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Indie music scenes are localized, independent, music-oriented communities that exist in many countries, especially in North America, the United Kingdom, and Australia^{[citation needed]}. These have existed for decades now, in one way or another, but it is now commonplace for a city or town to have a punk scene, a metal scene, or many other scenes based on other forms of art. Indie music scenes became important in the early 1980s, when the rest of the country caught up with punk rock music from New York and London. Scenes are important in keeping indie and punk rock fresh and inventive, because it allows people from a wide audience to hear new independent music and contribute their own talents to it. Obviously, depending on what town one is in, the feel of the scene (and therefore the music that comes out of it) may change significantly.

Arguably, the 1980s indie scene in Washington D.C. was pivotal in changing the outcome of punk and indie rock for decades to come. Bands like Minor Threat, the Bad Brains, Fugazi, and Rites of Spring helped to shape the sound of underground music for years. Los Angeles was important around this time as well, producing bands like the Descendents, Bad Religion, and Black Flag.

Around the mid-1980s, as punk and New-Wave's mainstream influence died down considerably, there rose a couple of other important movements. Minneapolis was very important around this time. Bands like Hüsker Dü, and The Replacements would influence many alternative bands after them. People involved in these bands, such as Bob Mould and Paul Westerberg still contribute to the music scene today. During the late 1980s in the Bay Area of California, bands like Operation Ivy, Green Day, The Offspring, and later, Rancid would take form to give a new sound to punk rock. On the opposite end of the country, Frank Black, Kim Deal, and Kristin Hersh were forming bands like the Pixies, Throwing Muses, and eventually The Breeders. These bands would influence the next wave of alternative rock, which due to the massive mainstream success of grunge became divided into mainstream artists and a new wave of indie rock bands who rejected the mainstream in favor of the indie scene.

Contents 1 Indie scenes in North America 1.1 Canadian indie scenes 1.2 American indie scenes 1.2.1 East 1.2.2 Midwest 1.2.3 West 1.2.4 Southwest 2 Indie scenes in Britain 2.1 English indie scenes 2.2 Scottish indie scenes 2.3 Welsh indie scenes 3 Indie scenes in Australia & New Zealand 3.1 Australian Indie Scenes 3.2 New Zealand Indie Scenes

• Montreal, Quebec: Montreal is home to a very well developed indie scene, merging influences from Canada, France, the UK, and the United States in one city. In 2004, Pitchfork Media and Spin Magazine dubbed Montreal as North America's "Next Big Scene", due to bands such as Arcade Fire, The Unicorns, Land of Talk, Islands, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, The Stills, The Dears, Kiss Me Deadly, Wolf Parade, and Stars. In 2007, Shapes and Sizes relocated from British Columbia to Montreal. The city has produced notable acts such as Malajube, Les Breastfeeders, We Are Wolves, and Sunset Rubdown. Both the Osheaga Festival and Pop Montreal music festivals are hosted in the city.

• Toronto, Ontario: Toronto is home to the Canadian Music Week (CMW) and NXNE (North by Northeast) music festivals. North by Northeast is based on the more popular SXSW festival in Austin, Texas. The city is also home to indie record label Arts & Crafts and the now defunct Three Gut Records. Notable bands from the Toronto region include Death from Above 1979, Do Make Say Think, Gentleman Reg, Royal City, Jim Guthrie, Black Cat 13, Sick Lipstick, Born Ruffians, Cansecos, Metric, Constantines, as well as supergroup Broken Social Scene. The awareness of the Toronto indie scene is being publicized by websites such as Toronto Music Scene. Toronto is also the hometown of veteran rock legend, Neil Young. Dan Snaith of Caribou/Manitoba is also from nearby Dundas, Ontario.

• Vancouver/Victoria, British Columbia: British Columbia is home of the much revered Frog Eyes, You Say Party! We Say Die!, Destroyer, Swan Lake, Zumpano, The New Pornographers, A.C. Newman, D.O.A., Nomeansno, The Hanson Brothers, Skinny Puppy, Hot Hot Heat, Black Mountain, and Pink Mountaintops. Mint Records is based in Vancouver.

