Eyes and The Strokes still have a place in my heart, and my iPod.
lol i love indie music, but i’m mexican
TOP 3:
Gorillaz
The Shins
The Hoosiers
i’m pretty sure the only one obscure enough to talk about is The Hoosiers, but i don’t see very many white people in my town, so whatever
what about Spoon?
lol this could not be anymore true. im white and i love indie music! this blog has made me realize how super freaking white i am. 😀 it makes me giggle.
I KNOW!!
i love the arcade fire, the most serene republic, miracle fortress. but i have to search lyrics just to know what theyre saying!
Do you really not know the Jonas Brothers and miley cyrus? have you been living in a box? 🙂
I think you’re lying. Or being sarcastic.
Hahaha (I’m Mexican too and also like indie) we should pretend to be white and strike up a conversation consisting of topics that involve indie bands, farmers markets, organic food etc. and see who who can be the whitest…just for shits and giggles….LMAO
Ha ha Ryan Adams…I LOVE him, despite him being an absolute twat, whingeing about everything and being married to Mandy Moore…Mandy Fucking Moore!! what is the world coming to?, the man can write a tune, Heartbreker is an epic album…I would also like to add Bill Callahan to the list alonside Joanna Newsom, strange and awkward man who looks like an accountant, white as they come…
“whingeing”?
I haven’t read that word anywhere except Infinite Jest; you are obviously very, very white.
Or, if David Foster Wallace is correct about the geographic usage of that word, you are probably Canadian, in which case you are still very, very white.
Hipsters are never ‘self-proclaimed’; that would defeat the purpose.
Close…Australian. I have never read Infinite Jest, does that make me less white? Still, you are correct in your assertion that I am very, very white…this blog gauges my level of whiteness pretty high.
wow. nevershoutnever! sucks balls! asshole.
were do you live? i would like to live in a place where people haven’t heard of the jonas brothers and miley! lol!
[…] endeavor, it ceases to be “cool” (I admit I am occasionally guilty of making such comments when spending time with my snooty music friends). There are also those who look to cash-in on the […]
Battles is pretty indie, and they soundtrack Abraham Lincoln’s dancing spree.
so true!
Spot on.
this shit is sad but true.pitchfork has always been gay.and fuck white people suck a dick and die cracka
Can a band or artist, say Ryan Adams, become unpopular with white people, but then become popular again BECAUSE of his unpopularity? After all, white people love unpopular artists and bands.
—
Check it out:
[…] nok et sving Gemt under: Uncategorized — selin @ 6:53 am Jeg er lige faldet over sitet ‘Stuff white people like’, hvor de selvfølgelig også behandler hvide menneskers forhold til musik og specielt indie. Det er […]
These guys are great. Everything is spot on. We like to know everything about anything! Haha, love these guys.
Oh, another thing…white people (yes, I’m white) have to be into all the old bands or the legendary bands (i.e., Led Zeppelin, Queen, Aerosmith, The Stones…). Not to say these bands/singers aren’t great, it’s just something we white people have to know. You are also required to know the names of all band members and/or what instruments they play.
That one about Indie music was good. I like your site. Just saw you on Alexa Chung. ☻
Just saw you on Alexa Chung, and I’m currently addicted to the site and have recently come across your book 😀 I love how brutally honest you are, and each one of your posts make my day xD
Independent music is the kind of music you go to the $10 local amateur band concerts. I went to like 5 of ’em before, and they are pretty cool, head to the “underground”… and the majority of these bands are Hispanic, one of them was retro-80s Punk call themselves “we’re not a spick band”. +
Christ this site reminds me of how white I am. it’s good for a laugh. This one makes me feel so hip and utterly white.
People, if you were truly white, you’d know that Arcade Fire don’t mind whether you use the “The” or not, and go by both on occasion. Way to blow your cover.
I’m have some hispanic ancestry (gfathers family from Lorca and Sevilla). I remember even in the 80’s some indie groups with latin members (Jerry Garcia? Suzanne Vega?)…But, I can see it being a pretty white thing, too.
listen here boy, rap sucks, lil wayne sucks, and suck… dick that is! go use your welfare money to buy your kfc, purlpe drank, and crack pussy.
yeah lil wayne sucks ass
fuck lil wayne
what ever happened to gladys night and the pimps?
I have (:
Ive seen them only in Ap Magazine though.
“I’m have some hispanic ancestry”
surely this should be one. Lost count of the number of my friends that have claimed to be 1/16th french, or italian, or lebanese.
this is american site though so maybe you guys don’t think this is that unusual.
btw, I dunno, do brits count? I don’t like america and that was one of things.
This blog does a great job of making a person realize how unoriginal they are. Well done.
LOL I saw this site on http://www.DanielDickey.com and I must admit it’s just as funny!!
[…] as you read the blog, that you are saying to yourself, “But X [perhaps #64 recycling, #8 Obama, #41 indie music, or #85 The Wire] is/are in fact better than the alternative.” Right here, the joke is on you. […]
That’s funny.
My name is Alan, and I’m Lebanese.
Back on topic, however, this article really applies to me. I enjoy going to local shows a lot, and I tend to brag. My parents say that I’m being “Americanized.”
It’s Pips, not pimps bro and they’re touring the UK in October
White people hate anything mainstream? I know tons of white people who ONLY listen to the radio. Britney Spears is like white people’s God. Can’t get more mainstream than that.
No No No. That is the “wrong kind” of white people. Ha!
Sorry, if you dont ‘get it’ then YOU are the WRONG sort of white person and probably shouldn’t even be looking at this site. Ha ha.
This is about as racist as you can get without being called out on it, because it is acceptable self-loathing racism.
For more acceptable self-loathing racism read Obama’s “Dreams From My Father”. He complains about his white heritage and how much he is ashamed of it.
Death to Whitey!!!
hahaha, I love how the photo for indie music couldn’t hint more towards fags.
i realize this is a satire but to your point, not only is this an era of fake individualism, but this is an era with no values. there is nothing sacred in our society anymore. the internet has exposed and exploited to the most extreme, all values we were ever taught and want to live by. if your striving to be a person that ‘gets it’ then your BEST move would be saying nothing. because according to the minds lurking on the internet, everything in some way to someone is wrong, lame, or gay and the person who called out the fag always wins unless called out for his own comment which is usually ironically wrong. everyone is trying to outwit the next with no responsibility for their words because their able to post anonymously. it’s absurd. this is why I don’t usually post on the internet, and I only associate myself with my friends and people I respect – which is what im sure a lot of us do.
[…] this morning I was plugging my iPod into my iMac to upload my latest Indie Music download when I realized that last night when I thought my iPod was frozen? Yeah, what really […]
[…] appropriation of self-interest and profane values) and a whiter, more college educated, liberal “hipster” market where the audience is more expected to be “in the know” and thus divulge into much more […]
When did Ryan Adams, Bright Eyes and the Strokes become unpopular? Does that mean I have to fish them out of my record collection and donate them to a worthy cause? Or can I still crank them up in the Prius on my way to my evening Italiano class?
Ah, this is so true, although I would draw the line at music featured in iPod commercials. This revelation occurred to me when I downloaded 3 tracks by the Asteroids Galaxy Tour, one of course being “Around the Bend”. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a catchy tune – and that’s the problem. It’s a quick burner, like funnel cake, where the idea of the cake is better than the actual product itself, and I need music that grows on me and challenges me, causes me at first to cover my ears and then to see the world in a new and unique perspective for more than 3 minutes 40 seconds. I would mention some band names but that would cause them to instantly become cack.
… plus the names of those bands can’t be typed using a conventional English-language keyboard, yeah?
