You couldn't loop Band of Horses toping the indie Billborad charts with the "death of indie rock," which seems to be a growing sentiment lately. After all, they are #1 on the INDEPENDENT charts. Lest you think that's no small feat, Cease to Begin narrowly beat out Mannheim Steamroller, who had to settle for #2, as well as beating out the likes of Elliott Yamin and Travis Tritt. To give you an even better idea of the company they share, after Steamroller, Dashboard Confessional (indepnedent?), the Hairspray soundtrack, and Iron and Wine round out the top 5. Another debut, Beirut, landed the #9 spot. Which begs the question, who the #!*$! is buying all these Beirut albums?! I mean, I love the guys and think Condon is on the brink of genius, but when did French chamber pop and gypsy-folk become so cool? Sure, it's pretty music but it's obvious that the hype machine has been a generous friend to Beirut. I guarantee you at the next Beirut show you attend, you'll see plenty of frat boys -the same frat boys who've been living off Nickleback, Jimmy Eat World, and Nine Inch Nails the past 10 years. Not that there is anything wrong with these bands...well, Nickleback. Included in the top 20 are Spoon and the excellent Once soundtrack.
And if you're wondering where band of Horses land in the Billboard's top 200, they're at #35. That's unbelievable as well. Beirut came in as #118 -still one of the top 5 indie-rock albums. But how did Band of Horses -or when- did they get so big? I think it's great for the congenial kids from South Carolina. Their music is excellent and it's nice to see it getting the appreciation it deserves.
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