The document discusses the genre of indie pop music. It provides background on the history and origins of indie pop, which developed from British post-punk in the late 1970s. Indie pop combines elements of rock with mainstream pop music. The document outlines common lyrical themes in indie pop like relationships and love. It also describes typical musical styles used, like clear beats and choruses to appeal to pop audiences. The document discusses the retro, vintage image often portrayed by indie pop bands and their ideology of being unique and breaking boundaries. It states the target audience of indie pop is typically 16-24 year old students and fans of alternative music and culture.

1. INDIE POP

2. GENRE
The term genre can be considered as an extremely brief term which in
hindsight means the style or category of art, literature or music. However this
term can also relate to other aspects of style such as sub genre which is a
more specific categorisation of genre. There are many types of genre
regarding music for example indie, R&B and rock.

3. THE HISTORY OF INDIE POP
The genre we are focusing on and exploring the most is alternative pop as it’s
the genre of Ivy and Gold’s song ‘The Town’. Alternative pop can also be
referred to as indie rock or indie pop as they come under the same category
in the music industry. This genre originated from British post-punk in the late
1970’s and generated a thriving club and gig atmosphere. However, indie
pop differs from this genre slightly as it is more melodic and less abrasive.
Indie pop was originally inspired by punk rocks DIY ethos and the rebellious
screaming of early punk. As indie pop is a mixture of two genres it not
incorporates the stripped down quality of rock but the catchiness of
mainstream pop also.
“Indie pop is not just ‘indie’ that is ‘pop’…in short, they have their own culture”
– Nitsuh Abebe

4. RECURRING LYRICS AND
THEMES
Within indie/ alternative pop music the lyrics tend to heavily refer to the breakup of relationships or
have an underlying theme of sadness which is connoted within Oasis’ ‘Wonderwall’. However, this isn’t
always the case, the lyrics within the song could relate to love but not always in a negative way. For
example in The Kooks ‘She Moves in Her Own Way’ which explains how the speaker is moving onto
‘better things’. The theme of love and heart break isn’t just a conventional aspect of indie pop however,
as this lyrical subject is evident in other genres such as R&B. Alternative or indie bands often use
derogatory terms within their music to help articulate their feelings towards a certain topic. An
example of this is in Arctic Monkeys ‘Florescent Adolescent’ through the line ‘oh the boy’s a slag’.
Furthermore, unrequited love can be seen as a massive theme within alternative pop music. This is
connoted through the lyrics of many songs specifically explaining the love the speaker has for a
woman/ man in which these feelings aren’t reciprocated. Examples of this include Scouting For Girls
‘She’s so Lovely’ and Jet’s ‘Are You Gonna Be My Girl’. Contrasting these conventions completely
however is MGMT’s ‘Kids’. This song has no reference of love within a relationship as the song focuses
purely on parents and children, in hind sight giving advice to over-bearing parents. Therefore, this
portrays the idea that the general theme of indie pop music is love however there are no restrictions,
the song can be based around any subject.

5. MUSICAL STYLE AND
CHARACTERISTICS
Within alternative pop music there is usually a clear beat and chorus enabling a sense of
catchiness regarding the track. This is incorporated in order to adhere to the stereotypical
‘pop’ conventions. This style of music often has heavy guitar or drum beats throughout in order
to portray the alterative/ indie side. Indie tracks can also be classed as having a reasonably
fast beat in order to make them more exciting and experimental. An example of this would be
in The Wombats song ‘Lets Dance To Joy Division’ as there is an evident beat created through
the use of drums making it indefinitely catchy throughout. The vocals within alternative/ indie
songs can be classed as somewhat similar to those of the pop genre but arguably can be
perceived as rather different. Within this genre the singing can be interpreted as more laid
back in comparison to a song such as Adeles ‘Hello’. This is because the music overall has
been interpreted as having a more ‘chill vibe’ therefore techniques such as talking or shouting
can also be incorporated into indie tracks. This is evident in songs such as Razorlight’s ‘Golden
Touch’ and Kings of Leon’s ‘Sex on Fire’. Furthermore, some tracks do in fact revolve heavily
around amazingly strong vocals and less focus on the instruments included much like the pop
genre for example, Florence + the Machines ‘You’ve Got The Love’.

