• the217
• Life
• Oh, Pitchfork! How have you addicted me?

First Sniff

Only time will tell in terms of longevity and staying power, but as of right now, there is only one name that matters in the music industry. Pitchfork.

Love 'em or hate 'em, they dominate the minds of consumers these days, and while most people still haven't been to the Web site, chances are, they've heard a band as a result of 'Fork championing some no name that now gets played on commercial radio. Rolling Stone? A joke. Spin? Who cares? NY Times? Doesn't matter. In today's world, a Pitchfork review can literally make or break a band. And trust me, I am not the only one who finds it to be repulsive and, also, the absolute truth.

I'll give it an 8.4 ...

Last weekend was a testament to Pitchfork's drawing power as about 15,000 hipsters and curious listeners descended on Union Park in Chicago's West Loop. Curated by Pitchfork and promoted by the hipster machine that seems to now reside in the Second City, The Intonation Music Festival, held on Saturday and Sunday, was an all-out display of terrific bands and blistering sun. I can safely say, having been to more than my fair share of festivals, that it was executed almost perfectly. The beer lines were nonexistent. There was a record fair that was held on-site, under a big tent where I hung out with the Polyvinyl kids and finally, finally! found Faith No More's The Real Thing on vinyl. The port-a-potties were clean and always available. The food lines were a little long, but eating festival fare is never good for you anyway, so big whoop.

In the end though, it was the bands that made the show a success. Personally, I wasn't a big fan of many of them. The highlights belong to Magnolia Electric Co., The M's, Andrew Bird, Thunderbirds Are Now! and Xiu Xiu. But the bottom line is simple. Everyone who went had a good time. It was impossible not to. And the fact that Intonation might sell more tickets than its big bad corporate brother, Lollapalooza, is a testament to the influence that Pitchfork Media has on the world.

Public Service Announcement

Ever heard of The Arcade Fire? How about Broken Social Scene? Joanna Newsom? Anyone here know who The Go! Team is? Of course you do, and it's all because of Pitchfork. These bands or performers were all given high marks for their most recent albums and as a result, they are now popular. As much as I tend to agree with Pitchfork on many things, I want to remind each and every one of you to THINK FOR YOURSELVES. OK. Glad I got that one off my chest.

Ups to the Competition

I guess you could consider us rivals, but there is no denying how much better The Hub looks as of the past couple of weeks. Lisa Meid and her staff have taken a once almost ridiculous attempt to salvage a once great paper and have made it into something arguably more accessible and readable than any of its previous incarnations. The middle "Pin-Up" section is golden. Lisa's notes are always interesting, and Community editor and friend of this writer Heather Zydek is going to be giving even more back with her new columnists which include rock stars and boyhood heroes of mine, Rose Marshack and Don Gerard. So, congrats to you all at The Hub.

Oh, but ... one thing ...

In the story about Billy Corgan last week in The Hub, the author claims that Corgan was "practically the founder of 'Emo' music." Uh, dude. You are SO way off. So very way off. Never once have the Smashing Pumpkins ever been mentioned in the same breath as emo music until now. The Pumpkins were classic alternative and that is not up for debate. Look at the Singles soundtrack. They were the only band not from Seattle featured on there, unless you include Westerberg, but he had been living there for a while by then. And, for the record, those of you interested in the real genesis of emo rock might want to look to a D.C. band called Rites of Spring from the mid-'80s. Just sayin', you know, for the record ...

Final Whiff

I have an idea. And I think you are going to like it ... That is all.