Post-Indie

Pitchfork's Get That Out Of Your Mouth column is by far my favorite part of that website. Here Chris Dahlen nailed it on the head. It, you ask? Indie. A question I have asked myself lately is "what's so special about indie rock?" Or even alternative comedy. Dahlen questions the ethical superiority of indie rock and praises the amateur revolution.

There is an amateur comedy explosion as well. The biggest Internet virals have been mostly comedic in nature. The latest viral, Album Cover Wars, is hilarious.



Even former amateurs who now make money on sites like Ze Frank and Homestar Runner have not inked any deals. Indeed, the brothers Chaps, who are behind Homestar Runner, have refused offers from Cartoon Network, opting to make online merch sales their only source of revenue.

Like the indie revolution of the '70s and '80s, the current long tail amateur trend has an admirably sassy DIY ethic. Unlike its snobby predecessor, the new non-corporate revolution makes no pretentious claims about integrity or aesthetic superiority. Indeed, the whole darn bandwagon has not one crate of self-consciousness.

This is especially important in comedy. Film tends to be the least funny medium because a bunch of suits decide what's funny. But even "alternative comedy" showcases, at their worst, can be hipper-than-thou pageants that place more emphasis on dime-store surrealism and obscure references than actual laughs.

This however is the diametrical opposite of self-conscious.