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What does it means to be indie?

© David Reid

Often you hear this term "indie" or "indie music" thrown about with little or no explanation as to what it means. At its most basic level it means independent from the major commercial record labels. But which ones are the major commercial labels? Sony, PGD (Polygram), EMD, formerly CEMA (EMI), WEA (Warner), Uni (MCA Universal), BMG (formerly RCA) make up some of the big labels, but then there are numerous smaller labels that are controlled or influenced by these commercial outfits. It is no longer the case that not being on a major label means you're independent.

To me, "indie music" is more then not being funded by the majors. A lot of what goes into being indie is the element of helping each other and the support of new music. Built into the nature of the independent music community is the concept of helping fellow artists and working together to reach common goals. There's a true support of new music and experimentation beyond merely the bottom line. Also, it's not about being alternative, for the most part, it's just bands making music. Unlike the commercial outfits, it takes more then a spot on MTV to get your music heard. It requires desire, effort, time and money spent out of the label owners pocket. Still, this ensures very little, and unlike commercial labels, profit is not the only goal. For some in the independent community, it's merely a way to help out their local scene. For others, the dream of making it to the top on their own is a goal waiting to be fulfilled. Don't get me wrong, we all are influenced by the all mighty dollar, but for some it's not the only motivation.

This gets back to helping each other. Nancy from Delinquent Records has a "direct & personal one-on-one relationship with each of the bands and artists she represents." This is something else you don't often hear about the major labels. So, as usual, I'll point you in the direction of something new or different. Why not check out a few small independent labels on the Internet like Deliquent Records, Urinine Records, and No-Fi Records.

Each brings you a wide range of music including punk (Urinine), drone/noise/psych-oriented (No-Fi) and A.O.R., Progressive Rock, Commercial Metal, Melodic Hard Rock, and International Street-Glam (Delinquent). So you can see the independent music community includes a wide range of music genres that are worthy of your attention. So take a minute and visit some small labels because "indie music" is about trying something new.

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