u/Reasonable-Donkey975

https://loudwire.com/2026-mtv-vmas-no-best-rock-award/

Personally I like his gospel record "I've Got Confidence" from 1972

I have always been a big fan of The Byrds. I can put on "Younger Than Yesterday" or "Sweetheart of the Rodeo" endlessly in a way I really can't for key records by The Stones or Beach Boys and I believe they're a massive influence on the North American music that followed them, especially on county rock and indie folk and pop music.

With that I feel like they've kind of been lost in the shuffle of 60s music compared to many of their contemporaries and even some of their own side projects. I feel like I never see people talk about them ever.

With that what are your thoughts on them?

In 2000 he's was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame for a third time, still the only person with three inductions, and in 2003 seven of his albums were on the Rolling Stone 500 and he was ranked in the top 5 guitarist ever. Eric Clapton was seen as a guitar god (there was famously graffiti that stated as much in the 1960s)

Today, he has (I think) one album on that list and was ranked 35th on the Best Guitarists list (with the write up staying he is "not god") and when people (eg Phoebe Bridgers) talk about him they often acknowledge that he is a racist and call him overrated.

Still has the 3 inductions I guess

Never see people bring either up, partly cause Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby are so big, but I feel like both have aged well and were ahead of the curve on a lot of what would happen with rock and pop.

Pictured: Barenaked Ladies

if you don't know before "One Week," BNL were kind of like the Canadian version of Pavement or Pixies.

They ran Page Publications, on which they released released all their own records including The Yellow Tape and The Lowest of the Low's Shakespeare My Butt which became the best selling Canadian indie releases ever for a time in Canada (The Yellow Tape is the first totally indie record to go platinum in Canada). They also becam known for a radical self-promotion strategy that involved busking, pop up shows, and $1 music video shoot that got them heavy rotation on Much Music without the support of any label.

The moves brought a great deal of attention to Canada's growing indie music scene.

They also were earlier to use the internet and embraced tape and file sharing.

Of course all this was 40~ years ago and is largely unknown outside of Canada, where it is often forgotten, and the band is often seen as a cheesy band kind of in the vein of Train (who they are currently touring with) or Sugar Ray.

Who are some other once indie bands whose indie cred has been kinda lost to time?

40 at 40: Remember when Barenaked Ladies were indie rock trailblazers? | NOW Toronto

Beck is super well known but I feel like I only ever see people go over his major label records.

Personally I think Stereopathetic Soulmanure is one of his three best records.

Pictured

Dion, Cliff Richard, Wendy Carlos, George Clinton, Richard Hell

I'm bored and curious about this.

Leafs have the second most championships in NHL history but haven't been to a final since 1967, long long history of disappointment and wasted potential, clusterfuck management and disrespect for their own history at times, contempt for their own fans.....somehow the most valuable and popular team in the NHL.

What is their musical equivalent?

I'm leaning towards U2 but I feel like that's not fair to U2 cause I think they have a positive fan relationship. GnR comes to mind also but shorter peak.

During the Bean Dad controversy involving John Roderick called the three albums by The Long Winters, Roderick's band, boring.

I happen to like The Long Winters. It's not some ground breaking band but it's enjoyable adult alternative.

Moby Grape was a popular and tragic psychedelic from San Francisco that helped birth the country rock movement. Their debut album reached #24 in the US and was ranked #121 on the 2003 edition of the Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums and #124 on the 2012 edition. Their follow up Wow/Grape Jam reached the top 20 and influenced Led Zeppelin despite a mixed critical reception.

Today they have under 35k Spotify listeners.

Who are some other acts who have scaled the height of acclaim and had massive success who have been largely or somewhat forgotten in the streaming/poptimist era?

Note asking about documentaries and not performance or concert films (eg Stop Making Sense, Live at Pompeii).

So I'm watching with Married with Children and Kelly has a ton of band logos on her door, one of whom I think is Death in June (next to Bud's ear is the totenkopf with the 6 I think). Given this is from like 1991 that is a crazy obscure reference.

Any other super obscure references?

Follow up: a lot of you don't know what obscure means