In the mid-aughts, MySpace lost its title as the hot and hip social site that everyone was using and Tumblr quickly took the throne. Soon, nearly every teenager was taking photos of rainbow-tinted gasoline puddles in parking lots, starting their own blog, smudging their eyeliner for the perfect “no-sleep” look and pretending to live a way more hedonistic lifestyle online than they actually were in reality. This mesh of 90s grunge and 80s messiness was declared the “indie sleaze” era by internet historians, and reports conclude that it is indeed making a comeback. If you were anything like me at 14, you dreamed of partying in Manhattan or Brooklyn and pretending you were in an episode of “Skins,” wishing you could carry a digital camera around and get a flick with Sky Ferreira and Julian Casablancas of The Strokes by your side, all three of you covered with glitter. This time can also be characterized by the relationship between Kate Moss and Pete Doherty of The Libertines, layered necklaces, American Apparel and wired headphones. The late-00s and early 2010s were a great time for “alternative” music, and I’ve been waiting to talk about it for ages. Go ahead and turn this mix on, punch the lenses out of your 3D glasses and pretend they’re real, part your hair all the way to the side and take a scroll through the @indiesleaze Instagram account to prepare your angsty self for the rebirth of true hipsterdom.
Heavy Metal Heart by Sky Ferreira
Reptilia by The Strokes
I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You by Black Kids
Maps by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Can’t Stand Me Now by The Libertines
Sleepyhead by Passion Pit
L.E.S. Artistes by Santigold
Genesis by Justice
Golden Skans by Klaxons
Paris by Friendly Fires
Mirror Kissers by The Cribs
I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor by Arctic Monkeys
Valerie (feat. Amy Winehouse) by Mark Ronson
Let’s Make Love and Listen to Death From Above by CSS
Daft Punk Is Playing at My House by LCD Soundsystem