• Halifax, Nova Scotia: Back in the limelight more than a decade after Sloan and Eric's Trip first drew attention to it, Halifax is home to critics' favourites Joel Plaskett, Matt Mays and Jill Barber, as well as several renowned roots performers. With a new batch of artist-collective labels such as Dependent records emerging, the scene is thriving once again. The Halifax Pop Explosion is a notable music festival that takes place for two weeks every October after Canadian Thanksgiving.

• Athens, Georgia: Known for being the birthplace of R.E.M., The B-52's, and Pylon, with much of the scene focused around the famed 40 Watt Club. In later years, the area spawned many member bands of the Elephant 6 Recording Company, including Neutral Milk Hotel, The Olivia Tremor Control, and Of Montreal. While perhaps indie only in the "status" sense, Athens was also the home to the jam band Widespread Panic and producer/remixer Danger Mouse.

• Baltimore, Maryland: Although having to live in the shadow of Washington, D.C., Baltimore has forged its own distinct identity in the independent music scene. The city has spawned some of the following acts: Animal Collective, Dan Deacon, Lungfish, OXES, Spank Rock, OTR, and Cex. The city has played host to the Whartscape Music Festival and also the 2007 Virgin Music Festival.

• Brooklyn, New York: It's important to distinguish the Brooklyn's scene from its larger neighbor, Manhattan, to acknowledge the contribution made by this particular community. As high rents pushed artists out of Manhattan, many of them found a burgeoning scene just beyond the East River in Williamsburg. By 2002, artists such as the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Girls Against Boys, Liars, and Les Savy Fav, had gained national attention. Since then, numerous musical acts have emerged from or emigrated to Brooklyn. Some of these acts include: TV on the Radio, Bishop Allen, Say Hi To Your Mom, Enon, USAISAMONSTER, Oneida, Parts & Labor, Animal Collective, Japanther, Prurient, Ex Models, and Deadbeat Darling.

• Chapel Hill, North Carolina: Has had a strong indie rock scene since the 1980s. With three major colleges (UNC-Chapel Hill, N.C. State University and Duke University) in its vicinity, the area has been fertile ground for music. In the 1980s, the region saw the debut of bands like The Connells. Bands such as Superchunk, the Squirrel Nut Zippers, Archers of Loaf, Polvo, and Southern Culture on the Skids formed the core of the indie scene in the area in the 1990s. (The Ben Folds Five got their start in the area, as well, albeit slightly removed from the main indie scene.) Much of the activity in the scene focused on longtime indie club the Cat's Cradle (which relocated to adjacent Carrboro in 1993). Labels also emerged in the area, including Merge Records, founded by members of Superchunk, and the now-defunct Mammoth Records.

• Long Island, New York: The Long Island area has spawned a number of hardcore and emo bands. It is known for the hardcore band Glassjaw and emo band Taking Back Sunday and the indie band Brand New, each of whom signed major label contracts at around the same time. Other new age bands from Long Island include Crime in Stereo, Bayside, The Sleeping, Patent Pending, and From Autumn to Ashes.

• Newark, Delaware: The home of Jade Tree Records, formed in 1990 by Tim Owen and Darren Walters. Jade Tree started with bands such as Railhed, Walleye, Lifetime, and the short-lived DC band, Swiz. The label sat in obscurity for about 5 years until signing The Promise Ring in 1996. Since, Jade Tree has released countless albums from many staples of the indie rock scene. In the early to mid 90's there were countless shows at church halls and Girls Inc. Bands such as the Bouncing Souls, Plow United, boysetsfire, Network 34, Zen Guerrilla, The Crash, Wally and Ann Beretta frequented these spaces. Newark, Delaware and surrounding areas had become a hotbed (at least by Delaware standards) for traveling independent bands who are typically booking their own tours. Remarkably, for as small as the state of Delaware is, there exists a wide diversity of indie groups and sub-groups. Unfortunately the destruction that frequently attended punk and hardcore shows in the late Eighties and early Nineties has limited the number of willing venues in the area. Many venues have chosen to restrict their musical offerings to cover bands. The handful of indie-friendly venues that do offer live and original music typically admit only those attendees who are over 18 years old. Some of the venues who have historically offered opportunities for indie bands are the East End Cafe, the Pale Dog Tavern, Bank Shots (multiple locations), Rox's Bar and Grill in Wilmington, and Mojo 13 in Claymont. Many of the people who book shows at the clubs will give a new band a chance on their bill, but booking in general tends to be restricted to acquaintances.

