Annoying *musical* cliches in songs that must be stamped out NOW: Part One -- Indie

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Use this thread to point out all the annoying things that indie musicians do nowadays that must be purged for the good of humanity

― Lord Custos Epsilon (Lord Custos Epsilon), Monday, 12 May 2003 19:51 (twenty-three years ago)

"Way to not have a bassist!" (c) ILM.

― Ally (mlescaut), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:00 (twenty-three years ago)

It's not "annoying," but I think we can retire the "Be My Baby" drum intro already.

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:01 (twenty-three years ago)

adding classical instrumentation (violins, flutes, etc) for "texture" or "mood" -- it usually sounds manipulative and forced in an indie-rock setting

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:12 (twenty-three years ago)

Pretending your Lou Reed. Even Courtney Taylor-Taylor must stop this.

― Mr Noodles (Mr Noodles), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:14 (twenty-three years ago)

Ironically using current Ebonic slang in your lyrics

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:17 (twenty-three years ago)

covering rap/r&b songs

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:20 (twenty-three years ago)

Being Tim Wheeler

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:22 (twenty-three years ago)

Ironically using ebow.

― Mr Noodles (Mr Noodles), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:35 (twenty-three years ago)

The Tim Burgess falsetto.

― William Bloody Swygart (mrswygart), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:39 (twenty-three years ago)

The entire "we sound like we don't care" style of indie must be eliminated ASAP.

And a note, playing an acoustic, or having shitty recording quality (calling it Lo-fi makes it sound better!) does not make the music automatically more emotional.

― David Allen, Monday, 12 May 2003 21:04 (twenty-three years ago)

Chords. I'm fucking sick of chords.

Also, as referenced in That One Great Freaky Trigger Piece About Local Bands From Ages Ago, leaning a guitar against an amp to create a 'storm' of 'intense' feedback at the end of a song/set.

― Ferg (Ferg), Monday, 12 May 2003 21:13 (twenty-three years ago)

Nirvana covers.

― William Bloody Swygart (mrswygart), Monday, 12 May 2003 21:14 (twenty-three years ago)

Deliberately sucking as a blatant show of contempt for the audience, unless you can find a really interesting way to do it.

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 12 May 2003 21:16 (twenty-three years ago)

Chords. I'm fucking sick of chords.

so you just want one melodic instrument playing one or two notes at once, with perhaps a drummer, and nothing else then? would that satisfy you? do you not understand what a chord is?

how does one ironically use an ebow?

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Monday, 12 May 2003 23:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Deliberately sucking as a blatant show of contempt for the audience, unless you can find a really interesting way to do it.

see that wretched Pavement DVD for ultimate proof of this

― M Matos (M Matos), Monday, 12 May 2003 23:05 (twenty-three years ago)

by pretending your in Led Zepplin?

No really it just seemed like the thing to say after the ebonics post.

― Mr Noodles (Mr Noodles), Monday, 12 May 2003 23:05 (twenty-three years ago)

i don't know that i've ever actually seen an "indie" band use an ebow, although i'm sure some must have done.

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Monday, 12 May 2003 23:06 (twenty-three years ago)

being ironic in general seems to be the indie problem in general, at least to me.

the inverse of this, lacking any apparent self-awareness, is the problem of majors, surely.

for specific musical things - kill the bad drumming. I'm here to state for the record that the best thing 90% of indie bands can do to immediately improve their sound tenfold is to get at least a decent drummer who can keep steady time, instead of just Larry from the bookstore who has a kit and a garage, who seems to be setting the bar

― Millar (Millar), Monday, 12 May 2003 23:12 (twenty-three years ago)

ESOJ: Well, yeah, basically. Maybe two instruments from time to time.

(I meant guitar chords, really. I'm just bitter because I've reached a bit of a plateau with the whole guitar-playing thing.)

― Ferg (Ferg), Monday, 12 May 2003 23:16 (twenty-three years ago)

LOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoftLOUDsoft

― brg30 (brg30), Monday, 12 May 2003 23:32 (twenty-three years ago)

Every single thing that Pussy Galore's Exile on Main Street does.

