Not so long ago the term “indie” began to be actively used. The meaning of this word, in general, is not new. It is just that until recently it was not known to the majority of the population of our country.
Maybe someone still does not know what indie is and what it is eaten with? It’s simple, the term “indie” is associated with the word independent . Independent film, literature, music – all of this can be called with one word – indie. This is a whole system with its own musical groups, press, with its own small labels.
Indie combines a number of musical styles (indie-rock, post-rock, goth-rock, dark folk, emo, experimental electronics, industrial, alternative hip-hop, etc.). There is an indie answer to almost every mainstream trend. Proponents of this trend preach creative freedom, independence from producers and major labels. For them the material side is not important, their idea can be roughly expressed as “art for art’s sake”.
It all sounds very, very appealing, but in my opinion, somewhat utopian. You can’t go very far on sheer enthusiasm. And the musicians themselves, probably, understand it well, because their albums are published and sold. Such bands as Franz Ferdinand, Modest Mouse, Death Cab for Cutie and many others, having signed contracts with famous labels, instantly gained tremendous popularity. And consequently, the concept of “indie” gradually turned into a kind of brand, which is now also making money.
As long as the creativity of a particular group attracts little attention to itself, it is quite easy for it to maintain its independence. Play in your garage, create at your own pleasure and do not report to anyone. But in our country, too, the independent music movement has confidently reached the masses.
As the popularity of the band grows, the number of offers from big corporations and famous labels increases, and the music transforms from independent to market music. All this does not mean the degeneration of indie culture, though. Just the original meaning is lost, the borders between indie and the mainstream are erased, in contrast to which, in fact, indie was created. If we talk about creativity, it often does not suffer from the fact that it gets recognition from the public, even on the contrary. The main task of the musicians is to keep their ideals, their philosophy. For us, ordinary listeners, it only remains to enjoy their musical creations.