Best Indie and Alternative Songs of All Time

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1. 1
   SM
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   There Is a Light That Never Goes Out

   The Smiths · from The Queen Is Dead (1986)

   Morrissey and Marr's most beloved song.

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2. 2
   PI
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   Where Is My Mind?

   Pixies · from Surfer Rosa (1988)

   Quiet-loud dynamics that defined a decade.

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3. 3
   RA
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   Karma Police

   Radiohead · from OK Computer (1997)

   A haunting, piano-led standout.

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4. 4
   AF
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   Wake Up

   Arcade Fire · from Funeral (2004)

   A communal, goosebump anthem.

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5. 5
   ST
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   Last Nite

   The Strokes · from Is This It (2001)

   Effortless garage-rock cool.

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6. 6
   YY
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   Maps

   Yeah Yeah Yeahs · from Fever to Tell (2003)

   A raw, aching love song.

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7. 7
   IN
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   Evil

   Interpol · from Antics (2004)

   Sleek, melodic post-punk revival.

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8. 8
   LS
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   All My Friends

   LCD Soundsystem · from Sound of Silver (2007)

   A pulsing, emotional epic.

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9. 9
   VW
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   A-Punk

   Vampire Weekend · from Vampire Weekend (2008)

   Two minutes of bright, preppy energy.

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10. 10
    MB
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    Only Shallow

    My Bloody Valentine · from Loveless (1991)

    A wall of bent, gliding guitar.

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11. 11
    CU
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    Just Like Heaven

    The Cure · from Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me (1987)

    Their sunniest, most perfect single.

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12. 12
    JD
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    Disorder

    Joy Division · from Unknown Pleasures (1979)

    Post-punk dread set to a racing pulse.

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13. 13
    PI
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    Where Is My Mind?

    Pixies · from Surfer Rosa (1988)

    Fight Club made it famous; the Pixies made it essential.

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14. 14
    SY
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    Teen Age Riot

    Sonic Youth · from Daydream Nation (1988)

    The feedback and the vision: the opening statement for a generation.

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15. 15
    AF
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    Rebellion (Lies)

    Arcade Fire · from Funeral (2004)

    Win Butler's voice and the full-band catharsis that made indie rock epic.

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16. 16
    ST
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    Last Nite

    The Strokes · from Is This It (2001)

    The guitar line borrowed from Tom Petty and the nonchalance that didn't care.

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17. 17
    AM
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    Do I Wanna Know?

    Arctic Monkeys · from AM (2013)

    The riff and the swagger: the first truly global Arctic Monkeys moment.

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18. 18
    VW
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    Oxford Comma

    Vampire Weekend · from Vampire Weekend (2008)

    Afrobeat, prep school references, and hooks that shouldn't work.

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19. 19
    TI
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    Let It Happen

    Tame Impala · from Currents (2015)

    Seven minutes of psychedelic pop that earns every second.

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20. 20
    CS
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    Fill in the Blank

    Car Seat Headrest · from Teens of Denial (2016)

    The most cathartic shout-along in lo-fi rock.

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21. 21
    BT
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    Not

    Big Thief · from Two Hands (2019)

    Adrianne Lenker's voice against an electric guitar: deceptively minimal.

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22. 22
    MI
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    Nobody

    Mitski · from Be the Cowboy (2018)

    The most painfully accurate song about loneliness in recent memory.

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