• Manhattan, New York: This scene was hugely important in the late 1970s, when the punk rock/new wave scene exploded. Centered around the CBGBs venue, bands such as Talking Heads, Ramones, Blondie, and Television were spawned. Always a contender, it has been cited as a major scene for recent indie rock music with such bands as Interpol, Asobi Seksu, We Are Scientists, The Essex Green, The Bravery, and The Strokes. It continues to be a haven for Noise music. One example is the record label Ecstatic Peace, started by Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth.

• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Although better known as a hip hop/soul town. Philadelphia's contributions to the indie scene cannot go unnoticed. In the early 2000s, the music and art collective known as the Looking Glass Workshop gained notoriety with groups such as the Echo Orbiter alongside many other musicians, artists, photographers, actors, and directors. Philadelphia has been home to indie acts such as The Delta 72, Man Man, Need New Body, Zen Guerrilla, Matt Pond PA, and Bardo Pond. Enon and The Walkmen have also had members relocate to Philadelphia as high rents have pushed them out of New York City. Magnet magazine was created in Philly in 1993 and continues to be published in the City of Brotherly Love.

• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: While colleges such as the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University annually bring in many new students, the region's depressed economy makes it difficult to attract and retain the young people necessary to sustain a thriving music scene. Nonetheless, significant contributions to indie rock have been made by the likes of Don Caballero, The Karl Hendricks Trio, Dirty Faces, Modey Lemon, Grand Buffet, Anti-Flag, Punchline, Girl Talk, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Midnight Snake, The Cynics, and Gil Mantera's Party Dream.

• Providence, Rhode Island: (especially the West Side/ Olneyville) Is most famously known for its local experimental noise scene including bands such as Lightning Bolt, Arab on Radar, Daughters, Six Finger Satellite, The Chinese Stars, Mindflayer, The Juan MacLean, The White Mice, Tiny Hawks, and more. Most of the scene was originally focused around the warehouse disctrict with collectives such as Fort Thunder, The Pink Rabbit, and Redrum. One of the mainstays in the area is the alternative arts venue downtown known as AS220. Providence once was home to a notorious record shop known as In Your Ear and Armaggeddeon Shop is also known to support the local music community there. Prior to moving to Brooklyn, acts such as Prurient, USAISAMONSTER, and Les Savy Fav resided in Providence.

• Washington, DC: The DC area has also re-emerged as a hotbed of indie music. The area gained notoriety in the 1980s when it became one of the flagship cities of the American hardcore punk movement, with bands such as Minor Threat, Government Issue, Rites of Spring and Bad Brains. All of these bands were on Minor Threat frontman Ian MacKaye's own record label, Dischord Records. Several newer bands have gained popularity since the rise of MacKaye's later band Fugazi, including Q and Not U, Black Eyes, Decahedron, Dead Meadow, and The Evens, Make Up: Who have inspired many local DC bands such as pg. 99, Crestfallen, Haram, Reactor No. 7, Majority Rule and many others who are all just as equal and talented because they're all helping make the Washington, DC area a major factor in the indie rock movement.

