by Carrie Brownstein

If you're lucky, you're in Chapel Hill, N.C., right now. Why? Because that's where Merge Records is celebrating Merge XX, the label's 20th-anniversary celebration. Don't know about Merge? Well, if you've listened to songs or records by Arcade Fire, Neutral Milk Hotel, She & Him, the 3D's or The Magnetic Fields, then at the very least, you've dipped your toe into the splendid and diverse Merge catalog.

Superchunk was my first exposure to the world of Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance, and to Merge Records. It was 1992, and I purchased the album No Pocky For Kitty (originally released on Matador). I loved the song "Skip Steps One and Three," which I'd heard on Throw, a Yo Yo Records Compilation.

(Just writing that last paragraph reminds me of the fantastic synergy that existed between indie labels in the '80s and '90s, with each band and artist unlocking a path to new music, scenes and cities.)

And though I continued to purchase and listen to Merge releases throughout the 1990s — especially loving the 3Ds, Polvo and Versus — it was The Magnetic Fields' 69 Love Songs, released in 1999, that brought into focus both the genius of Stephin Merritt and also Merge's acumen, philosophy and daring. Love Songs was a triple CD; the liner notes were extensive, cementing the project's scope and importance in the here and now, without the help of hindsight and before the public and critics weighed in. The silvery box set felt like a jewel among my other CDs; it was indie music exalted and revered, ambitious and grand.

In the last few years, I would argue that Merge has become a preeminent indie label, and perhaps it might even be considered the best. Merge is home to Conor Oberst, Spoon, Destroyer and the aforementioned Arcade Fire. But I have no desire to exalt Merge over my other favorite indie labels, so I won't. Instead, I'll just applaud it for its scope, variety and ability to make independent music seem like the coolest kind of music to make. To listen to any Merge record is to celebrate, to absorb, to honor and to share in something worthy of our loyalty and adoration.

Congratulations, Merge! And thank you.

Please share stories about your first exposure to Merge, and also comment on your favorite Merge artists and records.

Finally, listen to an All Songs Considered interview that Bob Boilen did with Merge's Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance here.