"The Countermelodies that Changed Us: A Lifetime of Loving Indigo Girls"
May 23, 2020 7:32 PM Subscribe
Some really nice writing in here. I'm in the target population of this piece (90s 20something, "generations of guitar-strumming camp counselors and rootsy stoners of all ages and genders, as well as the global Sapphists who loved them from the beginning, have sung along to the Indigo Girls' expansive songbook by heart)" and definitely feel seen. I have a lot of memories of this group. One of them is feeling, in the earliest years, like finally there was something for us in the world of folky singer-songwriters. They were distinctively not Boomers and not about or for a Boomer audience. Their lyrics described the lives my friends and I were leading, our "increasing confusion" and alternating groundedness and alienation of our young lives. The musicological thesis here is good too, helping me better understand what makes them distinctive.
posted by Miko at 6:19 AM on May 24, 2020 [8 favorites]
posted by Miko at 6:19 AM on May 24, 2020 [8 favorites]
Thanks for posting this. As I was cleaning house recently I decided I HAD to change framed art etc and found my Honor the Earth poster which I acquired on the tour in Santa Monica — I ha e about 6 of the posters still in the brown sleeve with my name on it as I was to distribute the posters. I was very lucky to be involved with the production company and was tasked with being the IG’s “security.” I recall being yelled at when I was caught asking Amy and Emily for their autographs on my access pass lanyard and Amy telling my boss to chill as she signed — she drew a little car too because I had been also tasked with running around LA to find the things they wanted in their dressing room.
Anyway I have been a big fan since the mid-80s and this article has reminded me how much I love so many of their older LPs (I adore every note of Swamp Ophelia).
Just before this pandemic — in fact the last social gathering we had — my friend Lisa and I sang Closer to Fine at the top of our lungs without a lyric sheet and we both smiled and laughed so hard. Miss that.
Power or Two still makes me cry.
posted by terrapin at 8:59 AM on May 24, 2020 [9 favorites]
Anyway I have been a big fan since the mid-80s and this article has reminded me how much I love so many of their older LPs (I adore every note of Swamp Ophelia).
Just before this pandemic — in fact the last social gathering we had — my friend Lisa and I sang Closer to Fine at the top of our lungs without a lyric sheet and we both smiled and laughed so hard. Miss that.
Power or Two still makes me cry.
posted by terrapin at 8:59 AM on May 24, 2020 [9 favorites]
That was a great article, but if you just skim it you may miss the real 'lede here - they released a new album last week!
posted by COD at 9:47 AM on May 24, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by COD at 9:47 AM on May 24, 2020 [3 favorites]
I am annoyed that the woman who introduced me to The Indigo Girls turned out to be kind of awful, so "Power of Two," while a beautiful song, will never work for me, personally. It's sad. It is a really beautiful song.
posted by Alterscape at 7:30 PM on May 24, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Alterscape at 7:30 PM on May 24, 2020 [1 favorite]
Some of the warmest memories I have were set to a soundtrack of the Indigo Girls.
I remember, a bunch of the senior staff of the Dean campaign had gotten this huge house together... there must have been at least 8 of us there. The primary calendar had a couple slow spots in 2003, and we thought, hey, let's have a dinner party! So we bought all sorts of stuff and roasted and basted and whatever.
Dinner was great. There must have been 20 people. We didn't have enough surfaces to sit on. People just sat on the floor. We all felt a real sense of togetherness that's hard when politics thrusts strangers together in strange cities, especially one as remote as Burlington, Vermont.
And after dinner, I plugged my laptop into speakers and put on a playlist. The first song was "Closer to Fine."
Everyone spontaneously broke into song. I mean everyone. Every single person knew the song, word-for-word, note-for-note. All the doors and windows were open, and I'm certain you could hear us for a couple blocks. A warm summer night with young, hopeful kids belting out a favorite tune.
There are moments when you know that you've found your people, and you're not alone. That's one of mine.
posted by kochbeck at 9:03 PM on May 25, 2020 [5 favorites]
I remember, a bunch of the senior staff of the Dean campaign had gotten this huge house together... there must have been at least 8 of us there. The primary calendar had a couple slow spots in 2003, and we thought, hey, let's have a dinner party! So we bought all sorts of stuff and roasted and basted and whatever.
Dinner was great. There must have been 20 people. We didn't have enough surfaces to sit on. People just sat on the floor. We all felt a real sense of togetherness that's hard when politics thrusts strangers together in strange cities, especially one as remote as Burlington, Vermont.
And after dinner, I plugged my laptop into speakers and put on a playlist. The first song was "Closer to Fine."
Everyone spontaneously broke into song. I mean everyone. Every single person knew the song, word-for-word, note-for-note. All the doors and windows were open, and I'm certain you could hear us for a couple blocks. A warm summer night with young, hopeful kids belting out a favorite tune.
There are moments when you know that you've found your people, and you're not alone. That's one of mine.
posted by kochbeck at 9:03 PM on May 25, 2020 [5 favorites]
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posted by mustard seeds at 7:44 PM on May 23, 2020