Indie-Schmindie

Last updated

"Indie-schmindie" is a term that entered common usage in the British and Irish press in the late 1990s and 2000s which referred to an interchangeable group of indifferent Indie rock bands.

Contents

Origin

The term was coined by an Edinburgh University student using the byline ‘Pjem’ in an article published in the Student newspaper on 4 May 1995.

In a column titled ‘Sounding Off’ about a summer job in a plastic bottle factory, Pjem wrote: “When I got home at night, the last thing I wanted to listen to was the then-usual mean diet of indie-schmindie, paltry guitar whining, Evening Session mediocrity or the latest mincing hype. I wanted to listen to Black Sabbath.”

Although the column did not name any ‘indie-schmindie’ bands, other articles of the time by Pjem regularly criticised Sleeper, Menswear and above all Ned’s Atomic Dustbin.

History

The term ‘Indie-schmindie’ became widely and frequently used in the British music press, including Melody Maker, Music Week and NME., [1] but also crossed into mass circulation newspapers, including The Times, Irish Times, [2] Irish Independent, [3] The Guardian, [4] [5] Scotsman, Independent and Observer.

It was often applied to the Glasgow bands Travis and Belle & Sebastian.

Although first used in a dismissive sense, the term was latterly applied more loosely to Indie rock bands, often to denote whimsicality, losing some of its original venom.

It was also adopted by some musicians [6] [7]

It was used as the name of more than 100 shows on the Phoenix FM community radio station between December 2019 and September 2022.

See Also

Shm-reduplication

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belle and Sebastian</span> Scottish indie pop band

Belle & Sebastian are a Scottish indie pop band formed in Glasgow in 1996. Led by Stuart Murdoch, the band has released twelve studio albums. They are often compared with acts such as the Smiths and Nick Drake. The name "Belle & Sebastian" comes from Belle et Sébastien, a 1965 children's book by French writer Cécile Aubry later adapted for television. Though consistently lauded by critics, Belle & Sebastian's "wistful pop" has enjoyed only limited commercial success.

Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent record labels, by the 1990s it became more widely associated with the music such bands produced.

<i>NME</i> British music journalism website and former magazine

New Musical Express (NME) is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a free publication, before becoming an online brand which includes its website and radio stations.

<i>Tigermilk</i> 1996 studio album by Belle and Sebastian

Tigermilk is the 1996 debut album from Scottish pop group Belle and Sebastian. Originally given a limited release by Electric Honey, the album was subsequently re-released in 1999 by Jeepster Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Lanegan</span> American singer (1964–2022)

Mark William Lanegan was an American singer, songwriter, and poet. First becoming prominent as the lead singer for the early grunge band Screaming Trees, he was also known as a member of Queens of the Stone Age and The Gutter Twins. He released 12 solo studio albums, as well as three collaboration albums with Isobel Campbell and two with Duke Garwood. He was known for his baritone voice, which was described as being "as scratchy as a three-day beard yet as supple and pliable as moccasin leather" and has been compared to Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, and Nick Cave.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teenage Fanclub</span> Scottish alternative rock band

Teenage Fanclub are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in Glasgow in 1989. The group were founded by Norman Blake, Raymond McGinley and Gerard Love, all of whom shared lead vocals and songwriting duties until Love's departure in 2018. As of 2023, the band's lineup consists of Blake, McGinley, Francis Macdonald, Dave McGowan and Euros Childs.

<i>If Youre Feeling Sinister</i> 1996 studio album by Belle and Sebastian

If You're Feeling Sinister is the second album by the Scottish indie pop band Belle and Sebastian. It was released in 1996 on Jeepster Records in the United Kingdom and in 1997 by Matador Records in the United States. It is often ranked among the best albums of the 1990s, including being ranked #14 in Pitchfork's list of Top 100 Albums of the 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Rourke</span> English musician (1964–2023)

Andrew Michael Rourke was an English musician best known as the bassist of the 1980s indie rock band the Smiths. Regarded as one of the greatest bassists of his generation, he was known for his melodic and funk inspired approach to bass playing.

<i>Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant</i> 2000 studio album by Belle & Sebastian

Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant is the fourth album from the Scottish group Belle & Sebastian released in 2000.