It aint that racist, calm down. Its no different from Black people who parody mainstream Black culture, and Hispanics who do the same. Is Chris Rock racist for making a skit called “How not to get your ass kicked by the police?” no, cuz its funny and the people who create it know that there are more intricate sides to their respective ethnic culture.
And Obama was never ashamed of his white heritage…why don’t you actually READ the entire book and look at everything that was written IN THE APPROPRIATE context before you start making rash judgements about people and race. People like you are part of the reason we can’t have a frank and open discussion about race in society
white people are the ones who created the mainstream lol
[…] People Like. I wore a sweater (#103), a scarf (#97), and an Arcade Fire T-Shirt (#’s 84 and 41). I had a Whole Foods bag (#48) sticking out of my back […]
haha, “crank them up in my prius” yeah you should fish them out, check out conor oberst and the mystic valley band, usually people say Bright Eyes sold out but his solo work sticks true to his original concept, at least until he gets a good rolling stone review, or a spot on MTV
Modest Mouse is Tasteful Indie. everything else, such as The Moldy Peach’fag’s, are just Indie.
shiiiit ! ,
i must be white theeen, i was reading the List White People Like and i like most of those thingss, and im mexicannnn
[…] thing white people can get to battle rapping. It is a back and forth between two males who are showcasing their knowledge of independent music, obscure remixes, mash-ups, first releases and underground music. This is an activity in letting […]
What about if I hate everything that is Indie Music because it is the popular music and I hate everything that is Pop music? Does that make me an even cooler white person? some of my music is quite obscure but not in the popular obscure way.
Wow. Are you actually from my town? The picture of Spaceland has me wondering. Than again, just about everyone here is an English language learner, so that would make sense.
Was this a joke, or are you all full of shit?
“If you mention a band you like and the other person has heard of them, you lose. They own you. It is essential that you like the most obscure music possible.”
this made me laugh so much, its really quite true. whenever i say i know the band too, the expression i get is priceless.
This post is fantastic. I never really caught on to the indie music scene, and frankly most of it bugs the hell out of me.
But the point is 100% true. I don’t understand the fascination with having to know some band that your classmate/friend/neighbor has never heard. Isn’t all indie music pretty much the same?
It’s like if you know a band someone else doesn’t, then somehow that band’s coolness extends to you. What is that about? It’s no longer about liking or not liking whatever the band’s sound is, it’s just about being the first kid on the block to listen to them. Whatever
haha i feel your pain. I like lots of indie music but can’t for the life of me figure out why people listen to obscure bands like they’re ‘cool’. that is, i agree with your last sentence. i don’t think indie music is irredeemable. I just think people are silly and try to be cool even when they are (cooly) not being cool.
there’s too much good music out there to limit yourself 🙂
wow… This is so unbelievably true I can’t even believe it.
What are you talking about. This is so dead on.
90.7 WFUV is the whitest radio station in NYC. I believe it is broadcast via the internent, for white people not fortunate enough to live within it’s bandwidth.
Just have to say that not all Indie music is the same, but a large amount of it is. Just like all genres of music, there are a few gems, but most of it sucks.
ps i am white
Guilty as Charged. I happen to love all of those bands listed above.
I feel so edgy that I was listening to Joanna Newsom while i read this.
This honestly describes me. My mind is blown away.
“To a white person, being a fan of a band before they get popular is one of the most important things they can do with their life. They can hold it over their friends forever!”
omg why is this soooooo true?? ahahahaahaha
I just checked out FELA!, a new Afrobeat Broadway musical on Broadway. The show is simply amazing and I encourage everyone to see it! I purchased discount tickets and included the link above. Enjoy!
is it sad that my only black friend does this to me all the time?
I’m not white, but I’ve gotta admit, Joanna Newsom is extremely talented. I don’t pretend to like things I don’t like, and I never thought I’d like her music, but her phrasing and melodies make her songs compulsively listenable.
Anyway, honestly I’d rather have confirmation that the bands I’m listening to are worthy of my time. That’s why I love Pitchfork (sue me). Stereogum and Fluxblog don’t really cut it for me. Although I have to say I find myself disagreeing with Pitchfork a lot. A. Lot.
Why do you have to hate on The Strokes?
They’re still really talented and their fourth album is going to make you slap yourself for saying they aren’t popular anymore.
You should remember the style some of us white people like even more than Indie:
Progressive Rock.
It has the advantages of really strange band names, almost total obscurity, a gazillion sub genres (i.e. art rock, jazz fusion, etc.) so that we can get angry when you mess up, almost completely impenetrable/ really long songs, most of it is vintage, lots of long concerts, and it’s acceptable to use instruments such as a flute in a progressive rock song.
Agreed. Unless they don’t come up with a fourth album. Which would make me sad.
Agreed. Reading that part of the post stung a little. Unless they don’t come up with a fourth album. Which would make me sad.
hahaha this is actually so true!
Admitting to liking progressive rock is risky. If you are talking to the right kind of indie-rock-snob white person, they will immediately dismiss you as someone who likes to listen pretentious, boring, fifteen minute long songs about barbarians fighting centaurs and you probably a closet full of airbrushed dragon t-shirts at home. Your only option in this case is to attempt to claim that you totally only like that stuff about elves ironically, which has only a marginal chance of success.
Or, if I may quote from Dr. David Thorpe:
“it is beyond dispute that prog-rock is the nerdiest music in the world. Prog-rock is all about geeks writing computer programs to settle the Neil Peart vs. Mike Portnoy debate. Prog-rock bands are so desperate to be high art that they’re content to sidestep art altogether, resulting in fat guys in pillbox hats playing ten-minute solos on fourteen-string basses. Prog-rock is an elaborate, terrified denial of the fundamental rock and roll fact that no matter how virtuosic and sophisticated a band gets, some junior-high dropout could step up with a guitar with four broken strings and play a song with enough soul to blow them out of the water forever.”
Hating The Strokes has nothing to do with their actual music. I think I’ve only ever heard one song by The Strokes, which I recall sort of liking, and yet I TOTALLY HATE The Strokes. Why? Because I am very, very white, and if other people (especially other white people) like something it can’t be any good.
A true standard in comedy blogging.
Another great site is http://www.SomethingYouShouldRead.com
Indie music might as well be the pinnacle of whiteness. If you don’t like indie (and only indie) music, you are the wrong kind of white person. Other music can only be listened to ironically.
As stated by Mr. Lander it’s dangerous territory.
Example: 1 year ago Phoenix was a perfect band to like as a white person. Obscure, yet prolific. And French (bonus points). Unfortunately, Phoenix became popular enough to get radio airplay and had a song featured in a Cadillac commercial. Needless to say, they are no longer acceptable.
Laughing so hard at how much this is true. About two yrs I had a white art teacher who loved indie music and is a drummer for an indie band that plays frequently at Spaceland.
haha i love the stokes and arcade fire:D but im mexican born but i swear im too much like a white person its funny
Yes. Indie music is very acceptable in white culture. im totally white all kinds of so i would know. terrible bands like Weezer and OkGo are acceptable because they show “individuality” and they dont. and thats totally gay
Yep, that is so true with me.
……but i’m indian :O
what’s worse than alabama?… mississippi.
Never got into the indie movement. I like some of it, but not much. I don’t care if it’s mainstream or not, as long as it sounds good.
I especially like to build up bands everyone else hates…like Linkin Park, for example. 😛
Want to piss off people really fast? Say “Fred Durst is pretty kickass”. People will get this horrified look on their face…priceless.
I only listen to Indie music ironically.
