Math Rock - Bit of a discussion?

OK so seen this sort of discussion going on a few places about math rock and what makes or supports the genre most.. Basically it falls to people either thinking that bands that are really creative and create new styles or push the envelope being the driving force or bands that make the style more mainstream support it most.

I've read some pretty good reasons for both sides but I want to give where I stand.

I pretty much stand in the camp that without innovation the genre would never have become, I understand that influence is what inspires people to make new music, but I don't believe that the influence has to be mainstream to have that effect, I really believe that bands that at the time no body ever really heard of end up exerting the most influence and in the long run actually end up being remembered much more than their more mainstream counterparts, just look at Slint for example.. But basically you start out with bands like Don Caballero and then years later you get bands like This Town Needs Guns.

Bit of a chicken and the egg argument, but surely for any music to have an influence someone had to invent music in the first place?