How to Be Indie.

I don't really know where to start with "Indie." Similarly, I don't know when it began.

I remember talking to one of my dads morris men friends (peter) years ago and he asked me what music I listened to. That day I'd bought Alex Hannaford's book, "Pete Doherty: Last of the Rock Romantics" and Patrick Wolfs (then new) album "The Magic Position." I had no idea really what to say, and I told him that I listened to "indie." In that moment, I put Pete Doherty and Patrick Wolf in the same category.

Now, I understand Indie to mean "Independent" right? This Indie "Do it yourself" outlook covers music, film, literature, publishing, fashion - anything outside of society's "mainstream" industry.

Interestingly, I checked on what I'd bought that day and the book was published mainstream but the Patrick Wolf album I bought was with an independent record company, as were all of his albums to date but has since joined mainstream record label Mercury for his newest release this year.

Now, I don't see any problem with using insider record company's, publishers and fashion lables. - besides the extra price. It's really about what your getting, what the musics or film or book is like right? But now Wolf's joined Mercury, does this mean he is no longer indie, or do we look at his early records to decide that. - of course, he is not indie because we then assume its singer/songwriter rock stuff, but a sub-branch of indie: "idietronica."

Who is Indie? What is Indie?
People outside of the societys idea of "Chav" are automatically (by Chav's) labelled "Mosh Heads" "Emo's" or "Goths." In fact, any teen walking down the street in Oldham not wearing a Nike Tracksuit and a Henley's T-Shirt with a shaven head or an orange face is automatically dubbed Mosher.  A good friend of mine said to me the other day "I wish that chavs were more rife so that people could be indie in peace." If we were all chavs.. maybe people could be indie because they would actually be independent.

It is not possible for someone to be Indie. It is possible for one to enjoy great independent films such as Withnail & I, Slacker and City of God. It is possible to enjoy great independent music, such as Patrick Wolf, Belle & Sebastian, The New Porngraphers, - but now these are all signed up to independent record labels, can they be called Indie? ....because they don't have anything else in common. Remember when Kings of Leon were indie, but then too many chav's caught on, and now everyone thinks that they're boring because the pop radio shows over played them.

How can someone even have an "indie" sence of fashion. They might wear clothes from independent designers, but from what I gather, that's not indie fashion. Indie fashion - though ever changing, seems to me this week as chino esc pants, leather pump shoes that aren't actually shoes but look like shoes and faded vintage tint hue photo t-shirts black or white with a quilted jacket. Last month, it was all about the military boots, before that it was all about bringing converse back - not to forget the whole lace dress phase, and the tweed and head scarf thing. ---- All of which can be purchased at our favourite high street stores - and people would still see you and thing "that's indie."

My dads friend Peter that I mentioned at the start of this blog, said indie music was just a distorted guitar and some quite bad singing to give emotion.

I can't quite remember the point of this blog, I think I can't come to grips with labelling something Indie. Of course, all sub-cultures are stereotypical generalisations, but indie was never a sub-culture.. it was never supposed to be one because it was about independence. Indie is no longer indie but.. more, established, conventional, general - dare I say it "generic." Any kind of synonym of Mainstream.

Sadly. I don't think there is any other word to sub-categorise all those that already labelled themselves indie. Twee, folk, electro, rock... I don't know. I think Indie has now in fact changed definitions and it's just something I'll have to live with.

So. To conclude before I go and put on the smiths and watch Youth In Revolt or watch whatever's just started on Film 4... 10 things I hate about you, I will leave you with these tips on how to be Indie.

1. Don't call yourself Indie, or refer to anything as Indie, let the rest of the world do that, for to you, it is not a sub-culture, but a way of life. Once dubbed Indie, it becomes some kind of sick irony.
2. Read NME, pay close attention to the Under the Radar bands - because when they get big you will be the first to know. 
3. Don't walk past a charity shop without going in to find some cheap deals on totally vintage clothes - check the bookshelves for a penguin classic you haven't already read, or buy an anthology to pretend that you love poetry, but use it as a display in your room along with your other books. 
4. Smoke because its cool, or hate smoking because its like, totally against who you are - that doesn't apply when you're drunk though.
5. Keep up with the fashion, even if it means looking on a mainstream shop website like river island or topshop, because they produce what you want but won't find in a charity shop and everyone does it so its actually ok, even if its not indie. 
6. Turn off XFM, because that was so like, 2009 and put on Radio 1, BBC 6 Music or your Last FM account. - Spotify is cool too, make sure you keep up with the latest NME spotify playlists.
7. If you hear a good song on a TV program, shazam it straight away because other people might not have been listening out for the good music on skins.
8. YOU ARE A PHOTOGRAPHER - and you don't even need photoshop because online editors finally have the option to give something a vintage hue and make it like a polaroid. 
9. Post your photography on tumblr in hope that someone will re-blog it and it gets re-blogged so many time's you see it in the radar colum. 
10. Shave your hair, dye your hair, move your fringe - do anything to keep a good indie hair style. Lately, we've been seeing the one side shaved look; go with that. 
11. Try and go to Leeds fest even if the line ups bad. V isn't for true music fans. Hop Farm and Green Man are acceptable second choices.

God Bless, Indie Hypocrite and checked off all of these a least once in my life, L x

My favourite is the "I love Karen O" bit...