― Nate Patrin (Nate Patrin), Monday, 12 May 2003 23:35 (twenty-three years ago)

(I meant guitar chords, really. I'm just bitter because I've reached a bit of a plateau with the whole guitar-playing thing.)

to be honest I knew what you meant really. It's just one more of these indie-as-a-perjorative-term threads and I'm going to throw the biggest tantrum in the world

I'm not a huge fan of using guitar chords myself - much prefer arpeggios and suchlike. it's the Vini Reilly influence shining through..

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Monday, 12 May 2003 23:44 (twenty-three years ago)

Every single thing that Pussy Galore's Exile on Main Street does

Nate you realize you have now made this record an imperative buy for me, yes?

― Millar (Millar), Monday, 12 May 2003 23:56 (twenty-three years ago)

oops

― Nate Patrin (Nate Patrin), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 00:32 (twenty-three years ago)

"Way to not have a bassist!" (c) ILM.

i shall never show my face around here again.

― di smith (lucylurex), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 00:35 (twenty-three years ago)

Root 5th chords played up high on the bass. Actually, I kind of like this sound. It has been used a hell of a lot though.

― William R Henderson (Cabin Essence), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 00:44 (twenty-three years ago)

rhyming lyrics, verse chorus verse, using "yeah!" as a lyric
canned-sounding banter [so many cliches]
scared to use tapes and programmed bits [like they do on their album] cos they think it's not honest, but instead trying to emulate that stuff with their instruments and sounding dinky or otherwise less than ideal
afraid to dabble with rapping, and african/latin rhythms
too snooty to interact onstage with the opening act - if you respect each other, and you're on stage together, dammit at least do a sloppy cover together as an encore
not adapting to the audience - if this crowd responds to the funkier song, or the ballad, why not give them a little more of that?
selling cds from your indy labelmates at your show [i've never understood why nobody does this]

― mig, Tuesday, 13 May 2003 01:46 (twenty-three years ago)

Okay, I'm a drummer but somehow I must have missed this whole 'Be My Baby' intro. I'm sure I would say "ah, yes" if I heard it...I know there was a thread on it, but what's the easiest to download example?

― Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 02:12 (twenty-three years ago)

Acoustic guitar strumming is unfuckwithable.
Haters die.

― skwurl plise (Squirrel_Police), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 02:18 (twenty-three years ago)

Kill emo
and electronic tinkering
and white belts

― dickweed, Tuesday, 13 May 2003 03:25 (twenty-three years ago)

skwurl you should make an acoustic guitar & vocals battle track.

― Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 03:27 (twenty-three years ago)

Jordan:
Be my baby =


snare: - - - - - - X -
 kick: X - - X X - - -
count: 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +

(warning: this could be an html disaster)

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 03:48 (twenty-three years ago)

almost!

Jordan:
Be my baby =
snare: - - - - - - X - kick : X - - X X - - - count: 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 03:49 (twenty-three years ago)

Ah, yes. Thanks Paul.

― Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 03:52 (twenty-three years ago)

and electronic tinkering

ho ho ho aren't you a funny motherfucker

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 04:13 (twenty-three years ago)

4/4 strumming. Any indie song that goes 'chung chung chung chung chung chung chung chung...' (cf Coldplay - Yellow, Doves - Cedar Room) really gets my back up. I mean, could you think of NOTHING else to do there?!

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 10:19 (twenty-three years ago)

Ah but Matt it's a continuum innit because otherwise you might end up with self-conscious tempo changes.

― Tico Tico (Tico Tico), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 10:21 (twenty-three years ago)

self-conscious preciousness.

"oooo, ain't you all twee n' shit? I bet that makes that skinny girl in barrettes that you were trying to hit on earlier moist in her Hello Kitty panties for you, dunnit?"

As was commented in the "Our Band May..." book, Calvin Johnson will one day pay for what he unleashed upon the world.

― Kingfish (Kingfish), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 14:29 (twenty-three years ago)

i don't know that i've ever actually seen an "indie" band use an ebow, although i'm sure some must have done.

I saw Seam do this on "Sweet Pea" about 10 years ago (Bundy K. Brown playing 2nd guitar).

― gygax! (gygax!), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 15:30 (twenty-three years ago)

Corduroy. Corduroy must go.

See also paedo-style lank side partings.

― Jacob (Jacob), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 15:43 (twenty-three years ago)

Singer not hitting the notes properly

Lou Reed-influenced "speak singing"

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 18:58 (twenty-three years ago)

if you think Corduroy is an indie thing, you're way out of your depth honey

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 20:41 (twenty-three years ago)

Anti-indie is one thing, anti side-partings is just Wrong, lank or no.

