Top 10 indie songs of the 90s

OK folks, what's your list of favorites? Here's my stab.

10 is tough to narrow down though. Tried to keep it to 10 different bands. Maybe some folks who have more knowledge of earlier 90s indie could chime in.

1) Belle & Sebastian - Get Me Away From Here, I'm Dying
2) Magnetic Fields - Take Ecstacy With Me
3) Neutral Milk Hotel - Holland 1945
4) Archers of Loaf - Web in Front
5) Cat Power - Cross Bones Style
6) Bonnie "Prince" Billy - A Minor Place
7) Pernice Brothers - Clear Spot
8) Flaming Lips - Waiting for Superman
9) Yo La Tengo - Sugarcube
10) Aislers Set - The Red Door

You need some Pavement on that list…Gold Soundz, perhaps…

Big Dipper from BTS would be good, too.

that's a pretty good list to start from. i'd give flaming lips the boot since that was released on warner bros. here's 12 i came up with, off the hop of my head, sticking with one per artist.

shoot the singer – pavement
harnessed in slums – archers of loaf
motor away – gbv
emma blowgun's last stand – beulah
holland, 1945 – neutral milk hotel
the red door – the aislers set (great call there)
car – built to spill
she's evil – guv'ner
strange powers – magnetic fields
the opera house – olivia tremor control
how to rent a room – silver jews
i wanna be your joey ramone – sleater-kinney

oh and it was silly of me not to include "suki" by unrest on there.

Not really in order (but close). And probably not all 100% indie either. And I'm sure I'll remember one that I forgot.

Suede - Animal Nitrate
Palace Brothers - You Will Miss Me When I Burn
PJ Harvey - O Stella
Luna - 23 Seconds in Brussells
Pavement - Elevate Me Later
Rocket from the Crypt - On a Rope
Super Furry Animals - The Man Don't Give a Fuck
Urge Overkill - The Kids are Insane
Smashing Pumpkins - Siva
Stereolab - Metronomic Underground

What's your definition of indie?

archers of loaf- web in front
neutral milk hotel- everything is
pavement- cut your hair
lois- strumpet
yo la tengo- tom courtenay
hum- stars
fugazi- bed for the scraping
teenage fanclub- bandwagonesque
sebadoh- magnet's coil
monorchid-distortion

I'm getting a sense of what types of bands here, so here goes:

1) The Pixies – Planet of Sound (the first version off the 4AD EP)
2) Heatmiser – Plainclothes Man
3) PJ Harvey – Rub Til It Bleeds
4) Red House Painters – Mistress (single edit, which I have only seen once)
5) Belle and Sebastian – Sleep the Clock Around
6) Shellac – Doris
7) Air Miami – Airplane Rider
8) Jawbreaker – Do You Still Hate Me?
9) The Auteurs – Buddha
10) Yo La Tengo – Sudden Organ

Originally posted by bearman:
4) Red House Painters – Mistress (single edit, which I have only seen once)

i think we talked about this on a thread a while back, but is this edit not on the "retrospective" collection (either the piano one or the shoegazey one)?

I've never been able to tell the difference between the Mistress radio edit from the promo single, and the original.

Or are you talking about the Piano version? Which is a whole different take and not an edit…

I also love the radio session version from Retrospective disc 2.

The edit has a whole different intro (not a fade-in), and the mix isn't as buried in distortion. I guess I much prefer that version since it was the first I had heard. It sounds more haunting and evil than the LP version.

I found it on one of those limited college rock music comps called Hits Postmodern Syndrome, but have never seen it anywhere else (and not on the Retrospective comp).

Originally posted by bearman:
The edit has a whole different intro (not a fade-in), and the mix isn't as buried in distortion. I guess I much prefer that version since it was the first I had heard. It sounds more haunting and evil than the LP version.

I found it on one of those limited college rock music comps called Hits Postmodern Syndrome, but have never seen it anywhere else (and not on the Retrospective comp).

hmmm, i'll have to see if that is on my "mistress" promo single i found a long time ago.

in no particular order (and off the top of my head)-

small factory- last time that we talked
pavement- here
guided by voices- official ironman rally song
lush- desire lines
red house painters- drop
blur- the universal
built to spill- carry the zero
luna- 23 minutes in brussels
flaming lips- turn it on
mercury rev- car wash hair

Uncle Tupelo-New Madrid
Old 97's-The Other Shoe
Backsliders-My Baby's Gone
Whiskeytown-Excuse Me While I Break My Own Heart Tonight


That be my list so far.

archers of loaf - web in front
pavement - summer babe
sammy -majik man
small - toastmaster
small factory - the bright side
superchunk - slack motherfucker
blues explosion - bellbottoms
mercury rev - carwash hair
grifters - banjo
rugburns - dick's automotive

Originally posted by muke:
superchunk - slack motherfucker

that's 80s, right? i'd have to go with the acoustic version of "detroit has a skyline too" for superchunk

In no particular order, 10 off the top of me head:
(not indie label but) My Bloody Valentine "Soon"
Low "Shame"
Wesley Willis "Rock and Roll McDonalds"
Nirvana "Dive"
Jesus Lizard "Gladiator"
Fugazi "Repeater"
Shudder to Think "Vacation Brain"
B-Rock and the Bizz "My Baby Daddy"
Sunny Day Real Estate "In Circles"
and goddammit I know it came out in '89 but I'm sneaking in "Just to See You Smile" by Spacemen 3

Originally posted by TheREALHunter:
Sunny Day Real Estate "In Circles"

over "seven"?! blasphemer!!!

Originally posted by HoyaSaxa08:

Originally posted by TheREALHunter:
Sunny Day Real Estate "In Circles"

over "seven"?! blasphemer!!!

Personally, as a whole I would pick "Return of the Frog Queen" over "Diary" and "The Rising Tide" over both of them, now how's THAT for some goddamn blasphemy? haha

Originally posted by TheREALHunter:
Personally, as a whole I would pick "Return of the Frog Queen" over "Diary" and "The Rising Tide" over both of them, now how's THAT for some goddamn blasphemy? haha

hey, i definitely dig enigk's prog stuff, too; although i'd take the fire theft over both of those