polkadot
I’m not exactly sure if twee can be used as an adjective towards music, but this is the best word I can think of. Many of these songs have a folky sound, and some stuff from the Ditty Bops, one of favorite hidden gems of the early-2000s “indie” scene, has an overall ragtime feel.
Guster is another band from the early 2000s indie scene that I have heard a decent bit about but haven’t fully delved into; what I do know is “Lightning Rod” is a beautiful song, so it’s on this playlist.
Yet another band from this era I keep speaking of is Camera Obscura. I know of them because of my mom. She had “I Don’t Do Crowds” downloaded on her iTunes, so I heard it throughout my adolescence and always loved the singer’s slight Scottish twang. I’m also a sucker for band names that are really hard to Google. “Lloyd, I’m Ready To Be Heartbroken” is certainly a special song, and has a great music video. There’s quite a few Camera Obscura songs on this playlist, and unfortunately this is about as much as I know well of the band. But perhaps soon I’ll deep dive them.
I tossed in a handful of one-off songs, from bands like The Shins, Belle and Sebastian, and Ingrid Michaelson. “The Way I Am” was another song on my mom’s iPod growing up, so this one remains deeply ingrained into the deepest parts of my childhood brain. Which also tends to trigger quite an emotional response. Arcade Fire is another band I have quite a few songs from in this list. I have been an avid fan of them for a couple years straight now. Funeral is a must-listen-to album that I’ve recommended to pretty much everyone I know, and it is also a definite hit from the 2000s indie rock scene.
I grew up listening to The Sundays pretty often as well, since my mom is a big fan. She’s got cool taste, doesn’t she? I wanted to add some of their music because I think they fit this vibe, though in a different era from most of the rest of the tracks. And I threw in a Zombies song as well to throw off the eras even more.
Feist and Sufjan Stevens are also featured. I think Illinois is the most beautiful album ever created. That’s a great one to check out if you haven’t heard it all the way through and are reading this right now, which leads me to believe you are interested in this genre of music. And even if not, you should give it a go. Michiganders rock.
