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Routine Malaise: 2000s Indie Pop Playlist

Indie pop is bliss.

Indie pop is an exceptionally varied genre, but has a distinct sound that sets it apart from similar genres. Chief among these distinctions is the emphasis on traditional pop song structures, but with more creative production choices. Indie pop can also be deeper and more thoughtful than traditional pop.

The 2000s were a truly great decade for the genre, seeing an explosion of popularity and innovation.

Below is an unranked (but thoughtfully sequenced) playlist of some of my favorite indie pop songs from the 2000s. The embedded playlist at the top is only a preview; if you're interested, you can listen to the full playlist on my Spotify (NimzoWolfe is my handle).

Cheers!

1.  Florence + The Machine - Dog Days are Over  ||  Indie Pop, Art Pop, Pop Rock  ||  2008  ||  UK

2.  Eels - Flyswatter  ||  Indie Pop  ||  2000  ||  USA

3. Coldplay - Viva La Vida  ||  Chamber Pop, Art Pop  ||  2008  ||  UK

4.  Feist - Mushaboom  ||  Indie Pop, Folk Pop, Singer/Songwriter  ||  2004  ||  Canada

5. Get Well Soon - If This Hat Is Missing I Have Gone Hunting  ||  Indie Pop, Chamber Pop, Indie Folk  ||  2008  ||  Germany

6. Sufjan Stevens - Chicago  ||  Indie Pop, Chamber Pop  ||  2005  ||  USA

7. The Format - She Doesn't Get It  ||  Indie Pop, Power Pop  ||  2006  ||  USA

8. The Gothic Archies - Smile! No One Cares How You Feel  ||  Indie Pop, Bubblegum Gothic  ||  2006  ||  USA

9. The Shins - Saint Simon  ||  Indie Pop  ||  2003  ||  USA

10. Antònia Font - Batiscafo Katiuscas  ||  Indie Pop  ||  2006  ||  Spain

11. ANOHNI and the Johnsons - Hope There's Someone  ||  Chamber Pop, Singer/Songwriter  ||  2005  ||  USA  

12. Richard Hawley - Open Up Your Door  ||  Singer/Songwriter, Chamber Pop  ||  2009  ||  UK

13. Girls - Lust for Life  ||  Indie Pop, Indie Rock  ||  2009  ||  USA

14. Belle & Sebastian - Another Sunny Day  ||  Indie Pop, Chamber Pop, Indie Rock  ||  2006  ||  UK

15. Andrew Bird - Fake Palindromes  ||  Chamber Pop, Singer/Songwriter  ||  2005  ||  USA

16. DeVotchKa - How It Ends  ||  Chamber Pop, Art Rock  ||  2004  ||  USA

17. Bat for Lashes - Daniel  ||  Art Pop, Indie Pop  ||  2009  ||  UK

18. Death Cab for Cutie - New Year  ||  Indie Pop, Indie Rock  ||  2003  ||  USA

19. Belle & Sebastian - Wrapped Up in Books  ||  Indie Pop, Twee Pop  ||  2003  ||  UK

20. Sufjan Stevens - The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades Is Out to Get Us!  ||  Indie Pop, Chamber Pop  ||  2005  ||  USA

21. Liekki - Veit omasi lentoon  ||  Indie Pop  ||  2003  ||  Finland

22. Modest Mouse - The World at Large  ||  Indie Rock, Indie Pop  ||  2005  ||  USA

23. The Unicorns - Tuff Ghost  ||  Indie Rock, Indie Pop  ||  2003  ||  Canada

24. Mother Mother - O My Heart  ||  Indie Rock, Indie Pop  ||  2008  ||  Canada

25. Sufjan Stevens - Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois  ||  Indie Pop, Chamber Pop  ||  2005  ||  USA

