Alternative Nation: The Fediverse's Alternative and Indie Music Community

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Alternative Nation : The Fediverse's largest alternative and indie music community! All things alternative music, from 80s college rock to today's indie and all the amazing alternative music in between. Welcome home, music nerds!

Some of y'all may remember MTV's Alternative Nation or 120 Minutes, awesome programs & incredible ways to discover #music back in the 80s & 90s...

Welcome, to the Fediverse edition!

🎵🎧🎶

Subscribe, share, & chat!

Share youtube, songwhip, spotify, bandcamp links, music memes, album art, articles, whatever! But avoid links to directly download music (don't want to get Lemmy.world in trouble). Songwhip links always appreciated!

See this post on recs on how to post!

The Golden Rule: Music taste is subjective so don't be a gatekeeping asshole. There's no "bad music", only music you like or don't like.

We Are A Community: So no racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, or spam.

🎵 Let's get lost in the Fediverse's record store together! 🎶

Other Lemmy music communities to explore and support:

Where to find ren:

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
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HELLO & WELCOME to Alternative Nation, the Fediverse's largest alternative & indie music community!

We are all so happy you are here. You love music, we love music, and here we are, headphones on, in our own little world happily outside the mainstream while also supporting the growth of Lemmy, Kbin, & the Fediverse at large. 💕

Figured it was time to talk about recommendations on how to format your posts for maximum visibility & engagement and also let you know the different ways you can post to the community.

Sound good? Let's go!

. . .

☝️ POST FORMAT RECOMMENDATION 🔊🎵

Key word here is "recommendation". I don't think we need strict rules to post, but here's what I recommend:

  1. Band - Song or Album Title: At the very least, this should be included in your post title. Pretty standard way of identifying something. No worries about quotation marks, the text and the dash are more than enough. Obviously, if it's an article link, the article title would go here.

  2. [Description Brackets]: Totally up to you, but personally I've been enjoying adding [Fresh] if the song or album is pretty new within the last week or two or so, or adding [Stream] if it's a link to an album stream link on Songwhip. I also sometimes use brackets to indicate the source if it's an article like [BrooklynVegan]. Not a rule, I just think it's nice to give some cred out.

  3. Dates or small commentary after the title: Again, you do you. Year of release can be nice for older tracks & albums, or if you have a strong emotion about the album that you think needs to be in the title, go for it - though I think the caption section is probably best.

  4. Album Art/Image or Link?: Lemmy is set up to share an image or a link as the primary content. Personally, I love album art or a cool image of the artist and would rather share the link to the music, video, or article in the caption. Lemmy's auto-thumbnails seem hit or miss, so to me it makes a richer post. But again, you do you!

Great! But let's say you aren't posting from Lemmy or Kbin?

. . .

✌️ POSTING FROM MASTODON, FIREFISH, & OTHER FEDIVERSE MICROBLOGGING PLATFORMS 🔊🎶

While having a Lemmy/Kbin account is the best way to not miss any comments, you don't need to be on Lemmy to post here. By tagging "@[email protected]" in a Mastodon, Firefish (Calckey), or other federated microblogging platform post, you also actually post to our community! How cool is that!

But the format of your post can get real janky if you don't follow a certain format. My recommendation is set up your Mastodon et al post in the following way:

  1. Make the 1st line of the post the title like "Band - Song or Album Title" - no hashtags or account tags here, they get real messed up on Lemmy.

  2. After the line break from the title, include your caption and any links. Feel free to add hashtags in the caption area (I know people follow hashtags on Mastodon et al)

  3. Include "@[email protected]" in the post (just not in the first line, please). This is how the post gets posted here!

  4. Finally, I recommend adding an image to the post - this will be the thumbnail on Lemmy!

. . .

🤟 HAPPY LISTENING! 🎧

That's it y'all! Hope this helps. Please spread the word to all your alternative music fans here, on Mastodon, and even on Reddit. Let's build something special together.

