I wouldn't necessarily call them the saving grace of the industry. I'd call them more of the boiling pot of ideas that might eventually make it into the mainstream. But inside those few great ideas, you get tons and tons of average games and lots of bad games as well.
Great post! Would you mind if I included it in today's "best of gaming"?
I agree, indie games are sort of the punk rock of video games. Never forget that punk gave us post-punk, which most music today is built from!
I would love to be included in your list.