Indie Rock Tragedy Playlist

October 3, 2006 8:31 AM

Help me finish a just started Indie Rock Tragedy playlist. I currently have "The Commander Thinks Aloud - The Long Winters" and "The President is Dead - Okkervil Radio". I am looking for consistency in theme and sound/genre.
posted by srboisvert to media & arts (14 comments total)

What are the criteria? That would help narrow it down because tragedy is a pretty broad category. For example, would "Love Will Tear Us Apart" by Joy Division count? When you say Indie, how far back are we talking?
posted by spicynuts at 9:00 AM on October 3, 2006

A lot of indie rock is pretty tragic. Only, not in a good way.
posted by unSane at 9:01 AM on October 3, 2006

"Good Morning, Captain", by Slint. It's about a shipwreck!
posted by mr_roboto at 9:18 AM on October 3, 2006

"The President is Dead - Okkervil Radio"

Okkervil Radio s/b Okkervil River
posted by 23skidoo at 9:19 AM on October 3, 2006

A lot of indie rock is pretty tragic. Only, not in a good way.

A snap, a most palpable snap!

Tollund Man - The Mountain Goats (for ancient tragedy)

Heroes 2002 - Kimya Dawson (for modern tragedy)
posted by Greg Nog at 9:31 AM on October 3, 2006

Pretty much anything by The Auteurs.
posted by crabintheocean at 9:51 AM on October 3, 2006

Try entering either of those two in Pandora.
posted by Mr. Gunn at 9:57 AM on October 3, 2006

Neutral Milk Hotel's In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, more or less the whole album--it's hopeful, sure, but it is about Anne Frank.

The Decemberists, Leslie Anne Levine?
posted by nasreddin at 9:57 AM on October 3, 2006

The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead - XTC

Sounds poppy, but is about the assassination of a JFK-esque figure (or maybe just JFK)
posted by Bookhouse at 10:10 AM on October 3, 2006

What are the criteria? That would help narrow it down because tragedy is a pretty broad category. For example, would "Love Will Tear Us Apart" by Joy Division count? When you say Indie, how far back are we talking?

It's less about a specific era but more just trying to keep the sound similar enough that the playlist is not jarring with genre jumps.

By tragedy i meant more of a societal level tragedy. Big events - disasters - assassinations - wars - etc..

Okkervil Radio s/b Okkervil River

Oops! I was just trying not to type overkill.

Try entering either of those two in Pandora.

That would just gives me similar music without the theme.
posted by srboisvert at 11:14 AM on October 3, 2006

Death of a Shade of a Hue - Of Montreal
posted by Jaltcoh at 11:18 AM on October 3, 2006

The Headphones - Natural Disaster
Pavement - Hit the Plane Down
Tim Buckley - No Man Can Find The War (if Tim Buckley isn't indie enough for you Tuung recently covered this.)
Yo La Tengo - Nuclear War
Portatastic - Hurricane Warning (ignored)
Nada Surf - Blizzard of 77

that's all I've got off the top of my head.
posted by ro50 at 2:01 PM on October 3, 2006

The Dead Flag Blues, by Godspeed You! Black Emperor, for sure.
posted by mattholomew at 2:19 PM on October 3, 2006

Given the two songs, I'm going to assume the following criteria:

• The tragedy is someone falling from high social status a la Shakespeare.
• Generally acoustic songs with flourishes of other instruments.
• Finally, it seems you're looking for obscure, non-album tracks, but I couldn't do much in that regard.

Here's what I got!

1. The Decemberists - "The Infanta"
   Funeral procession for a child princess.
   
2. Cursive - "Bad Sects"
   Scandal in the pulpit
   
3. David Bowie - "Rock 'N' Roll Suicide"
   It's the rise and fall of Ziggie Stardust!
   
4. M. Ward - "Archangel Tale"
   Somewhat vague, but seems to be a fall from grace.
   
5. Neutral Milk Hotel - "Holland, 1945"
   Nasreddin beat me to the punch, but this song probably fits best.
   
6. Smiths - "Vicar in a Tutu"
   Still, not all of these have to be so serious!
   
7. Mountain Goats - "Song for Dennis Brown"
   (alternately, on the same album, "Dino Lipatti's Bones")
   

Also, I know it's not nearly the same style as any of these, but I have to mention Suicide's "Frankie Teardrop" as an excellent example of a song/person spiraling into madness.
posted by themadjuggler at 9:10 PM on October 3, 2006