Cheers,

ren 🌈💕

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submitted 10 hours ago* (last edited 10 hours ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
 
 

The recommendation algorithm served this band from LA up for me today. Solid track with distinct Siamese Dream vibes, perhaps? The EP they released in 2023, that this track is also on, is quite good.

They have apparently signed with Transgressive, so I would expect that an album is on the way.

Invidious link

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New track from Mr Bejar and co. New album coming in March.

Invidious link

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5 February is over and so is International Covers Day but I'll just sneak in one more.

Here's Sydney's Royel Otis with their version of the Sophile Ellis-Bextor hit, "Murder On the Dancefloor" It's catchy. So is the original, actually.

Thanks @[email protected] & @[email protected] for also contributing songs and thanks to commenters, too.

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submitted 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) by MelonYellow to c/[email protected]
 
 

Cover of "There She Goes" by The La's. Recorded for the soundtrack of So I Married an Axe Murderer (1993) starring Mike Myers.

I'm a fan of The Boo Radleys and didn't know they covered this (just watched the movie). I like it better than the original lol they picked up the tempo and it sounds less polished. :)

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This Argentinian band performs the A-Ha song in 2024 on a rooftop. I am a sucker for a good rooftop music video.

Invidious link

Post about International Covers Day

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Title and opening track from Bob Mould's upcoming album.

Invidious video link

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A regular of their live set, The Replacements perform this version in 2015 in London. Here's the original by The Only Ones.

Discogs says that a live recording of this cover version first appeared on disc in 1989.

For something completely different, here are The Coal Porters with their version.

Invidious link

Post about International Covers Day

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Here's a live version of a Beat Happening song that I first became aware of when it was released as a 7" single in 1993, backed with a cover of Ride Into The Sun by The Velvet Underground.

Invidious link

Post about International Covers Day

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From Shatner’s album Has Been (2004), produced by Ben Folds. Co-vocals are provided by Joe Jackson, of “Is She Really Going Out With Him?” and “Steppin’ Out” fame.

This version of Pulp’s indie classic, is the only cover on the album. Other tracks feature Henry Rollins, Aimee Mann, Lemon Jelly and more. It is somewhat good, surprisingly.

Invidious link

Post about International Covers Day

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"Baby Please Don't Go" - Amboy Dukes

WTF? This was the Nuge's old band? What a terrible human being that could have made something of his life.

https://youtu.be/sFlHwXOaoX0

@alternativenation

#Psychedelicrock #acidrock #hardrock #garage #garagerock #music #musodon #AmboyDukes #60srock #60s

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submitted 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
 
 

This song was performed live on the BBC show, Later…With Jools Holland in 1994. The track is from the debut Mazzy Star album, She Hangs Brightly, that I think is under-rated.

Some may not realise that this is a cover of the 1970's track that was written and recorded by an Anglo-German band, Slapp Happy.

Invidious link

Post about International Covers Day

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This is from the Australian TV show Rockwiz that was aired in 2014. The format of the show was each week, 2 artists get introduced and separately perform one of their own songs, then they captained teams consisting of audience members for several rounds of music related quiz questions. At the end of the show, they teamed up for a duet, cover version.

Invidious link

Post about International Covers Day

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submitted 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
 
 

Appearing on Nirvana's Incesticide, the song was written and performed by Glaswegians, The Vaselines. Their song Molly's Lips was also on Incesticide.

Invidious link

See this performance of Son Of A Gun on KEXP in 2010. Wikipedia tells me that Kurt Cobain named his daughter after Frances from The Vaselines.

Post about International Covers Day

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From a 1997 episode of a show hosted by David Byrne called Sessions at West 54th that I didn't know existed until today. This is a cover of The Flaming Lips song. I probably prefer the original version.

Invidious link

Post about International Covers Day

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I would listen to Tanya Donelly singing the lemmy.world Terms of Use page, so I couldn't pick only one Tanya related cover.

