Defining an Indie band is no easy venture. There’s the discussion of the actual record label, the original definition. Now it seems Indie music is just classified by a sound or even just by not being completely mainstream. We all want to hoard our favorite bands, the more we can get people saying “I’ve never heard of them,” the more our insides fill with warmth and semi-malicious happiness. The fact of the matter is that no band is really unheard of. After all, everyone has at least family and friends, the core of each band’s original fanbase. My mom’s love would not cease even if I grew up to be Lindsay Lohan or Tanya Harding. Therefore I know every band has fans, and sadly I am never the only one, and neither are you. What’s even more difficult than stomaching this fact? Realizing that the less variety in your music collection, the less open-minded you are as a person. Don’t question it, I’ve observed many people and this applies to all of them. It seems though, that with indie music there is such a wide range, most Indie fans are fairly open-minded to begin with.

It makes me nauseous when men say they can’t handle listening to female singers. If you’re a fan of Indie you can’t even say that. So many Indie bands incorporate a female voice of some sort, or they don’t need to because the male indie singers are seemingly already bursting with estrogen. Or is that sensitivity? Either way, compiling a list of what I consider to be the best Indie bands of the last ten years is even harder than defining the genre. I had to hold myself back from listing bands that I love but that haven’t proved themselves in terms of longevity. It got me wondering who the first Indie band really was. I’ve heard people say bands like Husker Dü and The Replacements were Indie bands of their time. Supposedly The Velvet Underground are the originators of Indie. But I wasn’t even alive then so I really can’t comment on that. I can only say that I don’t think people called it “Indie” at that time, whether it can be defined as such or not.

I remember hearing Modest Mouse for the first time and my brother actually saying the word “Indie.” Growing up in the middle of the woods didn’t really help in my neverending quest for new music. I was mostly exposed to the not so lovely stylings of “Kyte FM,” the local coastal radio station. The coolest thing they ever played was Fiona Apple. Otherwise it was “Love Shack” and “Our House” or “Baby Got Back” over and over. Giving me a distorted view of both Madness and The B-52′s, two bands I now realize are actually quite good. I didn’t start listening to indie music consistently until around 2004. I don’t know if that makes me unqualified but I’ll give it a shot.

I’ve got to give the teen TV drama “The O.C.” some credit for integrating Indie music into their show so expertly. I consider the show a major outlet that really helped launch the careers of bands like Death Cab for Cutie, The Killers, The Walkmen and of course Imogen Heap. Recently a horrible Hip Hop song was released using a sample of Imogen Heap’s “Hide and Seek.” While it’s nice to know the song is reaching a whole new audience, it’s a little unsettling. Such a soiled and horribly placed sample only makes me cringe and regret ever turning on the radio. Was I not traumatized enough by my youthful Kyte FM days? A song so beautiful in all its originality, slow and poetic, is transformed by this generic guy, this “Jason Derulo” or whoever stands behind him with their grimy hands on his marionettes strings. The new song is an abomination compared to the old one. I like it much better when Indie acts cover other Indie acts and I can only see someone like Common pulling off an Indie sample.

I’ve always loved pop music, and taken a lot of flak for it too. When I discovered Indie music I think I loved it for the fact that it is pop music and rock music mixed perfectly together. Just as the Beatles did so smoothly. Of course the definition of “rock” music is also rather askew and hard to pinpoint. Could mean simply “popular,” as the word implies. I’m starting to think that it actually means “not real in any way.” But of course that is just my skepticism talking. Where vocoders and drum machines are obvious components of pop music of today, it’s still a form of music I enjoy. Pop is to music what romance novels are to literature. Pop is to music what Twinkies are to food. Indie is more comparable to say, an Odwalla drink or maybe in literature you could say Chuck Palahniuk or Anne Patchett. Quirky but relatable. Sometimes humorous or sad, sometimes both.

