Fandom

Unlike fans of Justin Bieber...



... Indie music fans seem to be a bit more relaxed and there is less hype and sense of "fandom" amongst them...

“Wearing jeans with Converse high tops, a retro tee, a skinny tie, and a linen blazer is one way an indie can up the fashion stakes.”

Instead of crying fans and car chasing madness- Indie fans look to fashion to bring about a sense of dedication to their music brand.

For example, http://bobnbee.com/en/ is a site used by an Indie fashion blogger in New York, it advertises new styles and also introduces new bands.

I think that Indie fandom is centred around image and lifestyle rather than obsessing or following around the actual band themself because most Indie bands are niche and unknown and the mainstream successful ones like Kings of Leon do things like spark controversy within their own fan group...

"Kings of Leon caused minor controversy at the 2009 Reading Festival when Caleb Followill tried to get the crowd going by asking, "I thought this was supposed to be the loudest crowd in the world?" Picking up on a perceived hostility towards the band, he announced "we know you're sick of Kings of Leon, so for all those who don't give a fuck about us, I understand. But we've worked fucking hard to get here. So anyone that has anything to say to us, fuck you. We're the goddamn Kings of Leon." The band later smashed their guitars in anger and made rude gestures before leaving the stage."
(http://www.nme.com/news/nme/47008)

Indie bands, like the Kings of Leon, don't perfect their image as much as stars like Justin Bieber, who has a large fanbase of teenage girls, because they simply don't need or want to. When I saw Kings of Leon at the V festival last year, they were a good hour late to the stage and the crowd were drunk and annoyed but by the time they got on and played "Use Somebody" nobody really cared anymore because we were there for the music and the music only- not for the band members or any individual.

With Indie fans, I guess the nearest they get to some form of "fandom" is the festivals. Huge gatherings of teenagers dressed in indie style, living up to the lifestyle those clothes demand of them- the drink, the smoke, the music, the dancing etc.

However, fandom is when a fan becomes obsessive and the object of that affection is a celebrity- who is usually completely unattainable. And that fandom works both ways as celebrities such as Lady GaGa reach out to fans in turn, making the fans feel wanted and complete. These sort of artists, GaGa and Bieber, give into their publicity and exposure and they increase their own fandom.

Indie artists work from the inside-out, they rely on word of mouth, they don't really care that much about their fans- supposedly they are in this business for the music they produce, and so, their fans should be too.