Popular Lists

Featured Lists

JOB OPENINGS (*HOT)
Suggest a List (*HOT)
COMING SOON (*HOT)
*The 20 Most Influential Rap Artists*
*Top 20 Seminal Indie Rock Albums*
The 40 Most Annoying Vocalists
Top 20 Pop/Hip Hop Songs of May 08
Top 30 Best Sad Songs of the 2000s
*Top 50 Best Sad Songs of the 90s*
Top 50 Songs by Otherwise Crappy Artists
The 25 Absolute Worst Songs of the Century
Top 30 Red Hot Chili Peppers Songs
Home arrow By Genre arrow Top 100 Indie Rock Songs Since 2003

Top 100 Indie Rock Songs Since 2003

 PDF Print E-mail
(76 votes)

Discuss this list on the Rock Czar's Forums: www.therockczar.com/simplemachinesforum
No. Song Bands Album Year
1 Neighborhood #1 The Arcade Fire Funeral 2004
2 NARC Interpol Antics 2004
3 Evil Interpol Antics 2004
4 Honest Mistake The Bravery The Bravery 2005
5 Soft Rock Star Metric Grow Up and Blow Away 2007
6 Slow Hands Interpol Antics 2004
7 Take Me Out Franz Ferdinand Franz Ferdinand 2004
8 On Top The Killers Hot Fuss 2004
9 Summersong The Decemberists The Crane Wife 2006
10 Float On Modest Mouse Good News For People Who Love Bad News 2004
11 Paralyzed Rock Kills Kid Are You Nervous? 2006
12 Smile Like You Mean It The Killers Hot Fuss 2004
13 Roscoe Midlake The Trials of Van Occupanther 2006
14 Dashboard Modest Mouse We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank 2007
15 Pioneer To The Falls Interpol Our Love to Admire 2007
16 Jenny Was A Friend The Killers Hot Fuss 2004
17 Use It The New Pornographers Twin Cinema 2005
18 Wolf Like Me TV On The Radio Return To Cookie Mountain 2006
19 Scale Interpol Our Love to Admire 2007
20 Pretty (Ugly Before) Elliott Smith From a Basement on the Hill 2004
21 Rebellion  The Arcade Fire Funeral 2004
22 It Can't Come Quickly Enough Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters 2004
23 You Only Live Once The Strokes First Impressions of Earth 2005
24 The Bleeding Heart Show The New Pornographers Twin Cinema 2005
25 Public Pervert Interpol Antics 2004
26 Crooked Teeth Death Cab for Cutie Plans 2005
27 I Summon You Spoon Gimme Fiction 2005
28 Fake Empire The National Boxer 2007
29 Munich Editors The Back Room 2005
30 Y Control Yeah Yeah Yeahs Fever To Tell 2003
31 Pace Is The Trick Interpol Our Love to Admire 2007
32 Laura Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters 2004
33 The Jessica Numbers The New Pornographers Twin Cinema 2005
34 Portions of Foxes Rilo Kiley More Adventurous 2004
35 Automatic Stop The Strokes Room On Fire 2003
36 No I In Threesome Interpol Our Love to Admire 2007
37 Turn On Me The Shins Wincing the Night Away 2007
38 Lazy Eye Silversun Pickups Carnavas 2006
39 Me and Mia Ted Leo & the Pharmacists Shake the Sheets 2004
40 We Used To Be Friends The Dandy Warhols Welcome To The Monkey House 2003
41 Banquet Bloc Party Silent Alarm 2005
42 Run-Away Super Furry Animals Hey Venus! 2007
43 Blue Orchid White Stripes Get Behind Me Satan 2005
44 Out of Line The Bravery The Bravery 2005
45 Chillout Tent The Hold Steady Boys and Girls in America 2006
46 Silver Lining Rilo Kiley Under the Blacklight 2007
47 Gold Lion Yeah Yeah Yeahs Show Your Bones 2006
48 The Funeral Band of Horses Everything All The Time 2006
49 My Name Is Trouble Nightmare of You Nightmare of You 2005
50 Mary Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters 2004
51 Neighborhood #3 The Arcade Fire Funeral 2004
