sincerely, pitchfork

TO ALL ASPIRING INDIE MUSICIANS:

We can make you, and we can break you.

At the slightest whim we possess the power to catapult your band, who's discography may consist of nothing more than a 4-song EP, into the Next-Big-Thing stratosphere and subsequently into the MBAA (Most Blogged About Artist) spot on The Hype Machine.

Conversely, once you have ascended to an undeserved level of indie-bordering-on-mainstream stardom, it is likely that you will fall out of our favor and we will choose to exercise our ability to cut you back down to size.

Our earlier affinity for your music will in no way hold us back from unequivocally denouncing your future releases. For example, no matter how lavishly and articulately we may praise your first demo, we will not hesitate to wordlessly and humiliatingly dismiss your debut album. It may even be the case that we called said demo, "a record with not just a distinctive aesthetic, but also one single-worthy track after another," with four "catchy, tightly executed songs that put a memorable stamp on pop's classic themes." But even if the album that follows includes all of these songs, with the only notable difference being their improved production, we will have no qualms about giving it one of our worst ratings of the year and providing absolutely no explanation.

Sincerely,
Pitchfork Media, Inc.










P.S. Truth be told, Partie Traumatic isn't too exciting and I've already become a little tired of the high-school-flavored dilemmas of Black Kids' songs. But come on, I expect the indie-braintrust at Pitchfork to at least pretend it is more objective and less flighty than my personal predilections. Either they're getting lazy or they're indulging in an indie-rock power trip. And there goes my brilliant conceit.

Continue reading...

art and industry

Somewhere in the Northern Liberties hipsterhood of Philadelphia is a warehouse which bears the phrase "Art and Industry" in painted lettering, heavily faded by countless snowbound winters and scorching summers. It seems appropriate to me that it in this very same building that Dr. Dog does their recording. I can't explain why exactly, but maybe you understand. Their new album, Fate, comes out a week from today. It came into my possession today, and I was only able to listen to it three times through before I had to start writing about it here. Like their previous albums, most notably 2005's Easy Beat and 2007's We All Belong, Fate is a melting pot of genres and influences. Folk, country, and blues flavors accent Dr. Dog's achingly melodic indie-pop/rock gems, with the vocal duties being shared equally between Scott McMicken and Toby Leaman, backed as always by their 60's-pop-esque chorus. Pitchfork will probably give it a 6.3 or something. It will be another moment when you're reminded of why you don't care what they say. The album is great. If you don't believe me...

Dr. Dog - Old News (buy)
Dr. Dog - The Rabbit, The Bat & The Reindeer
Dr. Dog - The Ark Continue reading...

only one syllable

guess what you're going to be pumping on your boombox all summer long?




nas' new album, previously entitled 'n***er' is now simply being called untitled and comes out july 15th. arguably the best rapper alive. Continue reading...