Headlining the post with a version of Bob Marley and the Wailers', Three Little Birds, which is a family affair with daughters on backing vocals and husband on percussion.

Here are some others (many are from her Bandcamp page):

Post about International Covers Day

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Belle and Sebastian cover version from last year.

According to Pitchfork:

Baker recorded the song with producer and multi-instrumentalist Calvin Lauber, Northern Irish folk artist Soak, and Alaskan singer-songwriter Quinn Christopherson…for the Red Hot Organization’s star-studded Transa compilation.

Invidious link

Post about International Covers Day

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A lovely version of the song by The Kinks,

Apparently, when this first emerged online, it was said to have been an unaired pilot for a VH1 TV show in 2000. However, this article tells the story differently.

I have never heard of Jon Brion before but it turns out he's done a bunch of stuff in music production and film soundtracks.

There are also covers of Jealous Guy by John Lennon and Nighttime by Big Star in this video.

Invidious link

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If you think covers are neat, then I recommend this here fine podcast

https://www.coverville.com/

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Won't you tell your dad get off my back? Tell him what we said 'bout Paint it Black

From this here CD -- Not The Singer But The Songs... An Alex Chilton Tribute (1991)

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Some people in Czech Republic have designated 5 February as International Covers Day.

I'm going to join in by posting some cover versions here, with the tag [covers25] in the title. Feel free to do the same.

From the link above:

International Covers Day is approaching again. Every year on February 5, everyone is welcome to celebrate the art of the cover version any way they see fit.

What is International Covers Day?

A celebration of creativity and artistic freedom. An opportunity to get to know music that was previously unknown. Across genres and countries.

What it isn’t?

A political act, a corporate PR event or a charity. “While I respect the good intentions of people who try to raise funds for charitable purposes through creative projects, I’d also like for there to be something that exists because someone doesn’t want anything from someone else and doesn’t tell them how others are suffering. A day dedicated to cover versions is a celebration of music and the emotions music gives us. No more, no less,” says Jana Kománková, the project’s creator.

Who’s behind it?

International Covers Day was founded in 2021 by Jana Kománková, a Czech music journalist and a DJ on Prague’s Radio 1 since 1993. She is the author of several books on music and works with a number of Czech and international media organisations. She takes joy in admiring covered songs and wants to share that.

Where do i find good covers?

Here is a playlist!

2025 update:

International Covers Day is here again. 5 February as usual.

On this day, Prague’s Radio 1 will be broadcasting cover versions all day long, stay tuned for program updates!

What else? Listen (and hum) all you want – the playlist has grown again.

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Look what you've started, @[email protected] I'll try not to spam the channel tooooo much.

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Don''t play it cheap

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Honestly, the entire Siren Song of the Counter Culture album deserves a listen (or re-listen, if you're a fan but it's been a while.)


Are we so alone,
So distant,
So forgotten,
As we think ourselves to be?

These are our lives
But did they ever even matter?
Are we worth remembering?

These machines feed on the tears
Of broken lives and dying dreams
We're throwing wrenches in the gears
Our lives will not be lived in vain

When this is all said and done
We spent this life on the run
Judged by the company we keep

Our language, buried inside
These lungs that keep us alive
We breathe so selfishly

Promises we plan to break
Are made in whispered voices
Cause our despair knows many names

We make mistakes
But we apologize with roses
We never stop to smell along the way

These machines feed on the tears
Of broken lives and dying dreams
We're throwing wrenches in the gears
Our lives will not be lived in vain

When this is all said and done
We spent this life on the run
Judged by the company we keep

Our language, buried inside
These lungs that keep us alive
We breathe so selfishly

We fell from the sky today
We melt into balls of clay
We sell ourselves everyday
Don't tell me how to live this way

Pushed so far to the edge
We teeter just on the brink
You can lead me to the bloodbath
But you can't make me drink

As these machines feed on the tears
Of broken lives and dying dreams
We're throwing wrenches in the gears
Our lives will not be lived in vain
My life will not be lived in vain

Lyrics source

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