Everybody says there is this race problem. Everybody says this race problem will be solved when the third world pours into EVERY white country and ONLY into white countries.
The Netherlands and Belgium are more crowded than Japan or Taiwan, but nobody says Japan or Taiwan will solve this race problem by bringing in millions of third worlders and quote assimilating unquote with them. Everybody says the final solution to this race problem is for EVERY white country and ONLY white countries to “assimilate,” i.e., intermarry, with all those non-whites.
What if I said there was this race problem and this race problem would be solved only if hundreds of millions of non-blacks were brought into EVERY black country and ONLY into black countries? How long would it take anyone to realize I’m not talking about a race problem. I am talking about the final solution to the black problem? And how long would it take any sane black man to notice this and what kind of psycho black man wouldn’t object to this?
But if I tell that obvious truth about the ongoing program of genocide against my race, the white race, Liberals and respectable conservatives agree that I am a naziwhowantstokillsixmillionjews.
They say they are anti-racist. What they are is anti-white. Anti-racist is a code word for anti-white.
I’m Hispanic and I listen to indie music and I act the same way when I meet people at shows..lol I pretty much own them!
Baha. They mentioned Bright Eyes. That made my day.
HAHAHA, well although this page makes me laugh, I have to inject that Arcade Fire had a Where the Wild Things Are Commercial. I know right! Therefore, this page is giving bad advice.
People are so funny. I find it a bit ridiculous that people only follow things because it’s the it thing, or the not so “it” thing. I must say that it’s people in general that are like this (regarding what the writer says), not just white people. I’m Indian and love all kinds of music, punk being my roots, but I pretty much like everthing including the Arcade Fire.
Music to me effects how I feel or I how I want to feel. It eases, relaxes, gets me going, pumps me up or make me feel lovey dovey or whatever mushy crap I’m trying to say. Again, I find it funny that people worry so much about what other people think they need to trash or belittle others.
If there is a music genre that people should always bash on it’s country, unless it’s old school country. This shit sucks balls.
Do I fit in with the writer now?
my ipod is only indie. and electro.
im truly white..
Retard
lmao. wowzers.
Just out of curiousity, how long have you been doing this?
Just out of curiousity, how long have you been doing this?
Indie music is gay paul mcartney, chris cornel, and john paul jones are going to punch everybody who listen to this stuff in the face
Oh my god, this is so utterly true. I never realized how douchey I was being until I read it in text from a third party’s opinion.
Yahh……I feel this is bit eerily close to home….like pretty much EVERYTHING was too applicable to me…
Someone I didn’t know was a white person turned me onto this blog and I’ve been totally LOL since. So spot on and the Indie music entry describes me to a tee and I’m hitting the fifty year mark still making CD for friends of obscure indie music mixed of course with liberal does of vintage music. Hell I was a white person growing up with a white people tribe of friends we tracked the world’s most obscure bands from the age of 13 on. I turned them onto Television and they turned me on to Tangerine Dream, we were gaga for Roxy Music. Now this weeks find is Surfer Blood and Broken Bells.
This is fabulous stuff now we need the history of white people where did they come from, how did they get this way. All my life I thought I was un-labelable and now you nailed it. From an I-pod full of indie pop, a BFA in Graphic design, adjunct professordom, a slacker blogger, farmers market addicted, anti-Ed Hardy, MadMen lover to a Subaru Outback driver, I have to profess I fit the Stereotype of a white person trying not to fit a stereotype.
Indie Music FTW! its so right about white people knowing bands before theyre big holding it over their friends. i do it all the time. wow, gotta love this book its so right!
please punch me in the face?
Hahahahahahhahhaha.
This is amazing.
This isn’t Stuff White People Like, this is Stuff Hipsters Like 😛
I didn’t know what I liked was indie music till I started telling a white guy what I listened to. It was just stuff I liked. It’s the non white half of me maybe.
stuffwhitepeoplelike.com, how do you do it?
Sorry, but this blog really needs to be called stuff white liberal people like.
Where are the posts about white rednecks? You know, white people who love pickup trucks, NASCAR, deer hunting, country music and Sarah Palin?
Those white people wouldn’t touch a vegan meal, latte, or foreign film with a 10 foot pole!
thats such a white thing to say
then you, sir, are an undesirable.
so does anyone but white people look at this?
This blog is something white people like.
You know what else white people like? Irony.
Im a lib and would not touch any of those things with a 100 foot pole
“If you mention a band you like and the other person has heard of them, you lose. They own you. It is essential that you like the most obscure music possible.”
Ha ha i literally LOL’d at that. it’s so true ha ha ha SWPL FTW
those people dont have computers
then you, sir, are not a true liberal. lol
that’s the wrong kind of white people
Caste system FTW
Just curious but are Radiohead still acceptable to white people? They’re big but not exactly mainstream.
haha.. so true I hate indie but the rest of my family is Jocken the cock on Indie Fags
If UR a Radiohead fan & want to go beyond indie check out this cover a Creep by an NYC homeless man in the studio of XM 202’s Opie & Anthony Show (6-11 AM EST GMT -5:00 Eastern). Prior to Christmas O&A host “The Homeless Shopping Spree” where they give a bus full of homeless a prepaid trip to a suburban shopping mall accompanied by adoring fans who purchase gifts for the select. To be selected for limited seats on the bus there’s a talent contest & this makes you feel it ! : http://www.facebook.com/pages/Homeless-Mustard/304466618311
If you were looking for a great redneck-bashing site…
http://thingsboganslike.wordpress.com/
creative and hilarious, albeit with an Australian twist
“white people hate anything that’s “mainstream” and are desperate to find things that are more genuine, unique, and reflective of their experiences.”
Lol silly white people
also a good one. its important to point out that many rural white people are fine with mainstream, as I’m sure city kids are too to some degree. Go to rural Kentucky and your bound to hear hannah montana and kenny chesney and The Commodores blaring from the cars of white folks.
I am not a liberal and this describes me almost exactly. I do however, like a few mainstream songs like Hey, Soul Sister. But, yeah. I love indie music as well as experimental, ambient, and some progressive rock.
I actually find it cool when someone mentions a band I know, though. It gives me a little more insight into what they listen to and what kind of person they are.
PURE GENIUS.
tits lol
Dude, yr a doosh. Srsly. Ambient? Name 3 ambient acts and if you say Explosions in the Sky I’ll punch you in the throat.
Yo Jay-z and Nas is the best rappers alive yo honkeys all say eminem is the shit but all he talks about is fuckin manikins in the ass n shit
my god. this makes me so happy.
Ok, umm, apparently i like tons of stuff white people like.
Hey, ummmm I’m Black and I listen to a lot of Indie Music. I like Animal Collective, Vampire Weekend, Panda Bear, Mum, Friendly Fires, and Justice just to name a few. I also hate what rap is today. Nothing but posers and auto tune crap.
heart this entry. i also love how my first reaction is to justify that my commonality came from a different pretense and is therefore O.K. and then i love how my second reaction is to realise that im trying to be different by saying that my conformity was due to different reasons and then thirdly the implosion and conclusion to not like everything on the list — and then the second epiphany. Its hard being white…
really? with this reply?
really?
i don’t agree with this but some might argue that you’re white-washed or trying be white
but i really dont care that much so i’ll just leave it at- really?
This is so true, but it reminded me that white people like The Beatles!
White people like quirky music they can’t dance to.
word
Try being into truly soulful, genuine, honest music from around the world and defending that to white people.
you’re awesome man:)
I hate it when the indie bands I like become popular. I have to delete them off my eyepod. I used to listen to the black eyed peas before fergie. I used to listen to the white stripes when it was just 1 person.
