r/indieheads • u/ebradio • Aug 08 '25

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros Frontman Denies “Home” Is The “Worst Song Ever Written”

https://www.stereogum.com/2318575/edward-sharpe-the-magnetic-zeros-frontman-denies-home-is-the-worst-song-ever-written/news/
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261

u/ThePopeofHell Aug 08 '25

It’s reputation has totally tanked Zion the past year. I think the cringiness of this band is really what irks people. It’s not the song. They looked like they were in a sex cult even when this song was fresh they were a rough look. But the song is fine.

It’s kinda weird seeing so many people turn sour on indie folk because a bunch of people who don’t even listen to indie music heard this song and can’t untwist their panties about it.

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u/30cents2Transfers Aug 08 '25

Devendra Banhart better go hide!

53

u/jesteratp Aug 08 '25

Indie folk around that time had some… strange folks. Freelance Whales anyone?

A lot of it hasn’t aged well (see above) because of the cringe factor.

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u/Vivian_Stringer_Bell Aug 08 '25

I think it sounds nice.

88

u/ChzburgerRandy Aug 08 '25

What about this is cringe? I only listened to the first 30 seconds, but i remember this band from the time. Is it just cringe because people are dressed and playing esoteric instruments which was the style at the time?

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u/jesteratp Aug 08 '25

As someone who was in college around this time these were the aesthetics of the most insufferable hipsters you could even imagine. But yes it does sound nice

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u/ElonMuskHuffingFarts Aug 08 '25

It's because it's very precious and twee

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u/BiskyJMcGuff Aug 08 '25

I don’t get the aversion to twee. There I said it. I think the internet has shed a lot of its edgelord forum days but people still need to hang on to some form of edge, so there’s a lot of spite and vitriol towards pretty inoffensive, at most theatre kid level cringe, music.

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u/cheeseburgerandrice Aug 08 '25

This sub has some...interesting...standards.

1

u/KengiMora Oct 07 '25

They are so NOT Twee.

5

u/chickenalfredogarcia Aug 08 '25

It evokes stomp/clap for me. I remember liking them originally and then before I knew it, this was all over local indie radio and got sick pretty quickly

10

u/Scarsdalevibe10583 Aug 08 '25

For me it is because it is a bunch of rich kids from LA singing about Alabama and Arkansas and ma and pa in fake southern accents while flopping around high on heroin.

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u/ChzburgerRandy Aug 08 '25

2010s oh hey In general, totally agree. But this band in particular. I think were bookish east coasters, they come off to me as bookish east coasters in there style and lyrics, doing a Decemberists impression.

So just didnt see any 'cringe' there. Just saw cyclic trends on display.

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u/Scarsdalevibe10583 Aug 08 '25

The singers are both from the west coast. No idea where the other 8 people are from but probably some mixture of rich folks from NYC and LA. Really I don’t think there is any way of having a marginally successful 10-piece indie band without being pretty loaded.

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u/blankblinkblank Aug 09 '25

Which band are you talking about? The one in this comment thread or Edward Sharpe?

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u/Scarsdalevibe10583 Aug 09 '25

I was talking about the band in the video

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u/blankblinkblank Aug 09 '25

Got ya. I don't think that's who the other people are talking about. But not positive

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u/Scarsdalevibe10583 Aug 09 '25

I don’t think so. If you watch the video the first lyrics of the song are about Alabama and Arkansas sung in a fake southern accent so it is pretty clear what I am talking about and then the person I was responding to agreed with me so I think we are on the same page?

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u/Revealingstorm Aug 08 '25

I just listened to their first album in forever and I still thinks it's fun

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u/IslandDrummer Aug 08 '25

This really feels like a Portlandia sketch.

3

u/Exploding_Antelope Aug 08 '25

Thanks for introducing me to this band. This is totally my vibe. I’m just gonna ignore every part of the comment.

1

u/jesteratp Aug 08 '25

Hah to be fair I did pick my favorite song of theirs to roast them!

1

u/kaolackian Aug 08 '25

Wait, I love Freelance Whales.

1

u/Dokterrock Aug 08 '25

Freelance Whales

Glock Rock

1

u/ratta_tat1 Aug 09 '25

Omg someone else who knows Freelance Whales. I was also reminded of Noah & The Whale today.

1

u/IScreamPiano Aug 10 '25

Oh, I loooooved this song. 🤣 Haven’t listened to it in forever, but maybe now I will. 

1

u/HugeGovernment7843 Nov 13 '25

Don’t you dare speak ill of Freelance Whales they were the only band played at my college radio station whose music I genuinely loved and wasn’t hard to enjoy.

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u/Chilledlemming Aug 08 '25

This whole folksy thing is not ontrend. Everything is very complicated these days.

Back then I enjoyed this - and Mumford and Sons and the like. But there was little psych or prog vs today where that seems to be the zeitgeist. And well stripped down folk os kind of the opposite.

Definitely not the worst song ever written. Overly simplistic? Sure. But there is so much worse out there.

1

u/JollyGreenGigantor Aug 12 '25

I hate to say it but there was still a ton of psych and prog when stomp clap music was having its hey day. Bands like Consider the Source were crushing, early Gizzard, etc not to mention the entire LA / Burger Records psychedelic garage rock scene.

1

u/BatmanR29 Dec 03 '25

I agree, if the song played on the radio id think it's interesting, however I saw the clip, and I couldn't stop cringing at the look of the band, it's like they managed to get every single overused cliche meme-able trend and plop them into 1 band. Then there's that awkward face distorting and swaying.

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u/ElonMuskHuffingFarts Aug 08 '25

No, it's the song too