― Ferg (Ferg), Tuesday, 13 May 2003 21:46 (twenty-three years ago)

one year passes...

just playing minor chords and thinking they're jesus

― david cunningham, Saturday, 4 September 2004 18:16 (twenty-one years ago)

this thread is wrong in so many ways...

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Saturday, 4 September 2004 22:00 (twenty-one years ago)

pretending you're noel gallagher. even harbouring any ambition to be/admiration towards noel gallagher or his music that couldn't shine through more if you were widdling away on a union jack guitar and posing together in a terribly boshy look-at-us-we're-proper-hard dadrock-band fashion. I recognise this is a more UK-centic "indie" matter but an vile pox all the same.
(Or more specifically, local UK indie bands...)

Also (adding on from the feedback-at-end-of-set point) - big drum-out at the set's end in a Godspeed stylee. Saw some lot on a jaunt to london this summer in particular and wanted to hurl chairs & tables at them it was so tedious. Often used in conjunction with The Intense Storm Of Feedback, but bypassing the bit marked 'ideas'.

Lead singers twatting a tamborine in a self-consciously cool manner throughout gigs, regardless of the fact you NEVER BLOODY HEAR IT ONCE in the mix all night.

Bunging in a really shitty feeble token electronic/keyboard whoop/noise in order to make their 'sound' more interesting/appear to have new depths. The Strokes' "12:51" and that new Thrills one for starters (hey kids! we just heard a Grandaddy b-side! wanna hear what i can play on a keyboard with one finger! argh..)

Songs that have all the bleedin guitars (bass included) chug along with the same note/chord (^^Matt's point essentially I guess. worth emphasising though. Doves & co are far from the only offenders too, but I don't want to just pick on the Strokes again cos there's piles of bands that seem to do this at the minute..)

Hmmi've gone off on one now... Ohh, for the olden days when the worst cliche was "We make music for ourselves and if anyone else likes it it's a bonus"...

― pete badmusik (pete badmusik), Sunday, 5 September 2004 01:36 (twenty-one years ago)

(Pete, please tell me whether "an vile pox" was a typo or if you meant to say "an.")

^OTM.

― milaca, Sunday, 5 September 2004 02:50 (twenty-one years ago)

-eating food while performing (take a seat)
-incorporating a mock gunner and fixing torso-mounted shot-mimic blast packs to performers, fake dying (see: played out)
-situating a referee, penalty box for wack moves (detest that shit)
-rival bands: playing at opposite ends of room simultaneously, compromising their sets to react to one another (tiresome)
-distributing racquet balls to the audience, encouraging instant-composition
-improvising (please)

― rssgnld's, Sunday, 5 September 2004 03:05 (twenty-one years ago)

Low-fi cassette-recorded "found sounds" such as you'd find in between the *real* songs on yer average Trumans Water or Thinking Fellers LP.

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Sunday, 5 September 2004 03:16 (twenty-one years ago)

yeah will all he indie bands stop ripping off truman's water and thinking fellers already?

― artdamages (artdamages), Sunday, 5 September 2004 03:18 (twenty-one years ago)

mixing, mastering. refining an album in general.

― rssgnld's, Sunday, 5 September 2004 03:58 (twenty-one years ago)

prompting the response "is there something wrong with my stereo" or, "is it supposed to do that?" by derailing/decaying the piece using effects that abrubtly cut the frequencies off or submerge them momentarily. making the sound/song skip and stutter, break down, mimicking a malfunction of the playback mechanism. see: mego (windbreakers)

― rssgnld's, Sunday, 5 September 2004 04:15 (twenty-one years ago)

proclaiming your spectrum of musical taste to include pretty much everything but (good) country and rap music.

― rss, Sunday, 5 September 2004 04:18 (twenty-one years ago)

including an alternate take or fun sketch of an existing song on the album to re-instate a feeling.

― rssl, Sunday, 5 September 2004 04:21 (twenty-one years ago)

playing bars after 10 pm (in america)
not playing in public malls

― rssl, Sunday, 5 September 2004 04:36 (twenty-one years ago)

Post-Rockin Major Sevenths.

The Baggy/Indie-Dance Drumbeat, still in use, astonishingly.

The Shellac/Albini/Weston, HI WE'RE IN A BIG LIVE ROOM sound can be tiring, especially when applied to the wrong sort of band like Low.

