2005 was the last year when indie was a proper musical force. In the 11 years since then, indie music has been cannibalized by other genres, most notably dance and other more mainstream styles, into something unrecognisable. It was also the year in which there was a wealth of excitig new indie bands, some of which turned remarkable debut's into solid careers, and some that burned out.
Arcade Fire: Funeral
2005 was almost Arcade Fire’s year. The Canadian band came out of nowhere to take the indie world by storm. Noughties fans had their very own Sonic Youth, not in musical style, but in sheer creative drive. Yet in many year-end lists they had to settle for second place, or a top ten finish, coming in behind bands that they would later defeat. Indeed, 2006 saw many bands, such as Interpol, released albums that were heavily influenced by the complex compositions of Funeral.
They were the year’s name-drop band, whose songs (particularly the Neighbourhoods trilogy) created a rustic atmosphere of hope transformed from dread. The album has aged pretty well in the ten years since its release due to the fact that this was the genesis of their musical landscape. Each album since then has expanded this landscape, keeping the band refreshingly clear from musical trends that have come and gone. Funeral is the musical equivalent of world-building.
Bloc Party: Silent Alarm
Bloc Party is the first band on this list whose debut, despite the fact they’re still releasing music now, cast an inescapable shadow across their career. Silent Alarm is one of the greatest debuts of the noughties. Bloc Party came out all guns blazing with an album of very British angst and paranoia blasted through a filter of post-punk.
Both an album, as the sum of its parts, and a collection of songs in which any could be a single, Silent Alarm is a visceral record dabbling in reactionary war on terror songs (Plans, Helicopter), spiky but sweet love songs (Blue Light, This Modern Love), and the pressure on a generation to be better than the last (Pioneers).
Editors: The Back Room
Like Bloc Party, Editors’ debut, The Back Room, is still their most popular release. 2004 saw The Killers remind indie fans what a band can do if they listen to New Order, and one year later Editors had done the same with Joy Division. Not to do the album a disservice, but the Manchester legends of gloom are all over Tom Smith and co.’s debut.; hey, Interpol did it, why can’t they?
On its own, though, The Back Room is the best gloom rock album of the noughties. Tom Smith’s warm monotone vocals contrast brilliantly with Chris Urbanowicz’s razor sharp guitar, all with the atmosphere of a silent German film about Birmingham.
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
If the Editors were 2005’s answer to Joy Division, then Clap Your Hands Say Yeah were Talking Heads. The Brooklyn band’s DIY approach to making and distributing their music harked back to David Byrne’s eighties heyday. The band’s eponymous debut was popular mainly due to its outright oddness. What other band could infuse catchy melodies into songs like This Home on Ice, or Upon this Tidal Wave of Young Blood.
This propensity for “otherness” ended up being the band’s downfall. Their debut worked because it was twelve wonderland versions of the same song. It wasn’t until the band released their second album, Some Loud Thunder, that fans realised that that was all they could do.
04: We Are Scientists: With Love and Squalor
In 2005, We Are Scientists were like a proto-Ok Go, a mischievous American band with catchy singles which were elevated by some excellent music videos. With We Are Scientists’ With Love and Squalor, the bands major label debut, they finally had an album to back it all up. Like every album that is an exercise in energy and fun, it had no staying power.
Ten years on, not even the singles have aged well: to the point that when you hear them, or come across the video for The Great Escape all you think is “Jesus, that was an age ago”. Like Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, We Are Scientists continue to make music, fighting the losing battle to stay relevant.
LCD Soundsystem: LCD Soundsystem
James Murphy’s first album, under the guise of LCD Soundsystem, was merely a stepping stone that helped him become one of the most respected artists of his generation. His talent would grow on future albums, Sound of Silver and This is Happening, but there is a roughness to his debut that helps it stand up against his better efforts.
His skill with pop can be first glimpsed on Tribulations, and, most tellingly, Daft Punk is Playing at my House. Despite this, his first album is mostly forgotten when talking about his career, due mainly to the fact that his second and third albums are packed floor to ceiling with hits.
Making an album self-titled usually means that the band intend it to be their defining sound. This is definitely the case with LCD-the way that Murphy juggles punk, funk, and dance is surely definitive, yet he also left himself room to build on it.
