For some reason I don’t quite yet understand the BBC is compiling a series of humorous and cliched genre archetypes in the form of short videos, and this one has to be — by far — the most hilarious. It’s also informative, Mark over at soindieithurts.com was able to derive a series of highly accurate conclusions from the video:
- if it sounds like The Libertines, it’s indie
- vintage, vintage, vintage
- be artsy, the more artsy you can appear the better, but not so artsy that you actually come of as intellectually inclined, that is a big no-no
- places to hang out; lots of great gigs, even cooler if you friends is in the band,
- absorb the mainstream enough to acknowledge and parody it, but never actually find it to be anything less than repugnant
- career choices, anything artsy and cultured will do, but aim for something specifically indie, so either Dj, fashion photography (though party photographer is becoming a hot new choice), or a musician/artist.
So that pretty much explains these guys. Also, I’ve always wondered who actually likes Razorlight.
But I think a sharp distinction needs to be drawn between, one the one hand, the self-professed ‘indie’ and, on the other, the ‘hipster‘. While superficially exhibiting some characteristics of the indie, the eschewing of everything mainstream and clamoring for the next big thing in self-produced, overrated, derivative rock/dance/pop, the hipster also has a fashion sense and personality all his/her own. Well, actually, it’s almost entirely modeled on this. See also, this.
The hipster, of course, has a blog, probably promotes and dabbles in dj/production. Oh crap.
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