History That High, Lonesome Sound
posted by on August 2 at 10:17 AM
Question raised by a commenter to yesterday’s Maldives post:
Are the Maldives really alt-country? What about indie Americana? What about indie roots—the term foisted by the organizers of Pickathon and dissected by Chris McCann in this week’s paper?
There’s crossover between the three, for sure, but some distinction, too. Bear with me—it’s all pretty loose and subjective.
Alt-country was the original term, referring to any non-mainstream country act (read: non-Nashville). It was first bestowed on the Byrds and Gram Parsons in the late ’60s, though Parsons preferred his own epithet “Cosmic American Music,” or cosmic Americana. It’s the genre embraced by No Depression magazine (hi, Kurt!), though even that respected publiciation admits to its vaguaries. Steve Earle was an early proponent, as well as John Hiatt, and Dave Alvin and the Blasters. Recently, Wilco has been alt-country’s most visible flag-bearer, with Ryan Adams staggering along close behind. I’d leave the Maldives here—or more accurately, call ‘em “alt-country-rock,” though that’s a mouthful.
Indie Americana is a more modern term, on a rise proportionate to the popularization/generalization of the term “indie.” Seems like Wilco and Adams could fall in here, too, were they not already pegged as alt-country, and were they not now on major labels. So in this grouping falls My Morning Jacket, the Drive-by Truckers, and the North Mississippi Allstars, all of whom actually are on indie labels. I’d throw in my man Langhorne Slim, too, and Two Gallants, because of their indie orientation, mostly electric instrumentation, and tendency to rock the fuck out. Locally we could throw in Jesse Sykes and the Moondoggies, though the latter’s space-cake country flights hew closer to cosmic Americana.
“Indie roots” is the most newfangled term here, but I like it, and I like the sound it describes. The “roots” half hints at traditionalism, which boils down to acoustic instrumentation. So here we have the Avett Brothers (*swoon*), Old Crow Medicine Show, the Pine Box Boys, Dale Watson, the Handsome Family, and pretty much the rest of the lineup at Pickathon. Plus Seattle’s own back porch death blues trio the Cave Singers.
Now does that answer the question? Not really. But it’s a fun exercise. And every single one of the bands mentioned above is doing something exciting and fresh with their music.
Jebus! Don't leave out Neko Case!!!
From a recent Neko Case interview in HARP:
"It's like we're saying, 'Don't worry, it's not country.' Well, I love country music. You just know that somebody who doesn't play music came up with it--because in music, things just blend into each other. It's not like I go, "OK, I'm taking a break from this genre now, please follow me over here."
You gonna take that kinda smack-talk, JZ?
Eerie timing, Shawn.
she's right. i don't play music. but i didnt come up w the terms, either.
so i guess its all just music? like, the fray, too?
I guess I should also mention that when I interviewed Neko Case a few years ago over the phone, her publicist asked me in advance to avoid using the phrase "alt-country" in the conversation. I think I'm just bitter that Mr. HARP guy was cut some slack.
How about the darker, weirder stuff, that still has echoes of country/folk/roots/whatever, a la Califone, etc.? I haven't been able to come up with a good term that doesn't use the word "post" and/or far too many slashes or dashes.
INDIE ROOTS
To me, Neko Case is a return to an older style of country, the kind influenced by folk, blues, and cowboy music. The kind of country that's more Willie Nelson and John Denver, and less Toby Keith and Garth Brooks.
The best option, of course, would be "y'allternative."
@9: LOL! I love it.
"Alt-country was the original term, referring to any non-mainstream country act"
Incorrect! The alt-country label was actually co-opted from the names of usenet groups devoted to music in the 90’s, and thus alt.music.country was simplified to alt.country to describe the bourgeoning genre (it was also a play on the "alternative rock" label that was so popular at the time).
In the 70's bands that fused country and rock music were called country rock (Flying Burrito Bros, Eagles, Poco), in the 80's it was dubbed cowpunk or roots rock (Jason & the Scorchers, Blasters, Long Ryders), and in the 90's the third wave of practitioners were bestowed the alt-country tag (Uncle Tupelo, Jayhawks, Old 97s). The Byrds didn't need a genre label to describe what they were doing, and they kept changing from album to album anyway.
@11--that makes a lot of sense. country rock would've been the first term, and i know that that, along w "cosmic americana" is what they called the burritos.
dunno about the eagles, though--isnt that california country?
I believe Gram dubbed his music "Cosmic American Music", but I don't think that term ever caught on with journalists or got applied to any other bands of that period. In retrospect it's a better label for the type of music he was trying to make, as it was a lot more ambitious than the country rock bands of that time.
When I think California Country I think Buck Owens and Merle Haggard, and definitely not the Eagles.
merle haggard=outlaw country, no?
the eagles=laurel canyon country?
this conversation is starting to make my brain hurt.
Joe Henry quote:
"For starters, you have to understand that when I was doing what they now call quote, unquote alt-country music, there was no such thing. I mean, that didn't exist as a category. I'm fond of saying they didn't call it anything except unpopular."
Here's what my trusted music writer friend says about it:
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What about going the way of the Mexicans? They don't drink soda or pop - they drink coke. 'What kind of coke do you want, Sprite or 7Up?' Applied to alt-country-indie-cosmic-whatever...
We listen to whiskeytown music: 'Man, I love that whiskeytown band, My Morning
Jacket.'
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It's just a short cut anyway, b/c right after you label it, you compare it to 2 or 3 other bands - music reviewers' standard protocol, right?
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