• Chicago: Chicago has become known for indie rockers following in the paths of the Smashing Pumpkins, Urge Overkill, Wilco, and The Jesus Lizard; bands like Califone, OK Go, Andrew Bird and Umphrey's McGee hail from the city. Matthew and Eleanor Friedberger of The Fiery Furnaces, who now reside in Brooklyn, New York are originally from Oak Park, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Chicago is also home to many independent labels like Thrill Jockey, Drag City, and others, and to the popular music-news website Pitchfork Media.

• Bloomington, Indiana: Bloomington, Indiana is the home of Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music. The school and the surrounding areas have produced numerous indie bands of note with DIY Punk influences, including Acoustic Folk-Punk bands Defiance, Ohio (band), This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb, Ghost Mice, all of which have recorded on Plan It X Records and play at the annual Plan It X Fest. Other remarkable artists includeMatty Pop Chart (Matt Tobey), and his sister Erin Tobey. Both Matt and Erin have recorded with Plan It X Records as solo artists and also as members of Abe Froman (band). Lo-fi musician Elephant Micah, from Richmond, Indiana, resides in Bloomington.

• Murfreesboro, Tennessee: About forty minutes south of Nashville, Murfreesboro is a current hotbed for college music. The town is home to Middle Tennessee State University's Recording Industry program in the Mass Communications department. The most notable band to make it from this scene, is the band Self. Spongebath Records, their label, was the heart of the scene and was eventually bought out by Dreamworks Nashville (music division of Dreamworks S.K.G. started by David Geffen). The scene shares much with the artists of Nashville, including Ben Folds, Jonathan Rice, and Be Your Own Pet. Several records shops have sprouted up in this area supplying the local scene with obscure records and slightly pretentious charm.

• Lawrence, Kansas: Home of the University of Kansas has a long tradition as an underground music haven. It is also home to the Wakarusa Music Festival, North vs. South Music Festival, Bleeding Kansas Festival, KJHK, and a vibrant downtown scene. The New York Times wrote, “It may only be rock 'n' roll, but Ghosty, the Appleseed Cast, the New Amsterdams and other young bands are playing it with such virtuosity that Lawrence is now perhaps the most vital music scene between Chicago and Denver.” Other active bands include White Whale, Ad Astra Per Aspera, Minus Story, the Old Canes, Big Stack Daddy, Guse, and Mates of State.

• Omaha, Nebraska: As of 2000, many new scenes are appearing on the radar in Middle America; all with unique sounds. One is the Omaha-based Saddle Creek Records, home to several highly regarded indie rock acts such as Bright Eyes and Cursive. Bright Eyes singer/songwriter and Omaha native Conor Oberst, who helped start the label, has been called the "King of Indie Rock" by Rolling Stone magazine. Elliott Smith was born here, but raised in Texas and rose to popularity in Portland.

• Louisville, Kentucky: Slint and Rodan come from Louisville, as well as the projects that arose from the breakups of these two bands: June of 44, Shipping News, Rachel's, The For Carnation, and others. The prolific musician Will Oldham with his various musical projects (Palace Brothers, Palace Music, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, etc.) comes from Louisville, as does My Morning Jacket.

• Williston, North Dakota: While the local bands themselves stay mainly on the "hardcore" side of things, in recent years local young promoters have brought some amazing acts in. Williston is known for its tour friendly attitude towards bands thought to come from its geographical isolation. The Williston scene has a close connection with the not too far Minneapolis scene, and is just part of the blossoming North Dakota Underground, which includes Minot, Bismarck, Grand Forks, and the Fargo/Moorehead area.

• Minneapolis, Minnesota: Minneapolis has been home to famous acts such as Low and Semisonic in the past, and is currently home to one of the larger local indie scenes in the midwest. Rising bands such as Tapes 'n Tapes and Halloween, Alaska are only the tip of the iceberg that is the Minneapolis indie scene, with the notable record label Afternoon Records at the helm of such development.