To me, the number one icon of Indie music was and still is Elliot Smith, formerly of the band Heatmiser. Smith’s last release while he was alive was in 2000. Due to this I cannot really call him one of the best Indie artists of the decade, since the majority of his albums were recorded before the decade begun. I do believe Smith was crucial to the evolution of the Indie sound, maybe even emo music as well. Yet another blurry genre line. Elliot Smith is one of those artists whose popularity only grew after their death. It was astonishing for someone of Smith’s withheld nature to be performing at the Oscars and to have their songs featured in movies like “Good Will Hunting,” “The Royal Tenenbaums” and “American Beauty.” His music continues to be featured in too many movies for me to count on both hands. His whispery, angst-ridden lyrics and voice have influenced many Indie artists of today. Only a true genius has such remarkable lyrics. I don’t really believe in the statement “too good for this world,” but if I did it would apply to him. He was so depressed and uncaring of his physical form in this world he stabbed himself in the chest after an argument with his girlfriend. Granted he was out of his mind on drugs, like so many other lost talents of our generation.

Enough yammering. Here are my picks for top 12 Indie bands of the decade. Longevity and album quality play a large part in the ranking.

1. The White Stripes. It’s so much easier to give props to a band that actually sounds unique. Their second CD was released in 2000 and their last in 2007. They fit the true bill of a “band of the decade,” unlike some bands on this list which may have only actually released a few CDs within the last ten years. It’s hard to please everyone, but it’s hard to really argue too much with this choice. Their bluesy rock sound was one we’d never heard before, not like this. Jack White’s screechy echo and Meg White’s retro backing vocals mixed with her simplistic sometimes criticized drumming style are actually what made the band good. Not to mention their lyrics, again, simple like everything else they did. As a two-piece they defied everything we thought we knew about sound. Singles like “Fell In Love With a Girl,” “Seven Nation Army,” “Blue Orchid” and “Icky Thump” were only a beginning glimpse of what Jack White had in store as an artist. He has since formed acclaimed band side projects The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather.

2. Modest Mouse. Three studio albums in this decade, along with Death Cab For Cutie, they are a staple of Indie music and deserve this high ranking. I’ve always felt their overall CDs are usually better than Death Cab’s, thus the higher ranking. Not to mention they are the real pioneers of Indie music in this decade. Even if Indie had been around many years previous, this band was the first for people of my generation. In this decade their first CD released was on Epic records, a subsidiary label of Sony Music. Another thing for me to be confused about, since Epic is a fairly major label and owned by Sony. I can only argue that Modest Mouse has the iconic definition sound of a true Indie band. Their biggest singles were “Float On” and “Dashboard.”

3. Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Their 2003 CD, Fever To Tell, was widely overshadowed by the single “Maps.” an amazing but slow song with the memorable lyric “they don’t love you like I love you.” True indie music fans most likely heard the whole CD and loved it but a lot of fairweather Yeah Yeah Yeahs fans might say “Maps” is their best song. I might disagree and say that well, every song from Fever To Tell was their best song. I don’t quite know where it ranks in terms of best CDs of the decade, but I’d be doing it a great disservice to not place it in the top 3.

I don’t want to downplay their other studio albums. Their sophomore effort, Show Your Bones, produced amazing tracks like “Gold Lion,” “Phenomena,” “Honeybear,” “Cheated Hearts” and “Turn Into.” I wasn’t as impressed with their 2009 CD, the more electronic “It’s Blitz.” To me it wasn’t up to par with former releases though still stands on its own as a good CD. The song “Heads Will Roll” alone gives it credibility as an above average CD. Each lead singer on this list is a bit on a genius in their own right, especially you Karen O.

