i agree about the velvet underground- while they might have spawned most of the bands on the list I don't think listing influences is fair. Also, their about 10-20 years earlier than the other bands for which the term "indie rock" could possibly be applied. if you've ever read chuck klosterman (which i recommend, he's hysterical and a popculture genius) he makes a list of the best "metal" bands, but refuses to include their progenitors, like led zeppelin, which I think blender should have taken into consideration. also- is it just me or was TV on the radio really high on the list considering they're so new to the scene? Are they really THAT good?

also, (sorry lists like these always make me angry!!) in what universe has Green Day ever been "indie?" Yeah, Kerplunk is good...but seriously?

I agree with magpie wtf Green day is mainstream, not indie HUH? wtf.

but on that list, i agree bout Arcade fire ..

Green Day was totally indie when they first started. Dookie was their first major label record. Wasn't it...?

I love a lot of these bands! I had no idea they were "indie". I need to brush up on my categorization.

the green day cd was released on an indie label. the term "indie" is misused a lot, just like "alternative", people refer to it as a genre instead of what it technically means. alternative music originally meant any music that wasn't maintstream. indie music means any music on an independent label. now the term "indie" is used as a genre to refer to a certain type of bands/music... similar to what happened with alternative.

Exactly lm5841.

Anyway, probably my favorite album off this list is Nine Inch Nails. I also like the Nirvana, Interpol, Greenday, Franz Ferdinand, Smashing Pumpkins, The Strokes, Meat Puppets, LCD Soundsystem and the White Stripes albums.

I love these albums: Modest Mouse's Good News For People Who Love Bad News, The Decemberists' Castaways and Cutouts, and Tegan & Sara's So Jealous.

I love some of the artists that made it on the Blender list, but I love so much more that is off the list.

I don't agree that Nick Drake is "indie" I would consider him more folk. They didn't not include anything from Red House Painters or Mark Koelek's later band Sun Kil Moon. SKM's Ghosts of the Great Highway is brillant and "Carry Me Ohio" brings me to tears everytime I hear it, it's so beautiful!

Fountains of Wayne: Fountains of Wayne

You're right, Jen, "Dookie" was on an indie label.

I have to disagree about the Velvets, though. Not only do I consider them an indie band, I just might consider them the FIRST indie band. But I think all their albums were on major labels at the time, so I suppose I'm not right.

At any rate, I love Brian Eno's quote about the Velvet Underground: he said that only 1000 people bought their first album but every one of them started a band.

There's no denying how influential and important they are.

I think that mags just put out lists so we can all argue about them. My favorite is when there's a "best guitarist" type list and Jack White and Kurt Cobain are on it - it gets my husband all worked up. Amuses me.

As to what "indie" means, that can vary - independent label? independent approach to the record making (i.e., not a major producer)? independent marketing? Out of mainstream (whatever that means)? People consider everything from shoegazing to hardcore punk to be "indie" so it may not be very helpful. Just looking at the list here, we have Dead Kennedys and Feist - two completely different sounds under the same categorization.

I think the next list should be "Top 100 Interpretations of Indie Music."

Wow! What a list!

I love The Strokes

I'm so glad to see the Replacements on there.Let it be is such a great album.Le Tigre is good too.Alot of bands on there I don't consider indie and there are alot of great indie bands out there.

Based on this list, I guess what I consider indie rock is not what is mainstream indie rock. Dang -- some of that stuff is neither indie nor rock or not both..... Oh well....

Death cab for cutie songs are great...
fountains of wayne, the strokes, modest mouse...

oh this is great! now i at least have a point of reference to go to when i want to explore some bands i haven't listened to but always heard about.

Or maybe Whiplash can do her own list? I definitely trust your opinion!

Okay, now that I've had time to really peruse this list (I checked from my phone last night and it was hard to read and type) I can see which I own.

98. Palace Music - Viva Last Blues
96. TV On The Radio - Return To Cookie Mountain
90. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam
89. Art Brut - Bang Bang Rock & Roll
87. Wolf Parade - Apologies To The Queen Mary
80. Feist - The Reminder
79. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
78. The 13th Floor Elevators - The Psychedelic Sounds Of The 13th Floor Elevators
77. Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
76. Le Tigre - Le Tigre
75. Galaxie 500 - Today
72. The Mountain Goats - We Shall All Be Healed
71. Stereolab - Refried Ectoplasm
69. Nick Drake - Pink Moon
64. Cat Power - The Greatest
61. LCD Soundsystem - LCD Soundsystem
60. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
59. Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine
58. Built To Spill - There's Nothing Wrong With Love
56. Archers Of Loaf - Icky Mettle
52. Bright Eyes - Lifted Or The Story Is In The Soil, Keep Your Ear To The Ground
51. Interpol - Turn On The Bright Lights
50. Rilo Kiley - More Adventurous
49. Spoon - Kill The Moonlight
48. Mission Of Burma - Vs.
46. Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand
40. New Order - Power Corruption & Lies
39. Pavement - Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain
38. The Strokes - Is This It
37. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Fever To Tell
36. Elliott Smith - Either/Or
35. Liz Phair - Exile In Guyville
33. The Shins - Oh, Inverted World
32. Neutral Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea
31. Guided By Voices - Bee Thousand
30. Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
28. The Magnetic Fields - 69 Love Songs
27. M.I.A. - Arular
26. Belle And Sebastian - If You're Feeling Sinister
25. Sebadoh - III
24. The New Pornographers - Mass Romantic
23.Yo La Tengo - Painful
21. The Modern Lovers - The Modern Lovers
20. The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday
19. Sleater-Kinney - Dig Me Out
18. Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures
17. The White Stripes - White Blood Cells
16. Slint - Spiderland
13. Hüsker Dü - Zen Arcade
12. Dinosaur Jr - You're Living All Over Me
10. The Smiths - The Smiths
9. Big Star - Third/Sister Lovers
8. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless
7. The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground
6. Arcade Fire - Funeral
5. Pixies - Surfer Rosa
4. R.E.M. - Murmur
3. The Replacements - Let It Be
2. Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation
1. Pavement - Slanted And Enchanted

Yikes. That's kind of a lot.

Ha, nicachica! Maybe later on I'll post my own list!

Wow to Rilo making it in the Top 50 - awesome. I really would have thought that Interpol would have ranked higher.. ?

i think rilo kiley should have been ranked higher. Under the blacklight was such a good album, and their performances are so good. check this one out::

http://www.mtvu.com/video/?id=1574348

Smashing Pumpkins all the way!Gish rocks!

Joanna Newsom, anyone? The "The Milk-Eyed Mender" (Drag City) should have been in the Top 20.

Murmur above Loveless? Heck, Funeral above Loveless? Blasphemy.

i wasn't expecting to see the new pornographers (my favorite band everrrrrr) on there, but there they are, at #24.
yay for that but my incredulous feeling towards anything 'blender' remains forevermore.

Just to clarify this people, I believe when they say the best "indie rock" albums, they are using indie rock correctly. It didn't really become a genre until after a lot of these albums were released, and indie rock really means rock music released on an indie label. So yes, everything on this list actually is indie rock.