How do you describe music in the post-internet age? Is the industry converging towards a unified sound? Or are we splintering as a culture? How is our interconnected world impacting the next generation of musicians?

A short history lesson will reveal that about forty years ago big business loomed overhead. Million- and billion-dollar record labels dominated much of the cultural dialogue, curating trends and spotlighting artists. They were kings ruling over commercialized art. To balance the scales, there was the underground scene, existing as an antithesis and its own separate economy. They stayed alive by serving a different set of listeners. As the decades flashed by they held the torch for experimental sound and political rebellion.

The two were yin and yang—always existing for each other’s growth. Industry titans would begin careers catering to fringe audiences until signing deals with big labels. Each criticized the other and both grew. The process would repeat again and again.

But what happens when you blur the line between the mainstream and the underground? What happens when you trash the earlier business models, throw out the old distribution networks, and hand the mic over to the public?

Welcome to the music of today, a world where every subgenre has a home and every artist a soapbox. Niche tastes develop devotees as fast as you can hit that “Follow” button. The DIY and pop-up mentality of the last four decades has suddenly found the perfect tool to share brilliant non-commercialized music. The post-internet music scene is an eclectic and multicultural paradise transcendent of time and geography.

As a result, many young artists are growing up finding inspiration from decades-old sound. Been Stellar, an indie rock group that splits its time between NYC and Michigan, is a shining example. Fronted by Sam Slocum (vocals and keyboard) and Skyler Knapp (guitar), the group has spent the last four years riding on the coattails of the DIY punk scene’s recent resurgence.

On January 27th the band headlined at Trans-Pecos in Queens, NY, sharing the stage with the riot grrrl group Pom Pom Squad and the alt rock troup Malibu. An hour into the gig and mosh pits began erupting, ebbing and flowing in intensity until the night’s end. The building’s foundation shook. Startled attendees fled to the periphery. And Been Stellar felt at home.

“Skylar was just told the other day that our music is made for 30-year-olds, which is a compliment because 30-year-olds have the best taste in music,” Slocum said, smirking behind thick blue glasses and pale blond hair that danced around his eyes and down to his pointed chin. He wore a grey t-shirt tucked neatly into dark boating pants with a carabiner dangling a set of keys.

On stage Slocum was a force, slamming his head into the air, flailing with the mic. But squashed next to his bandmates on a bench behind the venue and he was suddenly just a guy trying to have a good time.

Because Been Stellar originated as a side project for Slocum and Knapp in freshman year of high school, they’ve taken on a variety of members over the last five years. The singer/songwriter Nando Dale (guitar), Laila Wayans (drums), and Nico Brunstein (bass) currently join them on stage with a genuine and fiery chemistry. As a group, they profess influences like Slowdive and The Strokes. A quick mention of My Bloody Valentine brought on a thrall of animated comments.

“Shoegaze is all coming back,” Knapp said, excitedly leaning over the table. “Weirdly enough, everyone in the band has started listening to shoegaze all at the same time. We all became super interested in the wall of sound. A lot of my influences lie in the punk realm—especially bands like Television, Interpol, The Strokes—and their way of layering sound. That’s the thing about Been Stellar. We really try to incorporate as many genres as we can.”

But their sound isn’t just an amalgam of indie rock homages. They do what all good artists do: they give us something we haven’t quite heard before. They take the old and make it new.

Last December they released “Midwestern Holiday,” a new single that begins with a mellow alt rock feel similar to The Raconteurs or Cloud Nothings. Early 2000s chord progressions carry the tempo with a weightlessness. Vocals are clear, confessional, and tender before breaking out into a punkish thrashing.

But the studio recordings posed specific contrasts to seeing them in person. What came off as some creative grunge on the official release morphed into full-throttle garage punk live. Feedback, static, and angry belting set the room on fire. Circles formed and pent up 20-somethings charged one another as the group synthesized a mixture of FIDLAR and The Circle Jerks. The almost atonal distortion throbbed and the room throbbed back, something the group has experienced many times since coming to New York.

“We had a residency at this bar, and the second show of the residency—everything was broken,” Slocum said. “The audience had destroyed everything. Benches, picture frames.”

The east coast seems to really love its punk. Except for one Monday-night show, Been Stellar has sold out all their recent gigs. The group is currently working on releasing a string of singles to be compiled into a full length LP sometime in the next few months.

Follow Been Stellar on SoundCloud, Facebook, and Twitter to find out when they might be playing near you.

Image: Tom Quigley