[…] My data is going to be indie rock bands. […]
If you used to like them, what’s the problem? Put on an old album, and relax. 🙂
blaze mo nims no sticks no stems
ha, this one describes me perfectly especially the line:
“To a white person, being a fan of a band before they get popular is one of the most important things they can do with their life. They can hold it over their friends forever”.
I do that all the time. And even though likeing Bright Eyes may no longer be cool, I still love his music!
Russia is the most backward country, I guess. The article was posted in 2008, but I have found out what indie-music is only this year. Exactly by the time all the groups have become popular.
But still, yuo know, I like saying to my friends smthing about ok go! or the strokes and observe an expression of ignorance and unawareness on their faces. That really flatters me(:
When were the Black Eyed Peas ever considered an indie group?
LoL. Me and this white chick got to this whole indie music showdown on the bus once (Y she got so serious about it, i’ll never know) and I think I owned her. The kid sitting next to her was all “black kid’s got game!” So i agree with the whole never talk about indie w/ white peeps unless ur positive of wat ur talking about.
[…] okay …’ gosh, how i hate when that happens in conversation), the music we dismiss as so last year, the music that gets our gag reflex going, or the music we come back to again and again, no matter […]
yah and remember NOT to wear ANY band t-shirts.
btw i dont care what bands someone else heard of.. I like what I like.
This defines me perfectly.
Thank you for this fantastic information because finding relevant sites on this topic is sometimes hard to find. You did an excellent job covering the subject and I look forward to more posts from your site. Do you offer RSS Feeds or feedburner to get more content for our blogs? I will be sure to include links from my other blogs to yours.
Was at my daughters fundraiser and there was a table of cds for sale – REM, Oasis, Babylon Zoo, Radiohead, Skunk Anansie to name but a few and all going for 20 cents a cd lol. The children were laughing at the music (mostly 1990s era) and at the end of the night only 6 cds had sold! Thought that was funny
[…] music’ and ’80s night’ currently feature in the top 100 list at positions 41 and 29 […]
[…] pirated lame early hip-hop, obscure classical that they only pretend to like to sound smarter, and terrible indie music (the more obscure the better, obviously). I wonder if they’ll be filling up their Kindles in […]
I love this “Indie” music trash page here. Please explain to me how it’s cool to be total shit at playing instruments and talk your way thru songs… Sounds more like a description of rap to me but rap is actually 100 times better than “indie”. I’m into the amazing hard rock bands like Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails, Tool, 1995-era Marilyn Manson, the stuff that was polished hard rock gold and had a definite message. Not this, “everything is wonderful” apathetic bull shit known as “indie”… I’ve actually heard an “indie” song that the singer says, “C’est que se?” Then proceeds to say, “Fah fah fah fah faaaaah fah fah fah fah faaaah”.. I mean what the fuck is that? Not a french band. Just a bunch of 30 year old talentless douches living in their parent’s suburban basement. Texting and “indie” music have taken all the rebels and now all we have left is scene kids and slim shady wannabes. Somebody fucking kill me I feel like how rockers felt in the 1970’s when disco was cool.
ANTIMUSIC: It’s Flight of the Conchords; they have a COMEDY show on HBO, it’s a JOKE. I guess you follow #28.
The song you speak of is Psycho Killer by Talking Heads, although Cage The Elephant do a pretty rad cover… I believe this means i own you.
p.s. I believe you have an incorrect amount of fah’s
[…] Arcade Fire fans er nok stort sett typisk hvit, utdannet middelklasse. På den nevnte satiresiden Stuff White People Like – en tenkt guide for dem som ønsker å bli ”hvite” – rådes aspirerende hvite til trygt å […]
[…] Arcade Fire fans er nok stort sett typisk hvit, utdannet middelklasse. På den nevnte satiresiden Stuff White People Like – en tenkt guide for dem som ønsker å bli ”hvite” – rådes aspirerende hvite til trygt å […]
if you like this blog, check out http://justsomepetpeeves.wordpress.com!!
[…] #41 Indie Music […]
that comment was really just proved this whole website point. lololol
Is La Roux a he or she? I can’t friggin’ tell the gender.
Looks just like Justin Bieber, or worst: Chris Crocker. He’s singing “Leave Britney the fsck alone.”
That song is weird, scary to really creeped me out.
What the fuck is this sheettttttttttttt?
Checkout 80’s classics at http://www.indiediscs.com
I am white but I find Indie music rather lame.
Music is music. If it means something other than making money, fucking bitches, or fighting, it’s good in my book. This world needs a huge change, and music is a great catalyst for that. Actually listen to the lyrics, they’re about life and the daily emotions that we deal with day to day. Its real, not just for show, like most mainstream acts. Give it a chance, and quit following the bandwagon. Each of us has knowledge to spread, so trust yourself, and go with your intuitions. We are all here for a purpose. Don’t hate… awake
Rebecca,
I do not know if I can ever forgive this transgression.
[…] white people like Indie Music (it’s #41). Now, I fucking hate indie music (at least, all the shit Austin & Randy play at the store […]
I am lame but I find Indie music rather white.
If norwegian progressive post-black metal is “indie,” count me among the guitly. Hail Borknagar.
I like the fact this guy has gone through great lengths to write these things about white people. This one is pretty accurate though, as long as your a white person who likes indie music. Some white people think it sucks and listen to their own shitty “white people music.”
For future post about stuff white people like can you put some stuff in their that we actually really like that is no so obscure. ie Football, Baseball, Hot Chicks, Cocaine, Hating on people who are not from this country.
i’m quite sick of listening to pop songs like lady gaga that is why i shifted to alternative music “
In the same way that Hip-Hop and R&B united the black race 20-30 years ago, Indie music has successfully united the white race in the 21st century.
I feel bad about this, for the band I mean, but I like Vampire Weekend. It really is the kiss of death for them that a 41 year old guy like me is a fan but so be it. I should really keep this stuff to myself, because every time I speak out about something I like a music group dies inside. I found them from seeing a Tommy Hilfiger commercial on TV. I hope they are on itunes.
this is spot on and, overall, the best most funny thing i’ve read in a while. Bravo.
Also, Lander, replace Arcade Fire and Joanna Newsom with Passion Pit and Yeasayer, respectively, this year. Now you’re hitting SERIOUS white territory (Doesn’t mean I don’t love it, haha. Neither Arcade Fire nor Newsom can beat those two on catchiness).
Next year, I have a nagging suspicion that the hottest band will be Chiddy Bang. There’s nothing white college kids love more than a rap band using indie samples that hipsters can say they heard first.
Also, it’s easy to update your indie playlist nowadays w/o the use of Pitchfork (nothing uncool or cool about Pitchfork, it’s just a music site). Just go into an American Eagle store and read the screen in the back of the store (the playlist is also available on their FB page and Pandora). If you want CATCHY indie music, go to Hollister and shazam + download their catalog. Works for me all the time, I’m always caught up with my hipster friends this way, though I don’t label myself that way.
[…] https://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/01/30/40-indie-music/ This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. LikeBe the first to like this post. […]
I work with a white guy who’s told me that he discovered a band a year before it got popular on the radio and to that discovery, his reaction was “I heard this a year ago!”. He felt the need to tell me twice, and to tell his friends this story all in the same words. It’s like he has it memorized in his head.
