take your guesses boys and girls from the internet dot com
pretty sure that it’s going to be kendrick’s damn.
take your guesses boys and girls from the internet dot com
pretty sure that it’s going to be kendrick’s damn.
Why do we give Pitchfork so much attention? Maybe it’s just me, but I haven’t really considered anything Pitchfork outputs, or any other publication for that matter. They’re completely irrelevant to me. The problem with Pitchfork though is they have so much power, yet they write their reviews in such a pretentious manner; often rambling about something completely irrelevant to the quality of the music itself.
Why do we give Pitchfork so much attention?
Pitchfork has been relevant for the entirety of the 2000s and I’d say up until 2013-2014. After those last years of relevancy, I’d say that their relevancy was lost. The one publication that gained all of this relevancy is The Needle Drop. I don’t think that we do give Pitchfork much in the way of attention right now as much as we do give all of this attention to other publications, but we still do give Pitchfork at least some attention because of the massive influence that they had on the 2000s as a music writing publication. The website gave a boost of popularity to certain artists and bands in that time, introducing sometimes more obscure acts to a wider audience. Part of this attention given to Pitchfork could be due to them being the self-proclaimed “most trusted voice in music” – which is a bullshit claim, to be completely honest-- and some people taking this label seriously. I wouldn’t say that they are, and truth be told, there isn’t a single music publication that one could rely for a vast majority of the time.
Those are the only reasons that I could think of right now to answer your question.
they write their reviews in such a pretentious manner; often rambling about something completely irrelevant to the quality of the music itself.
Even though I dislike the album completely, their Citizen Zombie review is a prime example of that.
I don’t really care about Pitchfork’s reviews, but I do go there frequently for the latest musical news and all that stuff. They’re just an average musical publication that is in their relevancy decline. I made this thread because Pitchfork was pretty unpredictable with their album of the year pick last year, and I figured out that it could be fun to guess which would be the album of the year for them.
AOTY just needs to make its own EOTY lists and AOTY polls 
I mean thats the only reason I use pitchfork, their lists that are generally terrible anyway.
bet kendrick or staples, maybe lorde (music criticism is dead actually lol)
might expand on this but I’ve been thinking a lot too…
Kendrick Lamar - DAMN.
Why they would: Like his past two records, this has had an obvious lasting cultural impact across the entirety of 2017, enough political messages to feel ‘meaningful’ and just enough anti-mainstream sensibilities (that cover) to give it indie appeal. Kendrick is an industry veteran at this point and awarding him the title would make Pitchfork once again seem ahead of the curve when DAMN. inevitably loses to Ed Sheeran’s shitty album at the Grammys.
Why they wouldn’t: I kind of wonder if they’d really give AOTY to K Dot 3 times in a row. I think they knew they had to in 2015 cause it was the obvious superior of the four records they gave 9.3s to that year (him, Sufjan, Tame Impala, Jamie xx) but I think the mixtape-like nature of this album may come across as less ambitious than TPAB, which would give Pitchfork a reason to slot it into the #2 spot like with Yeezus.
Mount Eerie - A Crow Looked At Me:
Why they would: This album is heavy and (in my opinion) an objectively more visceral listen than the other recent death-themed indie records. Phil is a former indie darling who was actually one of the first to get Pitchfork’s AOTY with The Glow Pt. 2 and is definitely a worthy contender to join Kendrick and Noah Lennox in the two-timer hall of fame. In terms of critical reception, this is a huge late-career comeback after a series of warmly-received but not super doted-on Mount Eerie records.
Why they wouldn’t: Pitchfork doesn’t usually give AOTY to somber death-coping records, even when they’re late-career highlights (Sun Kil Moon, Sufjan, Nick Cave) etc. I’ve seen this record also be somewhat polarizing to those who feel the lyrics aren’t enough to overcome the deliberately simplified instrumentation. While I am absolutely of the belief that this thing is incredible (it’s made me cry at least four times), I think the fact that a prose-heavy record like Benji didn’t win kind of puts the writing on the wall.
Vince Staples - Big Fish Theory
Why they would: Vince is definitely hype enough to merit the title. The album is a pretty enthusiastic listen with a fair degree of range. I think ir would also give Pitchfork more rap cred to give AOTY to a rapper unafraid to call out any and all white institiutions, including Pitchfork itself, as opposed to Kanye or Kendrick who tacitly tolerate their immensely white hipster followings.
Why they wouldn’t: In terms of sub-40 minute rap bombast, this record is no RTJ2. It’s political in the sense that Vince has never been unafraid to really spell out racism, but only a few songs head into the overtly anti-white supremacy direction. I also don’t think the dance-rap direction he tries for on this record is all that groundbreaking or enough to propel him to number one. I’m also pretty certain a Staples win would mark the first time an artist won for an album that wasn’t their highest rated record by pitchfork at time of winning (other than Kendrick winning twice).
Lorde - Melodrama
Why they would: I do feel Pure Heroine got a 7.3 because Lorde was so quickly gobbled up by the mainstream following the success of “Royals,” and the low 7s are reserved for mainstream girls with some modicum of indie cred (Demi, JoJo, Carly). Of course, Pure Heroine was also pretty flawed in its own regard, sounding undeniably rushed following the surprise success of its single. It’s then easy to view Melodrama as Lorde’s proper coming out, a record much more fully formed and a little less Billboard-friendly (“Green Light” was pop, but it also only peaked at No.`19 and is an undeniable red herring to the album’s true sound). Also, like many of the albums here, the cover is pretty iconic, which you know P4k loves.
Why they wouldn’t: I’m surprised people didn’t make a bigger deal about this, but Solange winning last year marked the first time a female solo act was awarded AOTY by Pitchfork. I think part of the reason they chose it despite it’s comparatively low rating (8.7) was because of how vital the record’s political messages felt in light of a tumultuous 2016. I don’t know if Pitchfork would pull that move two years in a row, especially for an album about heartbreak and hedonism in your late teens/early 20s. Lorde also is on a definite upward trajectory; she puts out albums slowly but at this rate she’ll put out at least two more before she even hits 30, at least one of which will surely be her magnum opus. The impression of Melodrama seems to be that she has even bigger things in her future, and maybe Pitchfork will hold off until then.
I think King Krule might get it too but I haven’t listened to that yet so idk what to say.