Earlier this week, Paste magazine posted its February cover story online, intentionally raising a few eyebrows. Rachael Maddux’s piece asks “Is Indie Dead?” Her answer: Yes it is. And it killed itself. That is, if you can even get anyone to agree on what the word “indie” means. According to Maddux,
“We have several forces to thank for this growing, increasingly toxic confusion: a mainstream culture never above poaching; a precariously teetering music industry; an Internet booming harder than the Old West, with less rules and more cowboy posturing; plus, an aging movement whose original mix of urgent otherness and charming hubris has — for many members of its second generation — simmered down to solipsism and entitlement”
If you enjoy a debate that is, at its roots, mostly about semantics, Maddux’s piece is an interesting, if at times painful read. What’s more, it’s a conversation starter. That’s why we asked ten writers and editors from some of our favorite music sites to give it a read and then respond with their gut reactions. Please note: We promised not to cut/edit/twist their responses in any way.