52 Little Angel Hard-Fi Once Upon a Time in the West 2007
53 I Love You Cause I Have To Dogs Die In Hot Cars Please Describe Yourself 2004
54 Another Radio Song Okkervil River Black Sheep Boy Appendix 2005
55 An End Has A Start Editors An End Has A Start 2007
56 You're a Wolf Sea Wolf Leaves in the River 2007
57 Rainy Monday Shiny Toy Guns We Are Pilots 2006
58 Combat Baby Metric Old World Underground, Where Are You Now? 2003
59 Gossip Diet Lotus Child Gossip Diet 2006
60 The Engine Driver The Decemberists Picaresque 2005
61 Cursed Sleep Bonnie Prince Billy The Letting Go 2006
62 Ruby Kaiser Chiefs Yours Truly, Angry Mob 2007
63 Watch me Fall Apart Hard-Fi Once Upon a Time in the West 2007
64 Maps Yeah Yeah Yeahs Fever To Tell 2003
65 Counting Down the Hours Ted Leo & the Pharmacists Shake the Sheets 2004
66 When You Were Young The Killers Sam's Town 2006
67 Scream Ima Robot Ima Robot 2003
68 Too Little Too Late Metric Live It Out 2005
69 Knowitall Phantom Planet Phantom Planet 2004
70 He War Cat Power You Are Free 2003
71 Phantom Limb The Shins Wincing the Night Away 2007
72 Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games Of Montreal The Sunlandic Twins 2005
73 Black Cadillacs Modest Mouse Good News For People Who Love Bad News 2004
74 Sender Pinback Summer In Abaddon 2004
75 Patty Lee Les Savy Fav Let's Stay Friends 2007
76 The Ocean Breathes Salty Modest Mouse Good News For People Who Love Bad News 2004
77 The Recluse Cursive The Ugly Organ 2003
78 For Reasons Unknown The Killers Sam's Town 2006
79 Time Wont Let Me Go The Bravery The Sun and the Moon 2007
80 Tied Up Too Tight Hard-Fi Stars of CCTV 2005
81 The Greatest Cat Power The Greatest 2005
82 So Says I The Shins Chutes too Narrow 2003
83 Mistaken For Strangers The National Boxer 2007
84 No One's Gonna Love You Band of Horses Cease to Begin 2007
85 Jimmy M.I.A. Kala 2007
86 1st Things 1st Phantom Planet Phantom Planet 2004
87 Publish My Love Rogue Wave Descended Like Vultures 2005
88 The World at Large Modest Mouse Good News For People Who Love Bad News 2004
89 Walters Pinback Autumn of the Seraphs 2007
90 The District Sleeps Alone  The Postal Service Give Up 2003
91 Rat, The The Walkmen Bows And Arrows 2004
92 Carousel Iron & Wine The Shepherd's Dog 2007
93 Art is Hard Cursive The Ugly Organ 2003
94 Well Thought out Twinkles Silversun Pickups Carnavas 2006
95 We Used To Vacation Cold War Kids Robbers and Cowards 2006
96 Still in Love Song The Stills Rememberese  2003
97 Devastation The Besnard Lakes The Besnard Lakes are the Dark Horse 2007
98 Paper Planes M.I.A. Kala 2007
99 Chicago Sufjan Stevens Illinois 2005
100 Back in Your Head Tegan and Sara The Con 2007
Updated 03/18/08      



Del.icio.us!Facebook!Slashdot!Netscape!Technorati!StumbleUpon!Newsvine!Furl!Yahoo!Ma.gnolia!Add this social bookmarking functionality to your website! title=
Comments
Add NewSearchRSS
jake - serious? IP:71.205.230.85 | 2007-06-21 07:49:33
i can't believe you can actually call some of these indie songs. indie is not a genre of music like some people believe. indie is a status. indie is being a small time, unsigned band. are the white stripes unsigned? not when fuggin blue orchid came out, that's for damn sure.
Reply | Quote
6 16
corey - you IP:70.248.212.55 | 2007-12-04 21:26:15
are a fucking idiot... searously.

