I am color (I mean music genre) blind.

November 6, 2006 6:27 PM

I like Jon Brion, Elliot Smith, Ben Folds, The Postal Service, and Quasi. What is the genre of music I like called, and what are the staples of it to which I must listen?
posted by bingo to media & arts (38 comments total)

I would call it pop-rock; perhaps pop-punk-rock, but that's a pretty huge leap. Stick witih pop-rock.
posted by rossination at 6:37 PM on November 6, 2006

Death Cab For Cutie is the obvious suggestion. Same singer as The Postal Service w/o the electronica bits.
posted by smackfu at 6:40 PM on November 6, 2006

Looks like indie rock/pop. Check out Pandora if you want to see how experts categorize your music, and they will match it with others and construct playlists based on each band you enter. (Don't skip ahead too much, they have have licensing issues per hour).
posted by Brian B. at 6:42 PM on November 6, 2006

Seconding Death Cab, and adding Something Corporate/Jack's Mannequin (same frontman).

I usually call it indie rock, even if the word 'indie' itself is a rather ridiculous label that simply means "independent/not major recording company".
posted by Phire at 6:45 PM on November 6, 2006

I think I would call it Garden Statecore.
posted by tew at 6:50 PM on November 6, 2006 [2 favorites]

i think it's more pop-alt-rock, which is kind of the same thing as pop-rock these days, and the 'alt' certainly shouldn't be taken literally, but still i think it's a worthwhile distinction. I think pop-rock will lead you to a lot of more overtly derivitive junk.

you like stuff that has been safely vetted by djs and popular opinion. among current bands, you will most likely enjoy the following:

the magnetic fields
death cab for cutie
the decemberists
the shins

i also think that there's a little emo in you, in which case even though you are a decade late, you should check out Radiohead.

oh and go get out all your old REM albums.
posted by milkman at 6:52 PM on November 6, 2006 [1 favorite]

the decemberists, neutral milk hotel, death cab, the shins, the weakerthans, arcade fire, broken social scene, iron and wine, modest mouse....etc.

i am terrible with genres but in my mind i link all those bands together.
posted by thisisnotkatrina at 6:56 PM on November 6, 2006

Rhapsody.com puts: Jon Brion under Film Scores, Baroque Pop, and Power Pop; Elliott Smith under Baroque Pop, Indie Rock, Adult Alternative, and Singer-Songwriter; Ben Folds under Adult Alternative and Grunge-Pop (??); The Postal Service under Indie Rock and Electropop; and Quasi under Indie Rock and Noise Pop.

Each of those artist links will show some similar artists, and each of those genre links will show artists in that genre and artist/album/song charts within the genre.
posted by xiojason at 7:03 PM on November 6, 2006

Don't think Radiohead would be your thing, but try out Muse, Arcade Fire, and maybe some Murder By Death.
posted by Diskeater at 7:15 PM on November 6, 2006

It's called "indie rock."

Listen to:
Pavement (Slanted & Enchanted is a great album)
The Lucksmiths (Warmer Corners)
Belle and Sebastian (If You're Feeling Sinister)
2ing Neutral Milk Hotel (In The Aeroplane Over the Sea) and the Decemberists (Castaways and Cut-outs)
Mazzy Star (So Tonight That I Might See)
Guided By Voices (Bee Thousand)
Metric (Old World Underground, Where Are You Now?)
The New Pornographers (The Electric Version)

You may also enjoy:
Jets to Brazil (Orange Rhyming Dictionary)*
The Apples in Stereo (Fun Trick Noisemaker)
Beat Happening (You Turn Me On)
Sebadoh (Bakesale)
M83 (Before the Dawn Heals Us)
Godspeed! You Black Emperor (Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada)
Le Tigre (Le Tigre)
The Olivia Tremor Control (Music For an Unrealized Film Script, Dusk at Cubist Castle)

*if you like this, check out the singer's old band Jawbreaker, especially Dear You and 24 Hour Revenge Therapy
posted by nasreddin at 7:23 PM on November 6, 2006

You're missing ladytron "the witching hour" and modest mouse "the lonesome crowded west."
posted by milarepa at 7:25 PM on November 6, 2006

SOMA FM has a web radio station called "Indie Pop Rocks" that might give some more inspiration.
posted by smackfu at 7:27 PM on November 6, 2006

Try Neil Finn! (He plays with Jon Brion and that crowd -- Michael Penn, Aimee Mann, et al -- whenever he's in L.A.)
posted by scody at 7:34 PM on November 6, 2006

Figurine - "Transportation + Communication = Love" (that's the album, not a song)
Phoenix - "United" specifically the song "If I Ever Feel Better"
posted by wuzandfuzz at 7:42 PM on November 6, 2006

Sorry accidentally posted before I was finished;
Rilo Kiley

Also, Figurine shares a member with the Postal Service, so check that one out first.
posted by wuzandfuzz at 7:44 PM on November 6, 2006

Snow Patrol
Spoon
Bright Eyes
Belle & Sebastian
Built to Spill
Damien Rice
Goldfrapp
Imogen Heap
Mirah (maybe)
Rainer Maria
Rufus Wainwright
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
_________________________

These aren't all necessarily *staples*, but based on what you already like, I think you'll like these folks too.

