Pavement are a band from Stockton, California who I think were a little ahead of the curve in their years of operation (1989-1999). At the time I could see the world not being ready for singer/songwriter/guitarist Stephen Malkmus' stoned ruminations and non-sequiturs, but as rock radio has gotten so bland that words are incidental in meaning as long as they sound good in sequence, I think the world is ready to revere these dudes. Heavily influenced by the Fall and other hyper-literate songwriters, Pavement played lo-fidelity ditties that oozed slacker style and, I think, embody the Northern California aesthetic better than anyone in popular music, right down to Malkmus' accent. They are one of the preeminent Indie bands that existed before the term was used as a weird pejorative to mean "pretentious hipster music." They were indie because the mainstream wouldn't have them, and they liked the underground just fine and existed comfortably in their cult status. They gained fans by being themselves, and in the case of their weirder stuff, the alienated fans by being themselves, yet I think the passage of time has smiled on their work.
One note I'll give you if you're listening to this band for the first time is that you should really listen to the lyrics. They're cryptic as fuck, but they Malkmus' Lou Reed-like delivery and charm definitely make up for it. He really kind of invented a new way to express himself- it's more like a series of one liners than full stories. If you like it (or even if you just don't hate it) check out their studio albums, which have recently been nicely expanded in deluxe editions. My personal favorite is 1995's Wowee Zowee, which is a lot like their "White Album," with lots of sprawling, fractured songs some fully fleshed out and gorgeous ("Grave Architecture," "Father To A Sister Of A Thought"), some taking longer for their artistry to register (usually they get stuck in your head and you can't place it until you figure its the fucking awesome melody lines on the :37 mark on "Black Out" or some such revelation).
It's best to start by listening to the songs below, then getting 1992's Slanted And Enchanted and 1994's Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain. Both of those are certifiable indie classics with fuckign brilliant songs like "Summer Babe (Winter Version)," "Cut Your Hair," the California love/hate note "Unfair," and "Here." Then move on to Wowee Zowee and 1997's Brighten The Corners.
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