Indie Folk

Indie Folk

One of the richest developments in alternative music has been the embrace of rootsy, homespun sounds from the far left of the musical spectrum. Not folk music per se (and certainly not the strummings of some earnest coffeeshop troubadour), but folk as filtered through post-punk, lo-fi, and other noisier sounds that connect modern experiments with a long history of outsiders and individualists happily out of step with the mainstream. From rustic avant-garde-isms (think: The National or Animal Collective) to the idiosyncratic side of singer-songwriter fare, here’s a playlist capturing the spirit and spectrum of indie folk. Our editors update selections here regularly, so if you hear something you like, add it to your library.

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