[…] article here Highlights taken from here Extra reading here and here For fun: Stuff White People Like: Indie Music Share and […]
[…] you don’t know about Stuff White People Like, you should definitely give it a look see. Funny, pithy blog posts about nothing but stuff that […]
[…] Like blog, to read all about why white people are so drawn to things like Moleskine notebooks, indie music, coffee, Farmer’s Markets, pea coats, sweaters, scarves, and the Toyota […]
anyone heard of tax the wolf. great indie band from houston you can listen to their album on their website taxthewolf.com
White people, well all people, also enjoy http://www.NakedHipster.com. Mainly because the girls are hot and don’t have clothes on. Usually those two things go well together. You know, the hotness and the nakedness.
[][][]
[][]
[]
[…] before TIME Magazine does, which is to say, pretty darn easy. But still, this is important. As Christian Lander puts it on Stuff White People Like, A white person’s iPod (formerly CD collection) is not merely […]
[…] […]
I’m sorry, your view of what “white people”, as you’ve repeated rather a lot, like and dislike is rather irelivant. Most people like a band, before they even learn, that it’s “indie music”, that happend to me for a start, i just knew i could relate to that style of music, and what they sing about. Also, i think people go to festivals mostly, to see the band they like playing, you can hook up with somone anywere, and i like indie, but i’m not going to “own someone”, as you so bluntly put it, just because they don’t like indie music, the only thing that bothers me, is when people insult it, with little knowledge about it.
[…] a veritable Stuff White People Like bonanza, Mad Men star John Slattery features in this new video clip of The […]
^- Typical uptight whitey. 😀
[…] brick walls and nearby houses, thinking how each song truly sounded identical to the last one. Does white-people-music sound repetitious to other cultures? Maybe they don’t know, because we tend to listen with […]
fuck yu this is not what white people like! & trust me im white/.
yeah, so is the author…and the name of the blog is not stuffdanilikes.com
This blog is really about hipsters, not white people in general. I’m 75% white, and I hate indie music. I like classic rock, hard rock, heavy metal, power metal, gothic metal, symphonic metal, and unblack metal. Most of my friends like country (none of them like indie music). I don’t care whether bands are popular or obscure as long as I like the way they sound. Avoiding stuff because other people have heard of it is as stoopid as only listening to what’s on the radio.
I bet you aren’t too popular with the ladies. Sounds like you wear black tshirts and baggy jeans all the time and look like you need a shower. I bet you go to bard with your hick friends and your metal loving buds and maybe at best strike up a conversation with the fattest girl in the bar. Enjoy
I’m a girl. And I usually dress accordingly.
Indie Music…is a masterpiece. I’ll be honest I am a die-hard fan of Indie Music. Someone just told me the other day, that Indie Music was like Metal Rock. I was like…you did not just call Indie Music…metal rock…didn’t you? I was insulted all the way.
According to the Indie clothing style, I dress accordingly and listen to Indie Music only. My ipod is filled with the latest Indie songs and it doesn’t have a trace of “popular music” like hip hop and R&B. As much as I want to say again that indie music is not only for white people, I realize that the stereotypes are true. It is common to associate the indie style to white people, but then again many people of various origins have a strong preference for what is indie. 🙂
“Stuff white people like”. That made me crease! By the way, I agree with the whole indie music concept, well done!!!
The White Person Indie Music Game is fuckin retarded. You know what, I still love the Strokes, and I don’t think GaGa, Katy Perry, or Kanye West are too bad, either. People like what they like, and while I profess to liking some fairly obscure artists, I do not feel the need to name them so other white people can marvel at my genius (which wouldn’t make sense anyway, as I have nothing to do with the music). I’m content in knowing that I’ve found good music that I can enjoy. Btw, I don’t know who this Jan’s whatshisface from Sweden is, and I don’t feel like joining the three other people that do. If that makes me unhip, then you bespectacled, scarf-wearing beardos can kiss my ass.
Have you heard of the Cock? Probably not, but they are going to be huge! They’re exploding on the scene, yeah I’m like the first to love the Cock, I heard about them when they were just starting to grow, then I showed them to my friend, now he’s all about them. I got the new Japanese 7″ and couldn’t believe it, I had no idea the Cock was that big in Japan. The Cock is sometimes hard to swallow, but rewards repeated spins. It’s definitely a grower. The Cock is like NMH meets PB&J meets CYHSY meets TJAMC meets ATDI meets OFWGKTA meets AYWKUBTTOD meets YSP!WSD! meets MBV meets TVOTR meets NC&TBS meets TWTGDSD meets BTS meets GY!BE meets PUSA meets GBV meets BRMC meets YYY meets ILYBICD meets AIH meets QOTSA meets TBJM meets TOTC meets MMJ meets BSS meets RATM meets NATW meets M&TNSAS meets TPOBPAH meets YLT meets TL&TP meets GGD meets HTDW meets SDRE meets DFA1979 meets SSLYBY meets EITS meets TMBG meets APHG meets 30 Odd Foot of Grunts. But the only way to really appreciate the Cock is to just lie in bed, turn off the lights, put on your noise canceling headphones, and let the Cock’s sweet sweet music flow out into your ears.
Um, white people are the ones who make up the “mainstream.”
[…] I’d like to point out at this time that seeing a Mother Mother concert in the Apple Store I believe would fall under the rule as “still marginally acceptable” in terms of indie music that white people are allowed to like and still remain cool. For a complete list of the rules, please see entry #41 Indie Music on the site StuffWhitePeopleLike. […]
I’m an indie fan and black – so what does that make me? i’m also well aware of the hilarious stereotypes of indie culture and its often riduculous, elitist fans.
[…] or nationality, which makes the list, the jokes and the people themselves even more hysterical. The indie music entry is particularly delightful as people, seriously, start doing the old piss-war about what […]
Your representation of hipster culture is delightful and spot on. nice!
Funnily enough pitchfork has way better reviews than stereogum and actually features less mainstream music. :S go pitchfork
yea cause kanye west got a 10/10 from stereogum – pitchfork is mainstream – sorry but c. lander is right
Aw man! But I love Joanna!
I’m white and most of the stuff on this site is so spot on (lol xD) but I freaking HATE indie music.
Haha this blog is soooo true! My ipod top played is all music produced by one indie label …
Bon Ivor anybody? ;]
Probably true, but there are some great non-white artists out there.
Just because it’s indie doesn’t mean it’s bad. There are lots of excellent bands out there that aren’t on major recording labels.
You’re sort of correct.
One can get an awesome power over a fellow indie listener if you know of bands before others, but when a band is very small something different happens. With really small bands you instantly become best friends with anyone else who has heard of them, forming an elite indie kid club.
You are also right about gigs being the literal breeding grounds for white people.
Jacob
I am white and I am not a fan of the indie music style. I have found that indie music is highly obnoxious. I believe that being obnoxious is the whole aim of being indie?
I used to say the only kind of music I do not like is Christian Rock. Now, I added Indie to that. I never thought it was possible but, the indie scene is even more annoying then white Christian Rock.
[…] Both instances mentioned above reveal that there are folks out there who are so weak that they allow their musical tastes to be dictated by prejudice. They are not judging the music for itself but deem all music good or bad based on whether it is popular or indie. Notice that there are a number of blogs out there listing the “best” Canadian albums of the year, and what they call “best” are actually albums from the most obscure artists in the country. (Some of them may throw in one or two more well-known artists to give their lists some credibility.) This is among the stuff that white people like. […]
Who cares? The music is good, so I will listen.