― mzui, Sunday, 5 September 2004 09:14 (twenty-one years ago)

whoever said indie bands should not be afraid to use rapping, no, i think should be afraid. very afraid. stay scared please.

― splooge (thesplooge), Sunday, 5 September 2004 09:17 (twenty-one years ago)

Lead singers twatting a tamborine in a self-consciously cool manner throughout gigs, regardless of the fact you NEVER BLOODY HEAR IT ONCE in the mix all night.

Some people just don't know what to do with their hands onstage, you know - this is also why so many singers play the guitar despite having little or no affinity for the instrument itself.

I blame Nigel Goldrich (don't really think the Strokes song counts, tho, or at least it's a very atypical example.)

― Daniel_Rf (Daniel_Rf), Sunday, 5 September 2004 10:16 (twenty-one years ago)

Songs that have all the bleedin guitars (bass included) chug along with the same note/chord

Surely if it's the same chord then it's krautrockist and thus excellent

― Fergal (Ferg), Sunday, 5 September 2004 14:41 (twenty-one years ago)

violins violins violins violins violins violins POORLY ENGINEERED VIOLINS

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 5 September 2004 15:16 (twenty-one years ago)

WHOA! THEY JUST PLAYED A NOISY LOUD "HEAVY" GUITAR PASSAGE AND NOW THEY'RE PLAYING A SOFT NERVOUSLY ARPEGGIATED CLEAN GUITAR PASSAGE WITHOUT ANY SEMBLANCE OF AN ACTUAL MUSICAL TRANSITION BETWEEN THE TWO! DIDN'T SEE THAT ONE COMING!

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 5 September 2004 15:21 (twenty-one years ago)

WOW! A DISSONANT, ATONAL ENVIRONMENT OVER REPETITIVE DRUM MACHINE BREAKBEATS! HOW SEAMLESSLY THEY BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN BECK AND SLINT! I LOVE THIS SONG~!

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 5 September 2004 15:26 (twenty-one years ago)

I THINK I CAN HEAR GUITARS BEHIND THE CLUMSY DRUMS AND LOW-MIXED VOCALS

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 5 September 2004 15:33 (twenty-one years ago)

WITH ENOUGH BASS EQ EVEN BEN GIBBARD CAN SOUND LIKE BARRY WHITE, RIGHT?!

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 5 September 2004 15:34 (twenty-one years ago)

ALL RIGHT ROLAND "CHEESE ORGAN" SOUNDS LET'S GO

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 5 September 2004 15:35 (twenty-one years ago)

I need to stop listening to 88.5 FM

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 5 September 2004 15:35 (twenty-one years ago)

-resourceful, efficient, industrial rock duos who impressively showcase their talent, sometimes mumbling or wailing into a haphazardly-mounted, distorted microphone.
-repetitive strumming of a supreme chord, being content with it
-channeling "the blues" through a placed-down, satisfyingly-feedbacking guitar with grimy tone, in harmony with the rest of the song. sometimes nudging it to maintain the effect. wailing vocals atop it with feeling
-chunky disco hi-hat action

― rssgnld's, Sunday, 5 September 2004 17:23 (twenty-one years ago)

reverb (serious)

― rssgnld's, Sunday, 5 September 2004 17:29 (twenty-one years ago)

good reverb > dry sound > indie reverb

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 5 September 2004 17:33 (twenty-one years ago)

alright.

― rssl, Sunday, 5 September 2004 17:35 (twenty-one years ago)

elaborate packaging a la godspeed et al. when the quality of packaging exceeds that of the music. gatefold sleeves

― rssl, Sunday, 5 September 2004 17:38 (twenty-one years ago)

using pedal steel to suggest vast, open areas.

― employee#8, Sunday, 5 September 2004 17:46 (twenty-one years ago)

I was about to say reverb, too. Morning Jackasses, that means you.

― Pleasant Plains (Pleasant Plains), Sunday, 5 September 2004 17:46 (twenty-one years ago)

Being shit and lame.

― Wooden (Wooden), Sunday, 5 September 2004 19:04 (twenty-one years ago)

good reverb > dry sound > indie reverb > pearl jam reverb

― MATH BLASTER MYSTERY! (ex machina), Monday, 6 September 2004 19:22 (twenty-one years ago)

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