<i>The Boy with the Arab Strap</i> 1998 studio album by Belle & Sebastian

The Boy with the Arab Strap is the third studio album by Scottish indie pop band Belle & Sebastian, released in 1998 through Jeepster Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arctic Monkeys</span> English rock band

Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. The group consists of lead singer Alex Turner, drummer Matt Helders, guitarist Jamie Cook and bassist Nick O'Malley. Former bassist Andy Nicholson left the band in 2006 shortly after their debut album was released.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Legal Man</span> 2000 single by Belle and Sebastian

"Legal Man" is the debut single of Scottish indie pop band Belle and Sebastian. The track features Isobel Campbell, Sarah Martin, and Rozanne Suarez on vocals and Snow Patrol drummer Jonny Quinn on congas. The cover artwork—designed by Andrew Symington—features band members Stevie Jackson and Campbell along with Adrienne Payne and Suarez. Two B-sides were released with the single: "Judy Is a Dick Slap", an instrumental, and "Winter Wooskie", which was the last time bass player Stuart David sang lead vocals before departing the band in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isobel Campbell</span> Scottish singer

Isobel Campbell is a Scottish singer, songwriter and cellist. She rose to prominence at age nineteen as a member of the indie pop band Belle & Sebastian, but left the group to pursue a solo career, first as The Gentle Waves, and later under her own name. She later collaborated with singer Mark Lanegan on three albums. Her latest studio album, There Is No Other, was released in 2020.

<i>Storytelling</i> (Belle and Sebastian album) 2002 studio album / soundtrack by Belle and Sebastian

Storytelling is the fifth studio album by Scottish indie pop band Belle and Sebastian. It is the score to the Todd Solondz movie Storytelling. Belle and Sebastian experienced many problems in communication with Solondz while scoring the film, and as such only about six minutes of their music was actually used in the movie. The album contains five tracks that are recorded dialogues. The instrumental track "Fuck This Shit" uses the prosody of the title phrase in a number of different keys but never the words themselves. The album was the band's final release on Jeepster, as they went on to sign a deal with Rough Trade the following year.

Post-punk revival is a genre or movement of indie rock that emerged in the early 2000s as musicians started to play a stripped down and back-to-basics version of guitar rock inspired by the original sounds and aesthetics of post-punk, new wave and garage rock. It is closely associated with new wave revival, and garage rock revival, with the three often put under the umbrella genre of new rock revolution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor</span> 2005 single by Arctic Monkeys

"I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" is a song by English rock band Arctic Monkeys released on 17 October 2005, through Domino Recording Company. The song was the band's debut single and the first from their debut studio album, Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006). Written by frontman Alex Turner and produced by Jim Abbiss, "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" is a garage rock, indie rock, and post-punk song. It debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart on 23 October 2005, and remains one of the band's best-known songs in the UK.

<i>Lets Get Out of This Country</i> 2006 studio album by Camera Obscura

Let's Get Out of This Country is the third studio record by the Scottish indie pop band Camera Obscura, released by Elefant Records on 6 June 2006. It was recorded in Sweden with the producer Jari Haapalainen, and arranged by Björn Yttling of Peter Bjorn and John.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isobel Campbell discography</span>

Scottish musician and vocalist Isobel Campbell has released four solo studio albums, seven singles, a studio album in collaboration with Bill Wells and three with Mark Lanegan as well as several cameos on other artists' records. Isobel Campbell debuted in 1996 as cellist and sometime vocalist of indie pop band Belle & Sebastian. Despite limited commercial success, Belle & Sebastian have been hailed as the greatest Scottish band ever.

<i>Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance</i> 2015 studio album by Belle and Sebastian

Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance is the ninth studio album by Scottish indie pop band Belle and Sebastian, released on 19 January 2015. It was the first album by the group to be distributed by Matador Records worldwide. The album was recorded in Atlanta, Georgia, in 2014, and marked the first time the band worked with producer Ben H. Allen III. "The Party Line" was announced as the first single from the album on 29 October 2014, with its first airplay on BBC 6 Music.

<i>Slicing Up Eyeballs</i> International online pop culture magazine

Slicing Up Eyeballs is an American website dedicated to rock music, in particular 1980s college rock. Founded in 2009 by journalist and music critic Matt Sebastian, the site publishes content including news, interviews, and polls. It has been identified as one of the Internet's most reliable resources for 1980s rock music.

References

  1. ↑ Wells, Steven (29 December 1997). "Belle and Sebastian review, Manchester Town Hall, December 1997". NME reproduced on Jeepster Records, refers to audience as "indie schmindie sheep". Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  2. ↑ Boyd, Bryan (18 April 1997). "Indie Schmindie". The Irish Times. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  3. ↑ Power, Ed (17 April 2009). "The stage that rocked". The Irish Independent. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  4. ↑ Patterson, Syliva (20 August 2005). "Sibling revelry". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  5. ↑ Stride, Roy (12 December 2009). "The people who ruined the decade: Landfill indie's most shameless serial-dumper". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  6. ↑ Beaumont, Mark (4 June 2021). "James: 'We were so hopelessly indie-schmindie it made Belle and Sebastian look like Whitesnake". The Independent. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  7. ↑ Campbell, Isobel (15 February 2008). "Isobel Campbell reflects on the musical tradition of her home country - Scotland". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.