“Stuff White People Like”? HAHAHAHAHAH!!!!
is it bad that i’ve heard of 5/7 bands above?… No I’m white, it’s OK
[…] Indie music: “To a white person, being a fan of a band before they get popular is one of the most […]
I don’t identify with most of this article, but I suppose I am guilty of a few things mentioned. If it has a good beat and rhythm with a little edginess, I like it! Whether it’s Indie music or not (and it’s usually not). I’ll admit to loving disco music. But, I can be a bit of a music snob when it comes to something being too popular before I get into it. I.e. Milli Vanilli – Thank goodness I never got into them with the way that whole thing turned out! I also have an aversion to boy bands even though I find myself tapping my foot to one of their songs once in a while. Ew!
white people grow up with no sense of identity and are always looking for one
[…] a huge fan of weird awesome music that you’ve never heard of. Tonight at the Rock and Roll Hotel, Tycho is performing. He’s a graphic designer by day, […]
Ben,
Please share w/us your insights of the identity blacks grow up with.
ha this describes my life like perfectly.. except i usually forget the band only if they have been on the radio..
i used to listen to hip hop. tilln i realised white people r being brainwashed to worship these black false hiphop idols. fuck hip hop cultre and fuck any ne whos white and stupid enuff to buy into it.
The irony of your statement may be lost on you, as you worship a white devil.
Shouldn’t the “white people” you describe be called “hipsters” (as the mainstream tends to calls us) or at least “sane individuals”?
You come off as an uneducated man/woman when you assume that all white people listen to good music. There’s always room for tools among our ranks.
“white people” in this blog does not mean all white people in general. “White people” is usually refer to yuppies, liberals, and yes, hipsters.
Work on the street is that stereogum is nearly cool again but not pitchfork.
The equally popular (believe me) exception to this is liking stuff that is only on the top 40 list, and knowing every single lyric to every single song. But at the same time, saying the exact same music is brainless, insensitive, sexist, (insert adjective here) and how much it reminds them of nails on a chalkboard.*
*Note, a few months later, it is common for those who have said this about said song hear it somewhere, and then say it brings back ‘memories’.
Especially teenagers.
XP Mistake,
“But _then_ saying the exact same music is brainless, insensitive, sexist, (insert adjective here) and how much it reminds them of nails on a chalkboard _a week later_.*”
My bad.
Indie music is simply bands who have not yet been signed to a lable. Do your homework and realize that many bands out there today that everyone loves, started off as “indie”. That also includes other genres. Indie was not intended as a genre at first. Unfortunately, society has labeled it so.
i like Indie music cause well i like i dont like being the only person knowing about a band then i have to waste a crapload of time explaining it to someone wont listen dont get me wrong its funny
This is the one thing that bothers me the most, mother fucking tool bags that say they’re into “indie” music and don’t realize that it’s a fucking genre to begin with. There’s this hipster i know that listens to the worst music fucking imaginable because he thinks it makes him more unique to like “indie,” and when i criticized him about it he had the nerve to bash my music (i listen to grunge and other 80s-90s erra music,) but doesn’t fucking realize grunge was THE original staple of the (real) indie genre.
[…] prisoners, getting offended, and being the only white person around also like indie music, graduate school, modern furniture, Priuses, and microbrews, all of which are very, very white. If […]
[…] or nationality, which makes the list, the jokes and the people themselves even more hysterical. The indie music entry is particularly delightful as people, seriously, start doing the old piss-war about what […]
[…] +&! … stereogum.com […]
Love this post. I write an indie blog myself and I am white – so you got me :). Even though I see you are exaggerating a lot of the points most of them spot on. Although I wish you were right about more white people. Unfortunately we, indie die hard fans, are still in the minority. There are way too many Britney, Lady Gaga, Tinne Tempa, Jessie J, Justine Bieber followers around for my liking.
Why?
1. They don’t cut it as pros artiste due to lack of talents. They couldn’t get a recording deal with a major recording company so they go “independent”.
2. They can only play 3-chord songs and no – Strictly no guitar solos.
3. Lots of Open strings and power chords – No scales please.
4. Insert lots of “atmospheric” sounds to make up for lack of solos or riffs
5. No complicated rhythm – Just play straight ahead basic 4/4 rhythm with lots of crash cymbals.
6. ALl you need is youth – get a young hippy-looking pretty girl to stand next to the keyboards without actually playing anything.
you just described modern Pop. Except for in your first point, modern popular musicians “Get selected for a record deal due to no talent.” Just look at the band LMFAO. Nothing resembling talent.
you are a moron and obviously dont know a thing about music.
Indie doesnt sell as many records because their sounds are so complex and have such intricate instrumentals that your ear at first listen is not use to it. its an acquired taste, like coffee or sushi or anything else. in the beginning people like bland, simple food because that’s easy digestible. thats why Mcdonald is doing so well. but as they taste new things, and educate their palate they discover there is loads of complex, exciting food out there. its the same in training your ear to develop it.
that or you can keep listen to Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Britney and let’s not forget Nicki Minaj.
or read this http://indie-nation.org/2012/02/14/rebellion-lies-the-grammys-one-year-ago/
and start opening your mind. square.
[…] https://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/01/30/40-indie-music/ Share this:TwitterFacebookLike this:LikeBe the first to like this. 2012/09/11 by lisaclopezmd | Leave a comment […]
Wow. The things that hipsters will say to justify hating popular music. This is incredibly pretentious.
I don’t even know the way I stopped up right here, however I believed this post was once good. I don’t recognize who you might be but certainly you are going to a well-known blogger should you aren’t already. Cheers!
[…] https://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/01/30/40-indie-music/ Share this:TwitterFacebookLike this:LikeBe the first to like this. […]
I too indeed hate SUSHI. I ordered with a black coworker loves it and chose from the menu for my break the cherry taste test. I almost puked. I have written off this food. Rise of the Black Sushi Connoisseur!
Just wondering…if white people hate anything mainstream, then how exactly is it mainstream?
Write more, thats all I have to say. Literally, it seems as though you relied on the
video to make your point. You obviously know what youre talking
about, why throw away your intelligence on just posting videos
to your blog when you could be giving us something enlightening to read?
[…] with the indie artist Sufjan, who any music culture-aware person could tell you is considered a very “white” musician. Another recent example of colorism is highlighted in an article by Clutch Magazine Online, wherein […]
There are people other than white people.
[…] there is no reason to snub these amazing new artists just because they fall under the label of Indie. With 2012 coming to a close, lists of the top new/best indie bands of 2012 are coming out all over […]
thanks for letting me knw how to act, I was lost before…
Now my entire identity is completely destroyed.
White and black people in Germany stand united on one thing; both can’t even listen to Indie music: http://www.isitajoke.de/2013/01/18-why-youtube-sucks-in-germany.html
Stupid Cunt, music IS a competitive sport – for those who make a living from it. Indie bands DONT.
I hate LMFAO, but they ARE more talented than most indie bands. They make a music that is actually MARKETABLE, hence why signed to major.
Check out this indie band!
http://cozydanger.com
Spot on! Something about the snobiness of knowing obscure bands with marginal skills sets white people in fire. It is very strange. White girls especially. The more subterranean, the better. It would be far better to make up bands so that no one has ever heard of them.
What a bunch of Crap!
This is like saying Black people only like rap music. Or Red people only like chalanga music.
This sound like KIDS talking. And as usual, KIDS only see what is in their little world. Nothing seems to exist outside of it. Maybe if kid stop being so close minded (like they accuse the older generations of being), then maybe they would see that the is a large genre of music out there that Whites, Blacks and every other color enjoy.
Not at all true. Listening to Indie music is not about being superior to others. I listen primarily what people call Indie music. The indie music station I listen to has played Johnny Cash and the rolling stones sometimes. A lot of U2 — some hip hop and trip hop thrown in – electronica -rap and soul. I’ll hear James Brown one minute and the National the next – I love the variety. Maybe UR hanging out w/the wrong people?
