Indie House

tagStarted c. 2005Peak 2008-2016Last big hit active in nu-disco, live-electronic, and festival contexts

Located in 3 routes

Electronic / Dance → Indie Dance / Alternative Dance Alternative / Indie → Dancefloor Indie / Indie Disco / Nu-Indie Club Alternative / Indie → Indietronica / Indie Dance / Indie Electronic

Indie House is house music filtered through alternative bands, vocal songwriting, and indie-club culture. It usually keeps house's steady pulse and bassline logic, but adds live-band looseness, melancholy vocals, disco guitar, synthpop hooks, or DFA-style percussion. The result is more human and song-facing than functional club house, yet more groove-centered than ordinary indie electronic.

History

Indie House came from DFA, nu-disco, French touch, Australian indie dance, live-electronic bands, and remixers who made house palatable to alternative audiences. The Juan MacLean, Holy Ghost!, Hercules and Love Affair, Hot Chip, LCD Soundsystem, Caribou, Cut Copy, Classixx, Poolside, Rüfüs Du Sol, Miami Horror, and Friendly Fires each built bridges between house rhythm and indie songwriting. The style remains common in festival warm-up sets, rooftop nu-disco, and alternative dance playlists.

Defining artists

The Juan MacLeanSpotify YouTube
Holy Ghost!Spotify YouTube
Hercules and Love AffairSpotify YouTube
Hot ChipSpotify YouTube
LCD SoundsystemSpotify YouTube
CaribouSpotify YouTube

Show 6 more

Cut CopySpotify YouTube
ClassixxSpotify YouTube
PoolsideSpotify YouTube
Rüfüs Du SolSpotify YouTube
Miami HorrorSpotify YouTube
Friendly FiresSpotify YouTube

Essential listening

Happy House(2008) — The Juan MacLeanSpotify YouTube
Hold On(2007) — Holy Ghost!Spotify YouTube
Blind(2008) — Hercules and Love AffairSpotify YouTube
Ready for the Floor(2008) — Hot ChipSpotify YouTube
Dance Yrself Clean(2010) — LCD SoundsystemSpotify YouTube
Odessa(2010) — CaribouSpotify YouTube

Show 6 more

Hearts on Fire(2008) — Cut CopySpotify YouTube
I'll Get You(2009) — ClassixxSpotify YouTube
Do You Believe(2012) — PoolsideSpotify YouTube
Sundream(2013) — Rüfüs Du SolSpotify YouTube
Sometimes(2010) — Miami HorrorSpotify YouTube
Paris(2008) — Friendly FiresSpotify YouTube

← Explore Electronic / Dance

Sources

DFA Records histories
nu-disco and indie-house release histories
Pitchfork LCD/Hot Chip coverage
Discogs listings