TS: "Album of the Week" at STYLUS v. PITCHFORK's "Best New Music"

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Following zach's last CD you bought [on the basis of] a [glowing] review and hated...., which of the two get it "right" (i.e. point you in the "right" direction) more frequently?

Album of the Week v. Best New Music - FITE!

― nader (nader), Thursday, 17 February 2005 22:24 (twenty years ago)

I think there's different intentions behind the two. At Stylus, it's worked out in advance what album the site will choose to spotlight that week: it's probably an album that there's some hype behind, but I don't think that guarantees it a good review. Whereas Pitchfork's Best New Music is more a label that just gets placed on anything that gets over an 8.0 or so.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 17 February 2005 22:35 (twenty years ago)

Actually J I'm not sure that that's true, Pitchfork-wise. Maybe some work has been done to make the ratings and the Best New Music designations line up, more or less, but my sense is that the ones that get the title are hand-picked as records that Pitchfork-the-Entity is getting behind / recommending.

― nabiscothingy, Thursday, 17 February 2005 22:42 (twenty years ago)

Where's my grammar? I meant to ask:

"...which of the two gets it "right" (i.e. points you in the 'right' [or 'wrong'] direction) more frequently [i.e. more consistenly]?"

― nader (nader), Thursday, 17 February 2005 22:55 (twenty years ago)

Hmm, N: you may be right, I've noticed that nothing gets a Best New Music designation with a rating under 8.0, but I guess I hadn't noticed if all titles with ratings over 8.0 get Best New Music designations.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 17 February 2005 22:58 (twenty years ago)

I don't remember seeing a bad review in Stylus' album-of-the-week spot. Hm. And I remember when Dizzee Rascal's "Showtime" got an 8.6 but wasn't admitted to the Best New Music category.

I'd say that I trust Stylus on this, mainly because it's only one album (and it's almost always good-- except for the Bright Eyes mis-step, but they're British, so it's different for some reason when they like Bright Eyes)--and there's always so much crap in the Best New Music section. Stylus editors are more consistent in their tastes, so I feel like it's more of a personal reccommendation as opposed to an "Oh. What did we give this crap? 8.2? Hm. Toss it in Best New Music, I guess," feeling I get on PF.

No offense, of course. I still like reading it, mainly because every other time I go into Other Music there are kids browsing the racks looking over print-outs the Best New Music page! It kinda keeps me up to date on what's hip, though not necessarily what's good.

― poortheatre (poortheatre), Thursday, 17 February 2005 23:04 (twenty years ago)

Also, although not a per se guarantee of a good review, the first seven "Albums of the Week" have received an A-, A, A-, A / B+, A-, A, and an A+, respectively.

― nader (nader), Thursday, 17 February 2005 23:08 (twenty years ago)

those new Stylus ratings suck. actually i notice that at sites where ratings are applied i only scan the rating and dont read the whole review. it would be better and more fair to get rid of those ratingsystems in my opinion. i'd actually read more reviews then.

― Rizz (Rizz), Thursday, 17 February 2005 23:14 (twenty years ago)

Erm, Stylus aren't British. From NYC.

― paulhw (paulhw), Thursday, 17 February 2005 23:57 (twenty years ago)

My jury's still out on rating systems.

On the one hand when a reviewer gives something I love a poor mark I tend to disregard the writing with a huff and pout in my room for an hour. Sometimes more.

While on the other, when an (heretofore) unknown (to me) album receives a high mark I find myself drawn in, curious to know what's-this-all-about.

Which inevitably leads to the text of the review either living up to its trophy, or failing miserably.

― nader (nader), Friday, 18 February 2005 14:52 (twenty years ago)

I think just Nick Southall is British.

― Patrick South (Patrick South), Friday, 18 February 2005 16:15 (twenty years ago)

And Dom Passantino and William Swygart and probably a couple more I don't know about.

― jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 18 February 2005 16:19 (twenty years ago)

I'm Italian.

