Chris Trottier on Nostr: Yeah, but this is the problem with musical taxonomy—and really any situation where ...

Yeah, but this is the problem with musical taxonomy—and really any situation where art has a label. Something means one thing at one time, and then because the current moves the meaning gets lost.

Indie *used* to refer to a status. Mainly, who put out the music. There was indie rock, indie pop, indie jazz, even indie metal. So long as you weren't with the Big Six (now Big Three), you were indie.

But of course, many of the Indies got bought, and now we have major label "indie" music.

And I kind of think the world is worse now that "indie" is has been designated a sound because it's much more functional as a way of urging people to support independent artists.

However, with time, I've also come to realize that taxonomic categories often hinder as much as they help.

I like punk. When I was a teenager, I listened to bands simply because they were punk. And that was how I ended up listening to atrocious punk. I could have spent time listening to great funk or disco or blues. But I was fully invested in my identity as a punk, so I suffered through all the awful punk.

Nowadays, I just want music made by people who care about it. Which is not necessarily easy to find.