6. REPRESENTATION OF INDIE POP
BANDS
Alternative and indie pop bands are often represented
as being somewhat retro and vintage regarding the
clothes they wear and the general image they present
to their audience. An example of this style would be the
band ‘Sundara Karma’ as their general image is
extremely alternative which is not only connoted by the
style of their clothes but also their hair. The way in
which their outfits can be perceived as outdated and
somewhat unique indicates the indie/ alternative style
of the band. All of the members within Sundara Karma
evidently have long hair which can be interpreted as
unusual for males. This displays a somewhat
effeminate aspect of the band which in hindsight
creates a divide between indie pop and regular pop.

7. REPRESENTATION OF INDIE
POP BANDS
Another example of an alternative band would be
Arctic Monkeys. They have a similar image to
Sundara Karma for example they could be
perceived as somewhat retro and unique. This is a
recurring theme amongst bands of this genre as
alternative and indie in hindsight refers to the idea
of being unique and different in comparison to other
musical genres such as pop. Again, the clothes they
wear could be classed as somewhat outdated and
vintage giving them a distinctive look. Therefore, this
portrays the idea that indie/ alternative bands are
represented as being original and distinctive
regarding their overall band image.

8. IDEOLOGIES OF THIS GENRE
The ideology of alternative and indie bands usually revolves around the philosophy of being
unique and distinctive. Not only does this genre of band attempt to make their image different
to that of the pop genre, the sound they create can be perceived as very different also. Within
their music it is very unlikely that they’ll briefly touch on a topic such as heart break similar to
what pop bands they do. In contrast, they will create deep and meaningful lyrics including
some raw imagery so that their music has a really distinctive meaning. Alternative bands also
focus their lyrics on more taboo subjects such as drugs and drinking. An example of this would
be ‘Chocolate’ by The 1975. The importance of being different is critical to alternative bands
but not only do they want to be different they want to make a difference. This is evident within
many lyrics and their band image as a whole, as they advise youths to be unique and embrace
their differences. It’s known that these bands believe in breaking the boundaries and escaping
mainstream stereotypes of today’s generation.

9. TARGET AUDIENCE
It can be considered hard to pin point the exact target audience of a musical genre as their
audience can be so diverse, consisting of different age ranges. However, regarding indie/
alternative pop the general audience consists of 16 – 24 year olds. The reasoning behind this is
because the imagery regarding alternative pop bands could be perceived as rather explicit
therefore under 16’s are less likely to listen. Younger audiences are also known to be more
interested in pop or current bands which indie pop artists usually aren’t. This genre of music
could also be considered as popular amongst late teens and early twenties as its unique and
different and at these ages young adults are perceived as being somewhat experimental
within their taste, whether that’s music or fashion. A website known as ‘NME.com’ which is also
a magazine created to promote indie pop bands showed that 66% of people that listened to
indie pop music were male, and the remaining 34% were female listeners. This indicates that
the target audience of this genre of music is 16-24 year olds which are predominantly male.
Due to the age range displayed, the occupation of the indie pop target audience is most likely
going to be students in secondary school or higher education such as university. It could also
be said that those studying media, performing arts or music would be more interested in this
musical genre as they are perceived as more extraverted. Furthermore, these students are
more likely going to be discovering and exploring new media.

10. PSYCHOGRAPHICS OF TARGET
AUDIENCE
•Interested in unique radio stations such as Radio X
•Plays an instrument
•Wears band t shirts
•Studies or is interested in media or art
•Shops at HMV, ASOS, Topshop or even charity shops
•Full time education or part time jobs
•Enjoys Instagram, Pinterest and Tumblr
•Could be interested in indie films
•Possible smoker or fan of alcohol as these things are seen as mainstream

11. THEORISTS
“Genre is no longer a fixed set of elements”. This view could be considered as
extremely relevant regarding the indie pop genre as there are no set rules
that make a song indie. Every alternative song is different and unique which
is why there’s such a large target audience. The way in which there is no
‘fixed set of elements’ demonstrates that there are no restrictions when
creating an indie pop song, the genre is free and unique.