• Denver, Colorado: Denver has produced a scene sometimes labeled "country gothic" [1], [2] for its stark combinations of American country and gospel music with unusual or morbid lyrical themes. The approach ranges from solemn, sometimes wrenching religious contemplation by 16 Horsepower, twisted Americana murder ballads by Munly, to rollicking, drunken, apocalyptic Southern gospel by Slim Cessna's Auto Club, all of whom have released albums on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records. The Denver music scene has produced several now-respected musical groups, such as DeVotchKa, who were nominated for an Grammy award for their work on the Little Miss Sunshine soundtrack. Additionally, the Elephant 6 Collective has ties to Denver. Singer/songwriter Robert Schneider and his band The Apples In Stereo lived in Denver until recently. Parts of Neutral Milk Hotel's opus, In The Aeroplane Over The Sea were recorded in Denver with Schneider producing.

• Las Vegas*: The Las Vegas music scene consists mostly of underground indie rock, hard core, grind core, screamo, and various other modernized versions of alternative rock. Bands such as The Killers and Panic! at the Disco, who are often confused as indie but aren't really due to their major label status.

• Los Angeles: The L.A. indie scene rides the wave of gentrification through Eastside neighborhoods like Koreatown, Silverlake, and Echo Park, which have given rise to such bands as Moving Units, Autolux, Scarling. and Giant Drag.

• Portland, Oregon: Relatively recently has become a hot spot for indie bands, being the home of such acts as The Decemberists, The Shins, The Gossip, The Dandy Warhols, and the late Elliott Smith. Seattle-launched Modest Mouse and Sleater-Kinney eventually relocated to Portland, as did Stephen Malkmus.

• San Diego: In the past, it has bred its fair share of influential bands such as The Locust, The Black Heart Procession, and The Album Leaf.

• Seattle: The Seattle scene became popular in the early 1990s, when bands like Nirvana, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam and Screaming Trees found national success. This was unique since it signaled the first time in a long time that punk-influenece rock had become once again in vogue with the masses. During the 1990s, Seattle could be considered to have the most influential indie pop scene in the world. It is home to Tooth & Nail Records and Solid State Records.

• Austin, Texas: Austin is the host of the annual SXSW (South By South West) festival that showcases a large variety of independent artists across many different venues in the city. The city itself has spawned some of the following bands: Spoon, ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, Jeff Klein, Ian Moore, Goudie, Canvas, Pushmonkey,Zykos, Okkervil River, Butthole Surfers, Scratch Acid, Big Boys, Alpha Rev, Voxtrot, The Black Angels, Ghostland Observatory, Daniel Johnston, David Garza, The Sword and Shearwater. Austin is home to Misra Records.

• Denton, Texas: In the last 20 years Denton's music culture has grown beyond the rigorous and disciplined world of University of North Texas' College of Music. In 2004 and 2005, the roster of the town's performing and touring indie music acts remained between 90 and 100, a high number considering the town's 2000 U.S. census population figure of only 80,537 people. Notable indie bands from Denton include: Lift to Experience, Centro-Matic, Brutal Juice, the Baptist Generals, Midlake, Spoonfed Tribe, the Marked Men, South San Gabriel, and Bosque Brown. Although not quite "indie rock", Denton has also produced unconventional acts such as Brave Combo and Corn Mo, as well as notable producer and promoter DJ Nature, all contributing to the overall scene. Denton's music culture makes the smaller town Texas' only other city, outside of Austin, that could claim such a title as music town, a reflection of city's own creative and progressive dominant cultural base.

• Norman, Oklahoma: Norman is Oklahoma's largest college town and boasts more than its fair share of indie talent. Bands that have emerged from Norman include The Flaming Lips, Chainsaw Kittens, Starlight Mints, and Evangelicals. Norman's premiere indie music venue, The Opolis, is run by members of the Starlight Mints.

