Indie Rock Singers

A complaint I hear sometimes when I play something a little too "indie" at work is that the singer "can't sing."  I also hear this when I play Bob Dylan, so I don't take it personally, but this is one criticism I actually agree with sometimes - often, they can't sing.

Over the course of the nineties, the inability of certain indie rockers to sing underwent a transformation - it started out with people who we all acknowledged, yeah they can't sing, but so what?  Not being able to sing didn't matter.  As the decade moved on though, people started to emulate those bands, and not being able to sing became the point.  At some point in there, some of the bands lost me.

I like Dylan, and I can handle a singer without a great voice.  But you have to draw the line somewhere.  I mentioned a post or two ago that Daniel Johnston is on one side of that line for me.  I'll put Neutral Milk Hotel on the 'Dylan' side of the line.  Johanna Newsom; over.  Bright Eyes - usually on the right side, but sometimes...

Over time my tastes (or ability to deal with bad singers) have shifted.  I used to love Elf Power, but they're on key no more often than by random chance, and the 'harmonies' can kill otherwise great songs.  I've never managed to get into On Avery Island.  Etc.  The problem is, I can handle great songs hampered moderately by a not-great singer.  I can't handle a singer who takes the genre as an excuse to sing badly.