2. The Reliance On Legends
As stated, there are very few indie bands coming through these days. Are we though, looking to the next Vaccines record as a beacon of hope for its genre? No. We're too busy asking Blur and Stone Roses if they're working on new stuff, and trying to cajole a "maybe" out of Noel Gallagher for the Oasis reunion. Indie-rock is supposedly a young genre, so how is it supposed to survive when we're only mounting more pressure on the legends to deliver new records? It should be up-and-coming upstarts like the Palma Violets and Viva Brother that are carrying the torch, though the less said about the latter, the better. It's not just indie-rock; Eminem and Jay-Z are over forty, Beyonce and Justin Timberlake aren't young and exciting anymore, and there's not a lot filling the void left by these artists. You'd be forgiven for getting the feeling though, that in indie, this bunch of dad-bands are the last of the old guard, touring one last time before the industry collapses; not inspiring the next generation, but lapping for the nostalgia-soaked pleasure of those that saw them the first time round. That might not be entirely true, but it's not as if there are many rising stars proving it so.