The Hype Machine is a really good site for finding new music related to what you like, and listening before you buy.
posted by tatiana wishbone at 7:58 PM on November 6, 2006

It's called "indie pop," but that's really broad.
The real term for radio station marketting is "adult alternative," which covers the mid-tempo and slightly quirky stuff you seem to enjoy (I'm not trying to be a dick about this). In the early days of adult alternative, those stations played a lot of Lisa Loeb, Candlebox, Seven Mary Three, etc. Now that means a "post-emo" millieu, with bands like Death Cab for Cutie, +/-, Rogue Wave, The Academy Is, The Long Winters...

And as far as what other music you might like, it'd be handy if you could tell me what you liked about these bands. Like, you'd probably like the C86 twee movement from England, and you'd probably like the Velvet Underground-influenced folks like Yo La Tengo, Galaxie 500/Luna, American Mars... You might also like the post-rock stuff from people like The Sea and the Cake, Tortoise, Explosions in the Sky, Mogwai... Or you might like more rocking stuff, like Spoon, Guided By Voices, Built To Spill... Or "classic rock" like Randy Newman, Supertramp or Steely Dan.

And again, I don't mean this to sound dickish, but those bands are all usually, like, MyFirstIndie bands. They're really popular, really inoffensive, and pretty indistinct. They're the American equivalent of liking Coldplay (and thus get recommendations like "You might like Radiohead.")

Feel free to email me if you want more suggestions. There's a PR agency called Yarr PR that sends me albums just like the ones that you like about every week. I dig 'em OK, I think they're all competent, just not my bag so much. If you want a running list of smaller bands that sound very similar to the aesthetic that you've given above, I can reel off about 100 of 'em if I get a moment to sort through the promo pile.
posted by klangklangston at 9:03 PM on November 6, 2006 [1 favorite]

Thanks for all the answers so far. If this helps any, what I like in a nutshell is the clean sound, the soft voice, and the intelligent lyrics. There's more to it than that, but I'm not sure how to put it.

They're really popular, really inoffensive, and pretty indistinct.

This is a very strange statement for me to parse. The degree to which something is popular or offensive is irrelevant to me...you're not actually suggesting I should care about those things, are you? As for being indistinct...well, even in my relatively non-musical lifestyle, I know that most lyrics are crap. The lyrics of the people I mentioned generally aren't crap. Also, I've seen Jon Brion perform twice, and it's not an exaggeration to say he's a genius. If the kind of stuff he does is 'indistinct' to you, then we're on different planets.
posted by bingo at 9:30 PM on November 6, 2006 [1 favorite]

Indie pop.

Just to help you prioritize the recommendations you've already gotten:

Death Cab For Cutie
Rilo Kiley
The Magnetic Fields
Bright Eyes
The Decemberists
Belle & Sebastian
The Shins
The New Pornographers

You'll probably like may of the other suggestions, but these are closest to the examples you cited.
posted by jjg at 9:45 PM on November 6, 2006

folks have the band suggestions down pat (I'd only echo nasreddin and klang) so I'll just mention what totally imaginary genre of music I shoehorned all the artists you listen into back in the day: Perfect Pop.
posted by carsonb at 10:03 PM on November 6, 2006

s/listen/list
posted by carsonb at 10:03 PM on November 6, 2006

Make sure you check out DNTEL, it's the band they had before Postal Service (or so I heard).
posted by jedrek at 1:03 AM on November 7, 2006

"what I like in a nutshell is the clean sound, the soft voice, and the intelligent lyrics." - listen to Athlete! Some of their stuff might be a bit easier-going than you like but please give them a go.
posted by Lotto at 1:31 AM on November 7, 2006

Savage Garden?
posted by divabat at 1:34 AM on November 7, 2006

This kind of music is sometimes (derisively) referred to as "Indie-Yuppie." I'm not mentioning this to slam you or anything, I just thought that Googling the phrase might help you find more bands you like.

Good luck!
posted by Ian A.T. at 5:09 AM on November 7, 2006

Have you heard the Grays? Also, Have you heard Jason Falkner? Buddy Judge's album is pretty good too. All in the Grays....
posted by nimsey lou at 5:23 AM on November 7, 2006

Braff-Rock.

n+1 on Neil Finn/Crowded House/Tim Finn/Split Enz (though i dont know how they'd feel being lumped in)

add any artists on Garden State sndtrack

also Alexi Murdoch, which is one of my favorite albums of the year.
posted by softlord at 6:01 AM on November 7, 2006

I usually call it "emo". and what scody said
posted by matteo at 6:44 AM on November 7, 2006

All kind of related, but I think you'd really like The Black Heart Procession (The Spell, Amore Del Tropico), Pinback (Blue Screen Life) and Three Mile Pilot (Another Desert, Another Sea). Not necessarily in that order, but all are well worth checking out.
posted by Atom12 at 6:59 AM on November 7, 2006

"This is a very strange statement for me to parse. The degree to which something is popular or offensive is irrelevant to me...you're not actually suggesting I should care about those things, are you?"

