How to Dip Your Toes Into the Grimy World of 'Indie Sleaze'

[Celerity]

(I added a lot of extra material/media)

It's a term that keeps popping up, but what is it?

https://www.thrillist.com/entertainment/nation/indie-sleaze-explained



There's something in the air. It's something that seems more innocent but also grimy. It's the Wolf Parade needle drop in that episode of The Dropout. It's the slow creep of American Apparel onesies back into wardrobes. It's the return of "indie sleaze." "Indie sleaze" is a term that's been popping up in the internet lexicon recently. It's been defined for Gen Z on TikTok and is the subject of a popular Instagram account. Spotify has published an "indie sleaze" playlist. In Allison P. Davis' much-shared New York Magazine piece about how we're headed toward a "vibe shift," she wrote that trend forecaster Sean Monahan "thinks the new vibe shift could be the return of early-aughts indie sleaze."

Gorillaz - DARE (Death From Above Remix) (absolute banger)

But what exactly is indie sleaze? As with most vague trends, indie sleaze means different things to different people. Generally, it's an aesthetic that took hold in the early aughts and lasted through about the end of that decade. If you're a late millennial in a major metropolitan area it will probably make you think of high school or college, drinking Sparks and listening to M.I.A.'s Arular. You might have attended a Misshapes set. You bought Nylon magazine. You wore bright hoodies and headbands and gold lamé shorts. You read Hipster Runoff.

CSS - Let's Make Love and Listen to Death From Above

Olivia, who asked for her last name not to be used, started regularly posting to the "indiesleaze" Instagram account sometime around January 2021, seeing a revival on the horizon. "I had a hunch that there would be renewed interest in bloghouse and electroclash and new rave due to where we're at in music trends," she tells Thrillist. "It's an aesthetic that hasn't really been revisited yet or neatly defined, which made it all the more interesting for me to explore."

Goldfrapp - Ooh La La (When Andy Bell Met Manhattan Clique Mix)

On her account, Olivia posts pictures from the era: Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs makes frequent appearances; Kate Moss is there; paparazzi shots from when Drew Barrymore was dating Fabrizio Moretti of The Strokes dot the page. She also links out to her playlist of "indie sleaze" music—certainly not the only one circulating. Matthew Perpetua, a music journalist who runs Fluxblog, recently posted "This Is Indie Sleaze 2002-2008," which he describes as "a tighter, more historically accurate version of someone else's idea."




Christopher Shar of the group Man Man, Santogold, and M.I.A. backstage during day 1 of the Coachella Valley Music Festival and Arts Festival held at the Empire Polo Field on April 25, 2008 in Indio, California.





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🍾🕶 🌃 2000s & 2010s indie sleaze style explained 🌠 📸🚬

Some Sort of Blog House Mix [mixed by Muffin]

$URG3's BLOGHOUSE revival mixtape

We Owe Everything to Bloghouse

https://www.papermag.com/bloghouse-2655912825.html