Indie Report!

[Ibby]

Daaaaaamn.
Ive been on a SERIOUS indie kick the past week or so... and I'm gonna share my findings with you.
I spent a christmas iTunes $25 gift card on 25 random indie tracks... then followed up by spending my parents money (without asking, might I add... but they'll probably make me pay them back when they get the bill! (have i ever mentioned I hate smilies?))

Anyway, here's what you should go check out.
"Artist - Album; good track or two", followed by short review

ee - Ramadan; "One More Year" and "Ramadan"
Very slow, chilled-out indie rock. Not emo, but a distant cousin maybe. Sounds kind of like a Post-Rock band trying to cover a slower Eagles song. Good music to rest too, good rainy-day music.

(unnamed) - The Good, The Bad, and The Queen; "The Good, The Bad, and the Queen"
An unnamed collaboration band (usually referred to by the name of their debut album) combining Daman Albarn of Blur/Gorillaz with Paul Simonon of The Clash, Simon Tong of The Verve and Tony Allen of Fela Kuti, and you can hear it. Sounds like The Gorillaz if they weren't halfway-joking, and had an attitude.

Defiance, Ohio - The Great Depression; "The New World Order"
Available for free download on the bands website, this super-political folk-punk album is one of the best - and most original - musical protests I've heard from this generation. Sounds like what the Sex Pistols would have sounded like with a girl singer, no electricity, and a banjo player.

White Light Riot - Atomism; "In A Shotgun Whirlwind"
One part pop-punk, one part indie-hardcore, two parts classic rock, and a pinch of metal, and you have the basic recipe for White Light Riot. Fast and angry, but nothing HUGELY original.

Jeremy Fisher - Goodbye Blue Monday; "Scar That Never Heals", "Joline", and "Cigarette"
After his $60 video for "Cigarette" got over 2,000,000 views on Youtube, the record companies quickly realized this canadian street busker's potential. His third debut album (the first two don't count... don't ask me why) is a stream of incredibly catchy, fun, happy pop-folk-rock songs that variously channel equal parts tom petty, simon&garfunkel, elliott smith, cat stevens, and bob dylan, while still feeling fresh and different. All three aforementioned songs are on Youtube, with "Scar That Never Heals", despite its rather melodramatic title, being my favorite and, I think, the catchiest.