If a Band Plays in the Woods

I'm learning much from the comments in this Stereogum post.

From what I understand, the only way a band can be good and stay good, is to only be enjoyed by a select group of listeners. If you go beyond said group of listeners, you officially lose your "cred". Or, if you enjoy a reasonable amount of success and can record on something more complex than a tape recorder in your bathroom, you lose your "cred".

Funny. I thought if the music was good, that's what made it good to you. Should I stop liking Imperial Teen because they have a song in a commercial? Should I hate Stephen Malkmus because a Pavement song is played in bumpers for VH1?

Worse, what's the point of going on a crusade to destroy a band you don't like? Or, more interestingly, to destroy a band you don't like because they have a song on a show you don't like? It's pretty easy to avoid, in that case.

Truth is, Indie is a genre now, not an ideal. In fact, it's hard to "sell out" when the whole purpose of peddling records is to "sell" in the first place. Can't be heard if no one listens.