the defenition of indie has changed a bit... thundercunt
Reply | Quote
4 4
Anonymous IP:75.0.46.135 | 2007-06-28 15:10:33
Actually, it doesn't matter what indie actually means. Words are just symbols, so they mean whatever society deems them to mean, and society says indie is a genre.
Reply | Quote
15 4
Admin - Yup IP:68.33.211.151 | 2007-06-28 16:19:40
I totally agree with the last comment. It was the same thing when Grunge was popular, that is how Alice in Chains and other bands that weren't really grunge got lumped into the genre. The White Stripes, The Killers, Franz Ferdinand and the like certainly aren't unsigned but they fit the bill for the "indie rock" sound. Therefore they will always be known as Indie Rock bands.
Reply | Quote
7 3
Drinking Buddy - Terrible IP:69.140.32.212 | 2007-09-27 19:05:25
5 songs by The Killers in the Top 20? Did Brandon Flowers put this list together? Just terrible. Plus, this is a blatant ripoff of HearYa.com's "Top 100 Indie Songs of All Time" list posted at the beginning of 2007. To see that list (which is actually good), go here: http://www.hearya.com/2007/02/14/top-100-indie-songs-of-all-time/
Reply | Quote
2 5
Sar - Hmm IP:194.81.33.39 | 2008-02-27 06:41:47
Some alright choices - but The Killers and The Bravery higher than Sleater-Kinney, Elliott Smith and Sonic Youth? Dear me! I'm a bit confused about your definition of indie too.
Reply | Quote
0 0
Greg - broaden your mind IP:81.111.78.93 | 2007-09-28 08:26:46
you need to listen to some more music!! These are all big name, big money bands. Some of the songs are good but there are better songs from smaller bands out there if you look.But hey good on you..I love lists and you would probably hate mine anyway
Reply | Quote
3 1
TRC - Sure IP:68.33.211.151 | 2007-09-29 06:55:12
I'd love to give those bands a shot... any recommendations???
Reply | Quote
2 1
G IP:24.17.246.140 | 2007-09-30 09:49:00
This list is seriously crazy. First of all, you're going to name the top Indie Rock songs and not even include songs by The Fall, Pavement, Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr, Built to Spill, Husker Du, Guided by Voices, The Breeders, The Afghan Whigs, My Bloody Valentine, Yo La Tengo, Elliott Smith, Beck, The Jesus and Mary Chain, etc etc etc? Further more, there's really no reason why any of the bands you named should have multiple songs on this list ( ie The Shins, The Yeah Yeah Yeah's, The New Pornographers, Scissor Sisters, Muse). And finally, it's just embarassing that The Killers, Spoon, Cold War Kids, or Phantom Planet would even be anywhere near a list of the best indie rock songs of all time. Not necessarily because they're not indie, but simply because they are mediocre.
Reply | Quote
2 5
joey - yalll are idiots IP:69.140.32.212 | 2007-09-30 18:20:34
Just because a band "gets big", it doesn't necessarily mean theyre not indie. Why does everyone who comments on this list not realize that the definition of indie rock is very subjective. I like the rock czar's list because it cuts through a lot of the crap that a lot of other stupid blogs have.
Reply | Quote
5 2
Alex - The Pixies are not Indie Rock. IP:62.1.136.123 | 2007-10-01 12:51:08
The Pixies are not Indie Rock!!!

Alternative Rock band!
Leaders of ALT ROCK!
Reply | Quote
2 4
bobbalu IP:67.180.133.219 | 2007-10-03 20:25:45
How about "Fortres" by Pinback? Should be on this list that seems a little Muse heavy to me.