2004: The Year Indie Rock Broke

Indie invades the TV screens and theaters of America, as shows including The O.C. and Gilmore Girls, and films like Garden State, make indie a huge part of their personality. Includes interviews with showrunners, bands, and licensing pros. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Revisiting the origins of late Gen X indie rock in the '90s and '00s, focused on what was happening at the turn of the century in Seattle with Sub Pop and Barsuk, Canada with a whole slew of bands who'd end up on lots of different labels, Omaha with Saddle Creek, and the bands on Merge out of Durham, North Carolina through interviews with the bands and labels doing it all. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Being an indie rock fan in 2004 meant hearing your favorite indie band on a McDonald’s ad, not being able to get into shows, and seeing your DIY fave on MTV. How did we get here? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Coming September 23, 2026. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices