I don't find this thread going anywhere. Many contributors to this thread are elitists themselves (which is fine), but in their criticisms are ignorant of the complex interplay between independent music spirit and the elitism that springs up around it. "Indie music" and "indie culture" are indeed two separate and easily-confused concepts, each ill-defined at that (let me get it out of the way, I can probably be accused of appreciation of elements of both, but I don't like association with either). I'm getting pretty sick of the term "indie music" as it evolves as convenient identifier for whichever set of styles mainstream media thinks it can package and sell as "indie". It's not even a fucking genre-- what many call indie music these days often falls into the genres of Lo-Fi, Psychedelic Pop, Baroque Pop, Postmodern Rock, Emo, Twee Pop, Post-Punk Revival, New Wave Revival, Garage Rock Revival (3rd wave) New Folk, No Depression (also called Alt-Country) and some Electropop... and IT ALL SOUNDS DIFFERENT, PEOPLE.
What we call "Indie" isn't supposed to be elitist, but audiences associated with the music often make it so. You're not supposed to like Pavement if you don't enjoy it (I hate it), and Pavement doesn't give a shit how cool they are. I mean, where culture is concerned, I find it funny that people choose criticism of the elitism of "indie culture" and its trappings, yet talk with such reverence and obvious feelings of superiority about groups for whom they have obviously subjective affection for. Were you picked on by Guided by Voices fans as a child, or something? I wouldn't be surprised-- that Bob Pollard birthed a generation of shitty indie fratboys.
Long story short: it doesn't matter. They're all the same, we're all the same. The truth is "you" don't like whatever you think "indie" is, and I think "your" music is terrible. Friends.
PS: Metal blows.