Really popular means that there are a LOT of people who like it, often for different reasons. Saying that you'd like to hear new bands that were influenced by the Beatles is useless unless you say what about the Beatles you like. Otherwise, it's just like, well, these 400 bands might be OK for you.
Really inoffensive means that there's nothing really that peculiar or off-putting about them to a casual fan, so they tend to have a lot of casual fans. Frankly, with your "I'm not really into music," you fit a pretty prevelant stereotype about the kind of people who listen to these bands. But more "offensive" or "aggressive" bands that are similar, like Weezer or Spoon, you might not get into so much (though I tend to believe that everyone who hears Spoon will like 'em).
Really indistinct means that there are THOUSANDS of bands that sound like these other bands, and the only thing that really distinguishes the ones you listed is their relative popularity (and generally their seniority). From bands whose albums just happen to be on my desk at this exact moment, you'll like Minimae, Ben Harper, Empty Orchestra, Those Transatlantics, Lisboa (whose main man is a MeFite), Connosseur, Apollo Sunshine, Portastatic and The Sharking. And that's without standing up. The soft, clean pop sound with literate lyrics started to crest at the end of the '90s, and since then there's been an absolute flood. Which is good, because that's the kind of music you like.
In fact, since you're in New York, I'm willing to bet that there are over a hundred bands in your city doing this right now, with probably about 30-40 of them doing it rather well. You'd probably really enjoy Morning Becomes Eclectic, broadcast outta LA. And you'd probably enjoy the music of Ludwig Van, the MeFi user, and Cortex, another user.
It's kinda like saying that you like "Friends," and you're wondering if there are any other sitcoms out there. Only there are way more bands than there are sitcoms.

Shorter answer— You're going to have to listen to a lot more music. I see that as a good thing. But as you listen to a lot more music, your tastes will both evolve and crystalize so that you can describe a little bit more what you like and what you don't. Until then, get started with the recommendations here and work on listening to them actively. Yeah, yeah, it's like homework. But the best homework ever.
posted by klangklangston at 7:01 AM on November 7, 2006 [1 favorite]

I usually call it "emo". and what scody said

It is not emo.
posted by smackfu at 7:03 AM on November 7, 2006

Check out The Hard Parts. Right there in your genre, with he added bonus of being undiscovered and, therefore, cool.
posted by SampleSize at 7:21 AM on November 7, 2006

My Morning Jacket
Josh Radin
Modest Mouse
Mates of State
Lullaby for the Working Class
Galaxie 500
Bob Dylan
Bonnie "Prince" Billy
Smog
Neil Young

I think those are all people that haven't been suggested yet... but really, I could go on forever, but I would really, really, really, REALLY suggest you check out My Morning Jacket as soon as possible. I listen to "At Dawn" at least once a day.
posted by banannafish at 7:39 AM on November 7, 2006

chiming back in to suggest Grant Lee Philips (and his previous incarnation, Grant Lee Buffalo) as well -- he's also in that whole Jon Brion/Club Largo scene. Great stuff. Try the Grant Lee Buffalo "best of" for a good place to start.
posted by scody at 10:27 AM on November 7, 2006

"Indie/alt" + "pop/rock/folk". Maybe you'd enjoy some folktronica too.

Check out MuFi, there are some good tunes here.

http://music.metafilter.com/tags/indie
http://music.metafilter.com/tags/folk

etc.

Disclosure: I'm in there somewhere :-)
posted by ajp at 11:59 AM on November 7, 2006

Oh, and poking my head in one last time because I realize I forgot my obligatory plug for the genre-blending brilliance that is Califone (think rustic folk meets blues meets electronica meets ambient noise). Their new album, Roots & Crowns, is spectacular.
posted by scody at 12:02 PM on November 7, 2006

Well, you have all certainly given me a lot to think about (and listen to). I'm afraid I'm going to wait on best answers for now, because it's going to take me a while to get some perspective on all this information.

Some of you sound on the edge of burning me a CD; if anyone is so motivated, by all means email me.
posted by bingo at 2:41 PM on November 7, 2006

The new Sean Lennon album is way in the Elliott Smith mode. And some of the bands you mention overlap into the power pop realm (I play Jon Brion, Elliott Smith, and Ben Folds on my power pop Live365 station, D23Radio -- also Michael Penn, etc.), so you might also check out that genre. Not Lame is a label you should check into.
posted by litlnemo at 3:08 PM on November 7, 2006