4. Death Cab For Cutie. Another staple in the indie community. Constantly mentioned by fictional nerd indie pioneer Seth Cohen on “The O.C.” No matter how much you resented it, “The O.C.” makes today’s CW look like a steaming pile of tortoise poop. Though I hardly doubt the CW needs a good show like “The O.C.” to make it look bad as the acting is one step up from a soap opera and the plots are as thin as Nicole Richie’s wrists. Death Cab For Cutie’s Ben Gibbard may have torn a page from Elliot Smith’s hypothetical how-to-manuel, “How to sing like you are sad and sensitive yet not terribly pretentious.” The band’s albums span over the decade from 2000 to 2008.

My favorite song remains 2003′s “The Sound of Settling.” With uplifting lyrics like “Old age is just around the bend, and I can’t wait to go gray.” Humor aside, Ben Gibbard’s marriage to indie movie and music siren Zooey Deschanel makes it all that much more legit. Treat her right, Giblet.

5. The Decemberists. My favorite American poets in musician form, The Decemberists bring us light beautiful ballads often written about the distant past. Actively releasing albums since 2002. Colin Meloy is yet another man with high-pitched emotion seeping from his pores. There may only be two kinds of male Indie singers, Meloy’s, and then the Alex Kapranos (of Franz Ferdinand) approach where you simply puff up your chest and sound confident like there are groupies waiting and you don’t have time for antics. The Decemberists are one of many Indie bands to have female band members. Bandmate Jenny Conlee sometimes sings alongside Colin Meloy, something I like to hear as much of as possible. They are a band that actually chose to stay with an independent label even after they were offered a deal with bigger labels. Eventually they did choose to sign with Capital and have released two CDs with the label. Their best work may be the songs “The Engine Driver” or possibly “We Both Go Down Together,” both from their 2005 release “Picaresque.”

6. Metric. The avid Metric fan in me wanted nothing more than to put this band at number one, but alas I had to hold myself back. I’m so immersed in my Metric worshipping that I use singer Emily Haines as a screen name for one of my online accounts thus provoking people to eventually ask “who the hell is that?” Good question, and also a common error in the entire music industry.

This band is not THAT well known, not like they should be. While their last CD “Fantasies,” did elevate them to new deserved level of success, I’m not sure how many average people know this band. No band besides maybe Garbage, The Decemberists, Elliot Smith and certainly Morrissey have been able to combine amazing lyrics with amazing music so well. Intertwining actual messages and realism without sounding preachy, Emily Haines writes most Metric songs on her piano and then takes that skeleton of a song to her band later. Eventually forming eloquent ballads and rock songs that you cannot forget. Their songs “Dead Disco,” “Combat Baby,” “Monster Hospital,” and “Help I’m Alive” are key singles.

7. Spoon. Spoon have been around longer than you think, since 1993 if you want to be technical. Though they released their first CD in 1996 I don’t think they were widely recognized until their 2002 album “Kill The Moonlight.” Another band whose music was featured on “The O.C.” I know, it’s just a TV show, I know, there are many others out there. Just venting. I’ll cozy up to Dexter and Nurse Jackie for now. Okay back on topic, Spoon, they are a great band. In fact their next CD release is right around the corner. Their seventh CD, will be released January 19th of 2010. It’s only fitting that they should be on this list, not only for their talent but they actually have a career that spans over the entire decade. Their songs range from pop to electronic to the 60′s rock inspired “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb.” Most of their songs sound a little Beatles-y, which is fine, but a bit too common currently. (I’m talking to you Sufjan Stevens)

8. Tegan and Sara. More Canadians, yes I’m smitten. I first saw these Canuck twins open for the Killers, an odd choice at the time, I noticed the crowd not really enjoying that much. I “jokingly” hinted to my boyfriend I might want their CD which at the time was their fourth CD “So Jealous.” He made fun of me, until he heard them a few more times and realized, as I had, that they weren’t some sort of tween folk joke.

One of three two piece bands on this list, unlike The White Stripes and The Kills, Tegan and Sara tour with a band of other musicians to help amplify their onstage sound. This band has earned their massive fanbase with songs like “I Hear Noises,” “Monday Monday Monday,” Walking With a Ghost,” “Back In Your Head,” and “Don’t Rush.”