It also gives up & coming artists an opportunity to be heard.
Not every “indie” music lover has a layered haircut and lives in Brooklyn. No one knows what I listen too and they don’t need to. I HATE Maroon 5, but then a friend of mine in a band did a cover from them and it sounded great! Music like beauty is so subjective and a matter of taste. I do know one thing. Music has saved my life.
BTW I’m black :=)
all right lets get something strait, I read your recent article about indie music and i would just like to point out that most white people would be into “main stream” things, as specially young kids. Don’t take me wrong I LOVE indie music but judging from what I see at school being a young white teen, I know that a lot of white kids like “main stream” music or things. That’s just my input.I’m not trying to be defensive of my race or anything its just I wanted to bring attention to it.
Maybe a post on sharing things on FB? I just shared this. just a thought.
Wonderful, what a website it is! This weblog presents valuable data to us, keep it up.
A million times yes for this entry! I can’t remember how many crappy “indie” bands my white friends have made me listen to.
Indie = Independent
It’s not a genre. It referes to the way it’s recorded. You get indie hip hop, indie rock, indie pop etc.
People going around saying they hate indie music have no idea what they’re talking about. How can you hate music that is recorded independently? What difference does it make to the music?
The reason indie became so popular is because the record labels were controlling what gets recorded and what doesn’t. This meant a lot of good artists never stood a chance. That’s why a lot of artists recorded their music independently or at independent record labels that don’t make you sign ridiculous contracts. Herewith, the birth of the term, indie music.
What the fuck white people think indie music is I really don’t know and I don’t care. I’m a white South African living in Cape Town next to the water, I ride a Vespa, and I have a graphic design degree that gives me legitimate reason to sit in a coffee shop with my Mac and my moleskin and draw/brainstorm. I know everything.
Hi there, just became alert to your blog through Google, and found that it is really informative.
I’m gonna watch out for brussels. I’ll appreciate if
you continue this in future. Many people will be benefited from
your writing. Cheers!
First off I want to say excellent blog! I had a quick question in which I’d like to ask if you do not mind. I was curious to know how you center yourself and clear your head prior to writing. I’ve had a difficult time
clearing my thoughts in getting my thoughts out there.
I do enjoy writing however it just seems like the first 10 to 15 minutes are usually lost just trying to figure out how
to begin. Any suggestions or hints? Kudos!
If you would like to grow your knowledge simply keep visiting this website and
be updated with the most recent information posted here.
Great post! I love stumbling upon indie music I haven’t heard of. If you’re looking for a free download, you should check out this and then the album : gethighonmusic.com
Ha weird I just came from the website posted in the comment before mine gethighonmusic.com, some of those songs are friggin great, just got the download……. have a good one
This blog was… how do you say it? Relevant!
! Finally I have found something which helped me.
Thanks!
Howdy! I simply want to give a huge thumbs up for the good data you will have here on this post.
I might be coming back to your weblog for more soon.
Howdy I am so excited I found your weblog, I really found you by
error, while I was browsing on Askjeeve for something else, Nonetheless I
am here now and would just like to say thanks for a remarkable post and a
all round interesting blog (I also love the theme/design), I
don’t have time to read it all at the minute but I have book-marked
it and also added in your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be back to read more, Please do keep up the great jo.
Rock on, great web blog. If you want more indie music to write about, check out http://www.phatleaks.com/.
[…] Stuff White People Like #41 Indie Music: https://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/01/30/40-indie-music/ […]
You must have news some information about your favorite star organized on one
space for you every day? 45 months New Drug Shows Promise for
Multiple MyelomaElotuzumab, an antibody used to target cancerous
plasma cells has been found and will no longer have a problem.
This momentous achievement marks a victory for America, for people who
need these types of brain teasers online in
order to control them by manipulating them into fighting one another.
This enables you to quickly and accurately evaluate the results of a postcard
campaign. While the average price of a home in
the united states hovers currently around $250,000, homes in Aurora currently
average around $230,000 and many can be found under this price point.
Many people put adverts on-line when they wish to sell their studio
apartments.
Hi, I do believe this is an excellent site. I stumbledupon
it 😉 I will revisit once again since I book marked it. Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and continue to guide others.
Heya i am for the primary time here. I found this board and I find It
truly helpful & it helped me out a lot. I am hoping to
provide something back and aid others such as you helped me.
naturally like your web site but you have to check the
spelling on quite a few of your posts. Many
of them are rife with spelling issues and I in finding
it very troublesome to inform the reality then
again I’ll certainly come again again.
Howdy would you mind letting me know which hosting company you’re using?
I’ve loaded your blog in 3 completely different internet browsers and I must say this blog loads a lot quicker then
most. Can you suggest a good web hosting provider at a honest price?
Thanks, I appreciate it!
As for my experience, me and all they other white people that I hanged out with did hate mainstream music, but we hated indie bands even more. We just liked older music. You know, from the 60s and 70s and such.
Like the Duchess of Cambridge, her sister Pippa and just about every stylish celebrity worth their salt, Katherine is a huge fan of nude shoes thanks to their chameleonlike ability to work with whatever you wearing.
Piumini Moncler Italia http://www.crsport.it/moncler.html
All of these are typically great fun to relax and play and
massively addictive as well. In the event you engaged in these free trial version games you’ll
be able to completely take pleasure in the importance
of games since you don’t have to spend money. The games are directly streamed onto your computer, tablet or console and the powerful servers used
by the cloud gaming provider will carry out all the rendering and processing necessary.
[…] stuff-white-people-liked Arcade Fires Reflektor. Bara plats 80 på […]
I want to to thank you for this good read!! I definitely
loved every bit of it. I have got you book marked to look at new stuff you post…
[…] or nationality, which makes the list, the jokes and the people themselves even more hysterical. The indie music entry is particularly delightful as people, seriously, start doing the old piss-war about what […]
Hello there! This is kind of off topic but I need some guidance from an
established blog. Is it hard to set up your own blog? I’m not very techincal but
I can figure things out pretty fast. I’m thinking about creating my
own but I’m not sure where to start. Do you have any points
or suggestions? Many thanks
If you want a little dirty talk or if you’d appreciate seeing a
lot of certain favorite body parts, etc. Several
times my eyes and thoughts wandered to things unrelated.
When you place it flat on the board, you need to check it occasionally if the paint underneath it is bubbling already.
[…] you have any type of questions pertaining to where and how you can use Simcity 5 osx download, you can call us at our web […]
It is the best time to make some plans for the future and it’s time to be
happy. I have read this post and if I could I desire to
suggest you some interesting things or advice. Maybe you can write next articles referring to this article.
I wish to read even more things about it!
I’m no longer certain where you are getting your information, however good topic.
I needs to spend some time finding out much more or figuring out more.
Thank you for wonderful information I used to be in search of this
information for my mission.
We’re just using two cards. You go turn it into scheme intterpreter reality.
So we put the six of spades on the bottom of the foot the firs time
the sdries was released for the iPad as well. We take our kids, children out to our land, show thnem how to
kick the football. All you’ve got too scheme interpreter do; we’ll embarrass ourselves.
Amongst those are games the ones in which you have the
option to pay for items tto make your character
better and directly affect game play. Even the satellites that orbited outside the Earth’s atmosphere
had a thermal blanket covering to keep them from freezinbg up, and
over heating in temperatures that ranged from -120 degrees to +
280 degrees; without which they would becomme just about
useless. The Mini Diablo is a tiny version of the antagonist in the
game Diablo, also by Blizzard. Developers are
not entirely clear to players like tthe monster large crowd gathered together,
still prefer thhe relative dispersion monster but the overall density, so developers have tried different ways on the PTR want to see what happens in
the end. Keeping it simple: No, there is currently no Star – Craqft filmm currently in production.