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Friday, 18 February 2005 16:21 (twenty years ago)

Several Stylus writers look French.

― Mark (MarkR), Friday, 18 February 2005 16:22 (twenty years ago)

touche!

― The Obligatory Sourpuss (Begs2Differ), Friday, 18 February 2005 16:23 (twenty years ago)

yawn.....

― hiphopster8 (hiphopster8), Friday, 18 February 2005 16:27 (twenty years ago)

not all 8s and up get best new music.

― The Argunaut (sexyDancer), Friday, 18 February 2005 17:18 (twenty years ago)

yeah, especially since they're giving almost everything 8s these days.

― hiphopster8 (hiphopster8), Friday, 18 February 2005 17:39 (twenty years ago)

I'm from Mississippi.

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Friday, 18 February 2005 19:10 (twenty years ago)

I am short. I be four-eleven.

― nader (nader), Friday, 18 February 2005 20:46 (twenty years ago)

I think just Nick Southall is British.

and a pretentious annoying twit

― Burrito, Saturday, 19 February 2005 02:38 (twenty years ago)

Erm, Stylus aren't British. From NYC.

What? Damn. Are you sure? How could a non-Briton have such a hard-on for Girls Aloud? Or Junior Boys? Or Nellie McKay? Ah well, I believe you, I guess :)

What about Plagenhoef? He seems a little inter-continental.

― poortheatre (poortheatre), Saturday, 19 February 2005 07:38 (twenty years ago)

pretentious annoying twit or no (Speaking from personal experience? Or his writing?), monsieur Southall's take on Silent Alarm is spot on.

Chalk this one up in the "pointing me in the 'right' direction" column.

― nader (nader), Saturday, 19 February 2005 16:34 (twenty years ago)

Is it just me or does it seem that p'fork is overdoing it this year so far with their 'Best New Music' section? This time last year they only had five picks, whereas this year they already have eleven, a 100%+ increase.

I guess it is possible this year has been that much better, but I really doubt it considering some of their picks. This time of year is the slowest for new releases anyway, so what's going to happen in the spring and fall?

Is the point of the section now just to display what got an 8.0+? Or is it still a consensus-based staff choice? If it's the now former, it definitely becomes much less useful.

(And yes, I know they tried a different format last year with more releases and scrapped it due to confusion or whatever.)

― Keith C (kcraw916), Saturday, 19 February 2005 17:15 (twenty years ago)

that criteria for best new music is unclear, since late last year there were a few 8.0 + discs that didn't make it. maybe it's more open ended now?

― blackmail.is.my.life (blackmail.is.my.life), Saturday, 19 February 2005 17:18 (twenty years ago)

Maybe they're trying to keep up with Stylus?

Y'know, end up with at least 52 pieces of the best new music (without expressly calling them albums of the week) by year's end.

― nader (nader), Saturday, 19 February 2005 18:19 (twenty years ago)

How could a non-Briton have such a hard-on for Girls Aloud? Or Junior Boys? Or Nellie McKay?

for the latter two, see also http://www.villagevoice.com/specials/pazznjop/04/

― Matos-Webster Dictionary (M Matos), Saturday, 19 February 2005 19:37 (twenty years ago)

i think that there's a fundamental difference, editorially speaking, between the stylus aow and best new music. per the mission statement, stylus doesn't put out a unanimous view and the album of the week stuff is usually at the author's discretion. i think that pfork's inclusion or exclusion of stuff 8.0 + is analogous, but that's projecting obvs.

― blackmail.is.my.life (blackmail.is.my.life), Saturday, 19 February 2005 19:54 (twenty years ago)

How could a non-Briton have such a hard-on for Girls Aloud? Or Junior Boys? Or Nellie McKay?

-- poortheatre (gah24...), February 19th, 2005.

I am Canadian and I'm DEFINITELY trying to put my hard-on onto Nellie Mckay. That was the question, right?

― Rollie Pemberton (Rollie Pemberton), Saturday, 19 February 2005 22:53 (twenty years ago)

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