9. The Hold Steady. Hold Steady lead singer Craig Finn doesn’t sing, he talks, and sometimes yells. This works for them perfectly. Afterall Bob Dylan himself wasn’t known for his singing abilities. The Hold Steady should, like Metric, be a household name in the rock and Indie community. Loud, raucous and rebellious, The Hold Steady are everything rock music should be. Rock was never dead and won’t be.

Not even after Keith and Mick inhale their last deathbed gasp. Not even after Springsteen retires to a rocking chair in a plaid nightgown. Rock will be alive whether or not The Hold Steady exist, but they are a small piece of a 2000 piece puzzle that keeps rock music going. They are especially poignant and many bands of today, even some on this list could take notes from them.

10. The Kills. I can’t fathom there being more than 5 bands better than The Kills, which might lead you to wonder why they are not higher on my list. Like the two bands below this, The Kills have a limited number of CDs and haven’t fully proved themselves in that sense. I can only say that if I don’t like their next CD you can punch me in the face, and if you don’t live near me I’ll punch myself, no sissy stuff either, maybe I can fix my crooked jaw. Regardless of what I think of their next CD, The Kills are miracle workers. Unlike the other two-piece bands mentioned previously The Kills incorporate a drum machine into their CDs and live performances. Now I know what your thinking, no good ever came from using a drum machine, well it did. I personally can’t even tell they don’t have a real drummer. I’m too busy focusing on guitarist Jamie Hince’s bluesy guitar sliding and slapping and on the amazing Alison Mosshart and her wild raven-colored hair. A few favorites include “Love Is A Deserter,” “Cheap and Cheerful” and “Tape Song.” I recommend first time listeners pick up a copy of “Midnight Boom.” How did Mosshart’s side project, The Dead Weather, earn a Spin Magazine cover and not The Kills? One name, Jack White. But who deserves it more?

11. Franz Ferdinand. So they only have three CDs, period. They’re still a great band even with the lackluster sound of 2009′s “Tonight: Franz Ferdinand.” Actually, the definition of lackluster is “lacking enthusiasm or liveliness” which can’t really be said about anything Franz Ferdinand does. I actually have an embarrassing story about this band. A friend of a friend once asked me what bands I liked, and mentioned she liked Franz Ferdinand, so I replied “I love him.” Well, I didn’t completely lie, I had heard “Take Me Out” at that point but didn’t know anything about the band. Apparently the most important thing I needed to learn was that they were an actual band not a one-man show. I later grew to love them and their simpleton booming make-you-wanna-clap sound. Meanwhile, Alex Kapranos could be heard singing “Take Me Out” at every single American Eagle Outfitters, Pacsun and Nordstrom in America. Other key songs include “Do You Want To,” “I’m Your Villian,” and “No You Girls.”

12. Arctic Monkeys. Like Franz Ferdinand, Arctic Monkeys have only three CDs. Somehow it seems like so much more. The band’s first five singles hit the UK Top Five though like Franz Ferdinand their last effort was slightly weak.

My expectations are high for bands of this nature. Arctic Monkeys lyrics sometimes comment about working class people and even indie culture in general. With humorous lyrics like “Everything’s in order in a black hole,” and “There’s only music, so that there’s new ringtones,” who can stop from being a tad amused and thoughtful? Key tracks are “I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor,” “Brianstorm” and “Fluorescent Adolescent.”

Honorable mentions go to Kaiser Chiefs and also The Shins, who really should have been on the list but I simply found no spot for them in a top 12, they competed heavily with Arctic Monkeys for that last spot. Other worthy indie bands that might have made a longer list or simply didn’t have enough CDs were Sleater Kinney, Art Brut, Arctic Monkeys, Ryan Adams, Silversun Pickups and The Raveonettes. Any protesters please indulge me, tell me who you think this list should include.