I drop a leave a response when I like a post on a website or I have something to valuable to contribute to
the discussion. Usually it’s a result of the fire displayed in the post I looked at.
And on this article #41 Indie Music | Stuff White People Like.
I was moved enough to drop a commenta response 😉 I actually do have 2 questions for you if you do not mind.
Could it be only me or do a few of these comments come across as if they are left by brain dead folks?
😛 And, if you are writing at additional sites, I
would like to follow everything new you have to post.
Would you make a list all of all your shared sites like your twitter feed,
Facebook page or linkedin profile?
[…] Here’s a (not random) excerpt from SWPL (#41: Indie Music): […]
Once everything is compatible once more, you can start creating from a positive, conscious database’ whatever that looks like to you.
Defraggler – is an program which is totally various from
the defragging alternative in Windows. This is due to some factors such as current, amplification, size of
the speakers and cables used.
Generally I don’t learn article on blogs, however I wish to say that
this write-up very pressured me to take a look at and do it!
Your writing taste has been amazed me. Thank you, quite great article.
Commonly, the homeowner does not even know the attic has been penetrated
or a nuisance animal has dug a hole under the outside fan unit.
It’s not very time consuming and can be completed in one or two hours at the most.
Consume a healthy diet of fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy products and protein.
I like the helpful information you provide in your articles.
I will bookmark your weblog and check again here frequently.
I am quite certain I’ll learn many new stuff right
here! Good luck for the next!
Have you ever considered about including a little bit more than just your articles?
I mean, what you say is important and all. However imagine if you added some great graphics or videos to give your posts more, “pop”!
Your content is excellent but with images and clips, this website could definitely be one of
the very best in its field. Terrific blog!
One of the areas of fashion that is a testament to developing these pieces would be
designer handbags. Italy continued to lead the fashionables in Europe for several more hundred
years going from being the choice of Queen Catherine de’ Medici to being fashioned after the paintings of Raphael or Michelangelo among other favorite Italian painters.
Unfortunately, the implications of supporting the faux designer handbag industry go far beyond lost business and hurt egos.
Howdy very nice web site!! Man .. Beautiful .. Wonderful ..
I will bookmark your website and take the feeds additionally?
I’m glad to search out numerous useful info right here in the publish, we need work out extra techniques on this
regard, thank you for sharing. . . . . .
[…] #41 Indie Music | Stuff White People Like – Jan 30, 2008 · If you want to understand white people, you need to understand indie music. As mentioned before, white people hate anything that’s “mainstream” and …… […]
Greetings from California! I’m bored at work so I decided to browse
your blog on my iphone during lunch break. I love the info
you provide here and can’t wait to take a look when I get home.
I’m shocked at how fast your blog loaded on my cell
phone .. I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyhow, amazing site!
Saved as a favorite, I lije your web site!
We all know by now, that when you make a habit of connecting with potential customers little and often,
on topics that they care about, you increase the likelihood of them doing business with you.
To add an exciting note to this aspect, popular public figures
and top level politicians are now harnessing the potential of this tool for
their specific purposes. There are different ways on getting invited to Pinterest.
Very shortly this web page will be famous amid all blog people,
due to it’s pleasant content
But Vick broke his fibula one day after Madden was released and missed the majority of a terrible 5-11 season. The team should
be lucky to have such an opponent in week 3, for a game they couldn’t win would present serious challenges down the road.
The label doesn’t matter so much as making sure you’re
putting positive vibes out into the world.
Today the center is a bustling place from morning until night.
Also you can see if the subject you picked doesn’t land your email into
the spam folder. Note that the white edge is part of the QR code, it is actually black patterns on a white box, so make
sure you get it all.
Wow, that’s what I was looking for, what a stuff!
present here at this weblog, thanks admin of
this website.
For the past 3 days I was really searching Bing in search of websites with any kind of information about where to buy foosball balls and found https://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/01/30/40-indie-music/. Thanks for
providing this useful entry. I really just want to say thanks – this
post was precisely what I wanted.
Hiya very nice website!! Guy .. Beautiful .. Amazing ..
I’ll bookmark your website and take the feeds additionally?
I am glad to find numerous helpful information here within the put up, we want develop more techniques in this regard, thanks for sharing.
. . . . .
[…] It was very much American indie-rock that although listenable, is just very much American indie-rock. […]
Thanks for your personal marvelous posting! I quite enjoyed reading
it, you may be a great author. I will be sure to bookmark
your blog and will eventually come back sometime
soon. I want to encourage continue your great writing, have a nice
holiday weekend!
[…] Satiric Post on Indie Music: https://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/01/30/40-indie-music/ […]
When some one searches for his vital thing, therefore he/she wishes
to be available that in detail, thus that thing is maintained over
here.
Gripping content Undoubtedly, setting up a simple expected page is not enough to convert all the visitors into your customers.
Website visitors favor a easier and ordered site that
does not have loads of pictures, video clips, as
well as other mess. This might seem like a time and money saving option, but in the long run, it can hurt your business.
I always spent my half an hour to read this website’s articles or reviews every day along with a cup of coffee.
Very nice article. I definitely love this website. Keep writing!
Aw, this was an exceptionally good post. Taking the time and
actual effort to create a very good article… but what can I say… I procrastinate a
lot and don’t seem to get nearly anything done.
excellent points altogether, you simply received a logo new reader.
What may you suggest in regards to your submit that you
made some days ago? Any certain?
Hi Everyone,This was how me and my BF become VAMPIRES i got a guy from the internet called Mr Marc who was a VAMPIRE so i told him that me and my boyfriend would love to become VAMPIRES so he asked me of my Name ,Country, Age ,State , address and asked me to pay for just to send me his blood which i did immediately and in the next 3 days i got the blood sample through the DHL which me and my boyfriend took in the blood into your body and in the next 30 minutes i turned into a VAMPIRE so if you interested in becoming a VAMPIRE kindly contact his Yahoo Mail(HenrySmith869@YAHOO.COM) he also has a friend who is a warewolf just incase you want to be one,, Yahoo Mail(HenrySmith869@YAHOO.COM)
A perfectly aligned leg would often show
no bow as you stand straight up. If it does, then this manual will help you in a safe and easy way.
Great information. Lucky me I recently found your website by accident (stumbleupon).
I have bookmarked it for later!
Are you suffering financially or do you need urgent cash to pay your bills? worry no more because, there is away you can earn money without stress.You can change your life in just 18hours. contact (MR Christopher) for a blank [ATM SMART CARD]today and be among the lucky ones who are benefiting from this cards. This PROGRAMMED blank ATM SMART card is capable of hacking into any ATM machine,anywhere in the world. I got to know about this BLANK ATM CARD when I was searching for a loan lender online about a month ago..It has really changed my life for good and now I can take care of my family. The least money I get in a day with this card is about $1500. Everyday i have enough money to take care of my family. Though is illegal, there is no risk of being caught , because it has been programmed in such a way that it is not traceable, and also it renders the CCTV useless when you are withdrawing money..For details on how to get a card today, email the hackers on christopherhackersworld88@gmail.com
I am white and I hate indie music.
is it necessary that we always imagine smthing while listening songs..traditional folk with love n romance.. do we also think other things depending on song..or simply njoe it..?
[…] #41 Indie Music […]
Nice site admin
I love foregathering useful information, this post has got me even more info!
Thank you foor writing this