What Exactly Was Brooklyn's Indie Rock Scene?

"You could go anywhere in America and argue with some success for the cultural impact wrought by most of the once-subcultural stars of Lizzy Goodman's oral history of New York's post-9/11 rock scene, 'Meet Me In The Bathroom.' Or, for God's sake, Jeff Chang's history of hip-hop, 'Can't Stop Won't Stop.' But to explain this era to someone who hasn't devoted their psyche or youth to 'indie rock,' you'd need to spend a whole dinner, and maybe a few drinks afterwards, justifying why the tentpole events that 'Us v. Them' returns to multiple times in its 300-page run mean anything."

"You mean to some people, seeing Jay-Z and Beyoncé at a Grizzly Bear show in Williamsburg was like seeing Blondie debut at Max's Kansas City? OK, but why are people still podcasting about it (to promote a whole other book, no less)?"

Ronen Givony's 'Us v. Them: The Age of Indie Music and a Decade in New York (2004-2014)' examines the millennial indie rock scene in Brooklyn during a specific era. The review highlights a fundamental challenge in writing cultural histories: while comparable works like Lizzy Goodman's 'Meet Me In The Bathroom' and Jeff Chang's 'Can't Stop Won't Stop' document significant subcultural movements, explaining their relevance to uninitiated audiences proves difficult. The book repeatedly references pivotal moments—such as Jay-Z and Beyoncé appearing at a Grizzly Bear show in Williamsburg—that hold deep meaning for devoted indie rock enthusiasts but may seem obscure or insignificant to general readers unfamiliar with the scene's context and history.

Read at Hell Gate