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• Liverpool: (See Liverpool music scene). Famous for producing Echo & the Bunnymen and The Teardrop Explodes during the post-punk era, and has recently fostered bands such as The Zutons and The Coral both under local label Deltasonic and Hot Club De Paris, Ladytron.
• Birmingham: notably Grebo (Pop Will Eat Itself, Ned's Atomic Dustbin, The Wonder Stuff ) plus scene surrounding The Jug of Ale bands including rumblefish, Ocean Colour Scene. More recently produced Editors and The Twang.
• Coventry: With emerging bands such as The Ripps, Broken Dolls, and most notably The Enemy (English band), [3] coming from Coventry. This has led to the subsequent resserection of Stiff Records, a record label that launched Elvis Costello and many notable punk acts in the late 70's. These bands have emerged from the glorious shadow cast by Coventry's The Specials who were undoubtedly one of the major forces in the British music scene in the 70's and early eighties.
• London: Notably the The Scene That Celebrates Itself, Thamesbeat, Jamie T, M.I.A., New Young Pony Club and Whitechapel scenes.
• Manchester: Since the advent of punk rock, Manchester's indie scene has yielded seminal groups such as Joy Division, New Order, The Smiths and The Fall. Famous for the Madchester scene in the late 80's led by Factory Records artists The Stone Roses, James, and The Happy Mondays. The Madchester scene heavily influenced the city's Britpop scene which included Oasis, The Verve and Doves. Singer-songwriters Badly Drawn Boy and Jim Noir operate from the suburb of Chorlton.
• North East: Produced post-punk revivalists The Futureheads from Sunderland and Maxïmo Park from Newcastle upon Tyne. Pete Doherty comes from Hexham.
• Yorkshire (Notably Leeds and Sheffield): Sheffield is best known in indie circles for the band Pulp and its frontman Jarvis Cocker. Several members of Mercury Prize winners Gomez studied at Sheffield University. The rise of Arctic Monkeys has paved the way for new bands such as Milburn, Little Man Tate, The Long Blondes, The Dodgems, 65daysofstatic, Reverend and the Makers and Firegarden. Not as prolific as Sheffield, Leeds has still produced notable indie acts such as Kaiser Chiefs, The Music, ¡Forward, Russia!, Hadouken!, The Pigeon Detectives and The Wedding Present. These post-millennium bands are associated with the New Yorkshire scene by NME.
• Brighton: (See Popular music of Brighton).

• Glasgow

Bands like Franz Ferdinand, Biffy Clyro, Belle and Sebastian, Mogwai, My Latest Novel, The Fratellis, The Yummy Fur, Camera Obscura, Aereogramme, The Jesus and Mary Chain, 1990s plus many more.

• Dundee

Bands like Snow Patrol, The View plus many more underground ones..

• Cardiff

Bands such as Los Campesinos!, Mclusky, Future of the Left, Space In the 80's, Gethin Pearson & the Scenery, Halflight, The Victorian English Gentlemens Club and established acts such as Stereophonics, Manic Street Preachers, Feeder and The Automatic have all come from Cardiff.

• Melbourne: (See Culture of Melbourne). One of the largest independent music scenes outside of North America, abundance of venues such as The Evelyn, The Espy, The Corner, The Tote, Pony, Bar Open, Roxanne Parlour, The Arthouse, Trades Hall, Brown Alley, The Laundry, and many others. The city hosts an abundance of independent labels, a vast street press & community radios such as PBS & 3RRR. Some artists to emerge from Melbourne's indie scene into the mainstream include Augie March, Architecture in Helsinki, Grinderman, H!rtdog, Dan Kelly and the Alpha Males, My Disco, British India, Midnight Juggernauts, Cut Copy & Something For Kate. Melbourne is also known for its many alternative/indie clubs such as Bang, Next, Click Click, Bootleg, amongst many others, featuring the popular format of live music before midnight and DJs after midnight.

• Brisbane: (See Popular entertainment in Brisbane). Known for its venues in Fortitude Valley such as The Troubadour, The Zoo, Rics Cafe, The Arena, The Tivoli, The Empire Hotel and The Press Club and its abundance of punk rock bands such as Run Amok.

• Auckland: Famous for popular indie band Mint Chicks.