Quite possibly one the most influential and most criticized sources of independent music journalism today, Pitchfork has changed the face of online music criticism and news. Although they are not exactly a music blog per say, their site essentially functions in a similar way as most music blogs do. Their reviews are famous for making or breaking bands, with huge amounts of subjectivity and at times, questionable journalism. For instance, they have given scores of 0.0 (on a scale of 1-10) based so little on the actual sonic qualities of an album but more so on the politics behind the band and dislike of said band's methodology towards music. The site's view towards music is often seen as narrow-minded, siding with current musical trends, such as the lo-fi and garage rock music scenes.
Good or bad politics aside, because they have substantiated them self as such a major voice in music criticism, they majorly influence sales for bands. When a band receives a strong review, they not only explode with popularity and buzz throughout physical and Internet pathways but they also sell many more CDs, sellout concerts and are more likely to appear in more mainstream settings, thus furthering their popularity. It has been said that Pitchfork is quite possibly the deciding factor in a band's quick ascent to major success. This fact, along with exposing small but strong, tight-knit music scenes to a wider audience, has proven true many times.
Pitchfork operates by sifting through the Web for news on bands that fall into the independent or experimental music categories. In addition, they cover some mainstream music (mostly Rap and R&B or news about bands strongly influential to current indie-rock music) as well as some jazz and metal. They, however, do not have comment sections anywhere on their site, closing off their readers' responses. This seems to be a defensive tactic in protecting their overwhelming influence on music; if readers were able to respond to some of the sentiments put forth by Pitchfork in a negative tone, the site could potentially lose its authority over their users.
Pitchfork has reached enough attention and fame to operate their own yearly music festival, Pitchfork Music Fest, in Chicago, the city from which they are based. Bands that have appeared at this festival in the past are those in which were frequently blogged about and hyped throughout the preceding year, in addition to fan favorites within the independent music world. There is also Pitchfork.tv, a site of original video content and exclusives produced by Pitchfork.
As Pitchfork continues to expand into more realms of music and to more and more readers around the world, one must step back at look at how much is too much in the world of Internet journalism. Their blog tendencies turn them into a monster at times yet they are not a blog by definition, giving them a more official say in what's what with independent music. Pitchfork seems to become more and more a part of popular culture everyday (see the article from The Onion, entitled "Pitchfork Gives Music 6.8" @: http://www.theonion.com/content/news/pitchfork_gives_music_6_8) and so we can only wonder whether this type of exposure will aid them to prevailing or deceasing as a major player in influencing music.
Good or bad politics aside, because they have substantiated them self as such a major voice in music criticism, they majorly influence sales for bands. When a band receives a strong review, they not only explode with popularity and buzz throughout physical and Internet pathways but they also sell many more CDs, sellout concerts and are more likely to appear in more mainstream settings, thus furthering their popularity. It has been said that Pitchfork is quite possibly the deciding factor in a band's quick ascent to major success. This fact, along with exposing small but strong, tight-knit music scenes to a wider audience, has proven true many times.
Pitchfork operates by sifting through the Web for news on bands that fall into the independent or experimental music categories. In addition, they cover some mainstream music (mostly Rap and R&B or news about bands strongly influential to current indie-rock music) as well as some jazz and metal. They, however, do not have comment sections anywhere on their site, closing off their readers' responses. This seems to be a defensive tactic in protecting their overwhelming influence on music; if readers were able to respond to some of the sentiments put forth by Pitchfork in a negative tone, the site could potentially lose its authority over their users.
Pitchfork has reached enough attention and fame to operate their own yearly music festival, Pitchfork Music Fest, in Chicago, the city from which they are based. Bands that have appeared at this festival in the past are those in which were frequently blogged about and hyped throughout the preceding year, in addition to fan favorites within the independent music world. There is also Pitchfork.tv, a site of original video content and exclusives produced by Pitchfork.
As Pitchfork continues to expand into more realms of music and to more and more readers around the world, one must step back at look at how much is too much in the world of Internet journalism. Their blog tendencies turn them into a monster at times yet they are not a blog by definition, giving them a more official say in what's what with independent music. Pitchfork seems to become more and more a part of popular culture everyday (see the article from The Onion, entitled "Pitchfork Gives Music 6.8" @: http://www.theonion.com/content/news/pitchfork_gives_music_6_8) and so we can only wonder whether this type of exposure will aid them to prevailing or deceasing as a major player in influencing music.
Check it out @: http://pitchfork.com/
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