Is ‘indie sleaze’ having a revival? The soundtrack of the 2010s youth

“People see rock ‘n’ roll as, as youth culture, and when youth culture becomes monopolized by big business, what are the youth to do? Do you, do you have any idea? I think we should destroy the bogus capitalist process that is destroying youth culture.”

Ah, the intro to The Radio Dept.’s dreamy tune “Heaven’s on Fire.” How often I quoted the song’s opening lines in my college essays. But, allow a millennial to borrow a Gen Z word popular today—it’s now feeling a little “cringe.”

Still, those words captured the mood of the 2010s.

Escapism at its most romantic

Today, indie sleaze is seeing a revival with themed dress-up parties and the younger generation perusing older playlists. It also seems less about fashion optics and more about nostalgia for a time defined by a peculiar sense of optimism, tinged with a low hum of ennui—an ennui that feels almost quaint compared to the heightened post-pandemic levels of anxiety documented in studies by the US National Institute of Health. It was also the hopeful time of the 2010s, when Obama was still the US president and PNoy (Benigno Aquino III) held office, until Duterte took over in 2016.

The music was maximalist, glossy, and often frenetic. It was escapism at its most romantic, for a generation navigating a still half-baked age of digital life.

For those of us who lived through it as adolescents, it was the soundtrack to road trips, when roads were freer and traffic nearly nonexistent. I used to travel from Greenhills to Laguna every day for school, and the ride would take an hour and a half on average. It was when Kanye was dropping still-sane, super cool bars and beats for “Bound 2.” The clubs were full, playing the euphoric music of Swedish House Mafia and Avicii. Early Instagram featured one-photo posts (complete with filter), the Tumblr aesthetic was going strong, Spotify was still getting started, and almost everyone had a BlackBerry in hand. John Green was a must-read, too.

There was something about the 2010s that made nights feel endless, and quoting “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” which reflected the zeitgeist for youth at the time, “In this moment, I swear, we are infinite.” The world felt better, or at least lighter. And maybe that’s why the indie sleaze revival resonates so strongly today, as a chance to revisit a version of youth that felt vibrant and reckless, but still safe and light.

Here’s a look back at some of the popular indie bands at the time, and how their moods reflected the era.

1. The “intellectual” irony and globalism of Vampire Weekend

Made up of Columbia college students, Vampire Weekend had that preppy, literate aesthetic with songs that felt like inside jokes for the culturally aware—or those still young and learning to be more “intellectual” and culturally aware. Their bouncy rhythms and Afro-pop influences gave a sense of globalism, reflecting a generation exploring the world from their bedrooms.

And their preppy, poppy indie songs are where many, myself included, discovered the meaning of horchata, balaclavas, and, of course, the Oxford comma.

2. The technicolor youth of MGMT

Glow sticks, heavy eye makeup, messy hair, and tribal prints. With albums like “Oracular Spectacular,” there really was a kaleidoscopic essence to MGMT.

“Ooh, girl, shock me like an electric eel / Baby girl, turn me on with your electric feel” was an anthem to many vodka cruiser parties. “Kids” and “Time to Pretend” still bring generations back to a time of ironic, youthful optimism. The band would also make critiques on fleeting fame and the absurdity of chasing it, while ironically becoming famous themselves.

3. The manic optimism of Passion Pit

Passion Pit’s soaring synths and high-pitched vocals created euphoric, ecstatic energy yet the lyrics often hinted at personal struggles and mental health challenges. Tracks like “The Reeling” captured the push-and-pull of trying to stay upbeat while feeling vulnerable. The synths of “Sleepyhead” sound repetitively positive, too.

This 2010s indie band made soundtracks that showed there was a thrill to being alive, even if brimming with mania.

4. The effortless cool aspirations of Phoenix

Of course, these guys are French. Phoenix brought a sense of sophistication to indie pop that only the French can do, with smooth, glossy musical productions. “1901” became the soundtrack to sleek, cinematic nights, with “Listzomania” the soundtrack to many dance parties.

5. The cinematic escapism of M83

M83 made moments feel like movies, too. Tracks like “Midnight City” turned ordinary drives or late-night cityscapes into epic, emotional experiences. Their maximalist synths and sweeping soundscapes were pure escapism, giving a chance to feel larger than life in these little moments of youth.

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6. The xx and introspective dream pop

The xx’s soft vocals and minimal arrangements offered a silent, reflective side of the decade’s indie music scene. Their music was intimate and haunting, perfect for moments after a night out or early road trip mornings, whispering rather than shouting, with emotion lingering in the spaces between notes.

7. The Arctic Monkeys’ witty rock

If one had to list the cleverest Arctic Monkeys lines, it would be a very long list. Alex Turner brought razor-sharp wit and post-punk grit to indie rock, balancing supremely sardonic lyrics with moody, energetic riffs.

Recall “Fluorescent Adolescent’s” lament of youth: “You used to get it in your fishnets, now you only get it in your night dress, discarded all the naughty nights for niceness, landed in a very common crisis.” And then the tenderness of “You’re rarer than a can of Dandelion and Burdock / And those other girls are just post-mix lemonade,” from “Suck It and See.” Turner’s lines were lush.

8. Foster the People’s foreshadowing

Foster the People wrote the sunny melodies of “Pumped Up Kicks,” which became a hit worldwide but was actually a mask for darker lyrical themes about school shootings in the US. Little did they know that it was just the beginning, and the school shootings would continue to pile up today.

The last true carefree hangover

These are just a few of the more “ironically” mainstream 2010s music, because the 2010s hipsters were all about “irony,” right? Irony was rife with LCD Soundsystem’s dance-punk energy. Then there were cerebral projects, like Alt-J’s artful indie rock. Plus, so much of the 2010s indie music was cinematic, escapist, and euphoric, too, like Empire of the Sun.

Much of the 2010s music seemed to verge on escapism, and having “cinematic” type moments through life with big, sweeping, and immersive sounds. Or maybe it’s just wistful thinking.

If indie sleaze is “back,” what we’re really chasing isn’t just the fashion or even the music but the last moments before the world got much, much heavier. Anxiety was still low-grade, and the world’s problems weren’t as crazy. The 2010s were the last soundtrack to the world before 2020. It was before the shared trauma of the pandemic, before social media swallowed us whole, and before everything felt so serious and populist, with right-wing governments on the rise.