26. Eels - Blinking Lights (for Me)  ||  Indie Pop  ||  2005  ||  USA

27. The Essex Green - The Late Great Cassiopia  ||  Indie Pop, Chamber Pop  ||  2003  ||  USA 

28. Passion Pit - Moth's Wings  ||  Indie Pop  ||  2009  ||  USA

29. The Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition  ||  Indie Pop, Indie Rock  ||  2009  ||  Australia

30. Passion Pit - Sleepyhead  ||  Indie Pop  ||  2009  ||  USA

31. Blue Sky Black Death - Movements  ||  Trip Hop, Indie Pop  ||  2008  ||  USA

32. Flotation Toy Warning - Happy 13  ||  Neo-Psychedelia, Indie Pop  ||  2004  ||  UK

33. Andrew Bird - Dark Matter  ||  Chamber Pop, Singer/Songwriter  ||  2007  ||  USA

34. Sia - Breathe Me  ||  Chamber Pop, Singer/Songwriter  ||  2004  ||  Australia

35. Big Sir - Lisa's Theme  ||  Indie Pop, Trip Hop  ||  2000  ||  USA

36. Stars - Your Ex-Lover Is Dead  ||  Chamber Pop, Indie Pop  ||  2005  ||  Canada

37. Ashram - Maria and the Violin's String  ||  Chamber Pop, Neoclassical Darkwave  ||  2006  ||  Italy

38. The Decemberists - The Crane Wife 3  ||  Indie Pop, Folk Rock, Indie Folk  ||  2006  ||  USA

39. Kante - Zombi  ||  Indie Pop  ||  2004  ||  Germany

40. Death Cab for Cutie - Summer Skin  ||  Indie Pop, Indie Rock  ||  2005  ||  USA

41. Casiotone for the Painfully Alone - New Year's Kiss  ||  Indie Pop, Indietronica  ||  2006  ||  USA

42. Beach House - Gila  ||  Dream Pop, Indie Pop  ||  2008  ||  USA

43. Destroyer - Painter in Your Pocket  ||  Chamber Pop, Singer/Songwriter  ||  2006  ||  Canada

44. Sigur Rós - Hoppípolla  ||  Dream Pop, Chamber Pop, Post-Rock  ||  2005  ||  Iceland

45. of Montreal - Suffer for Fashion  ||  Neo-Psychedelia, Indie Pop  ||  2007  ||  USA

46. The Notwist - Pilot  ||  Indie Pop, Indietronica  ||  2002  ||  Germany

47. Death Cab for Cutie - Expo '86  ||  Indie Pop, Indie Rock  ||  2003  ||  USA

48. The Shins - New Slang  ||  Indie Pop  ||  2001  ||  USA

49. Guillemots - Made Up Love Song #43  ||  Chamber Pop  ||  2006  ||  UK

50. Sarah Blasko - All I Want  ||  Indie Pop, Singer/Songwriter  ||  2009  ||  Australia

51. Sweet Trip - Air Supply  ||  Dream Pop, Indie Pop  ||  2009  ||  USA

52. Arcade Fire - Rebellion (Lies)  ||  Indie Rock, Chamber Pop  ||  2004  ||  Canada

53. Winterpills - A Benediction  ||  Indie Pop  ||  2005  ||  USA

54. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - As I Sat Sadly By Her Side  ||  Chamber Pop, Singer/Songwriter  ||  2001  ||  Australia

55. The Decemberists - Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect  ||  Indie Pop, Folk Rock, Indie Folk  ||  2002  ||  USA

56. Grizzly Bear - Two Weeks  ||  Indie Pop, Psychedelic Pop  ||  2009  ||  USA

57. MGMT - Time to Pretend  ||  Indietronica, Indie Pop, Psychedelic Pop  ||  2008  ||  USA

58. The xx - Intro  ||  Alt-Pop, Indie Pop  ||  2009  ||  UK

59. Tegan and Sara - Walking With a Ghost  ||  Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Pop Rock  ||  2004  ||  Canada

60. Caribou - She's the One  ||  Indie Pop, Neo-Psychedelia, Downtempo  ||  2007  ||  Canada

61. Phoenix - Lisztomania  ||  Indie Pop, Pop Rock  ||  2009  ||  France

62. St. Vincent - Just the Same but Brand New  ||  Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Neo-Psychedelia  ||  2009  ||  USA

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