I want my P-tv

April 7, 2008 4:29 AM

So, um, Pitchfork.tv launches today.

That's all I got.

posted by brevator (77 comments total)

And that's all you will get, once the hipsters take the web over completely.
posted by not_on_display at 4:38 AM on April 7, 2008

*makes like Elvis and shoots TV*
posted by jonmc at 4:40 AM on April 7, 2008

Shit, jon, not my TV!!
posted by not_on_display at 4:44 AM on April 7, 2008

...once the hipsters take the web over completely</em

I'm not too worried.
posted by Rykey at 4:44 AM on April 7, 2008

It's kind of like if you take the good parts of The Old Grey Whistle Test and combine them with the worst excesses of So It Goes and splash it with an ironic dash of Soul Train, and this cocktail is being mixed in the mouth of a worn out Parisian whore.

I guess all I'm saying is that I understand why the "kids" love it, and why "you" secretly "bedroom dance" to it, but "music journalism" and "rock video" are such derivative genres that I can't bring myself to imbibe.

Signed,

J. Hipster Shiteface-Tenderplums.
posted by bunnytricks at 4:46 AM on April 7, 2008 [3 favorites]

not_on_display, I'll shoot all the TV's if I have to.
posted by jonmc at 4:47 AM on April 7, 2008

Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork.tv
[Pitchfork Media ; 2008]
Rating: 0.0
posted by chillmost at 4:52 AM on April 7, 2008 [8 favorites]

If a charismatic politician started spouting that our country's problems were because of hipsters we'd have another holocaust on our hands. It's not even funny.
posted by brevator at 5:01 AM on April 7, 2008

So do hipsters need a TV to understand Pitchfork.tv?

OR DID I JUST BLOW YOUR MIND????!!?!?!111
posted by robocop is bleeding at 5:02 AM on April 7, 2008 [1 favorite]

You blew my mind.

Though it looks like Juan lives in the South Slope and, uh, last time I checked, that ain't the hip part of town.

Otherwise, I have no idea what this website is, but the videos look cool.
posted by From Bklyn at 5:10 AM on April 7, 2008

I loathe Pitchfork, but they and I seem to enjoy the same music. This is a welcome, uh, thingy. It's not like they're writing about anything. Around here, the only time I might happen upon videos like this is during a half-hour block in the middle of a Friday night. And the quality is better than YouTube.

Unfortunately, though, watching music videos is a complete waste of time.
posted by Sys Rq at 5:11 AM on April 7, 2008

Unfortunately, though, watching music videos is a complete waste of time.

As opposed to commenting on the web?
posted by jonmc at 5:13 AM on April 7, 2008 [3 favorites]

At least I'm kind of using my brain here, jon.
posted by Sys Rq at 5:13 AM on April 7, 2008

watching music videos is a complete the best waste of time, ever.

ObOnion: "Pitchfork Gives Music 6.8"
posted by octobersurprise at 5:24 AM on April 7, 2008

The videos on there are well shot and really well recorded. There's some value to this.
posted by Evstar at 5:32 AM on April 7, 2008

I like it.
posted by hadjiboy at 5:36 AM on April 7, 2008

Great, now they've corrupted hadjiboy.

*calls deprogrammer*
posted by jonmc at 5:37 AM on April 7, 2008 [1 favorite]

Guaranteed in a couple of years it'll be nothing but quiz programs and reality shows - no videos whatsoever.
posted by Flashman at 5:42 AM on April 7, 2008 [4 favorites]

This commenting thing? Is it something I'd need a computer to understand?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 5:43 AM on April 7, 2008

They've got the whole of LOUDquietLOUD, that Pixies reunion doc. Cool.
posted by Evstar at 5:53 AM on April 7, 2008

I'm sure they'll try to take the fun out of music video the same way they try to take the fun out of music. I can't wait until they open an ice cream shop.
posted by Slack-a-gogo at 6:04 AM on April 7, 2008

Jon. Before you pull the trigger. Real quick. Check out the Jay Reatard live video.

For the life of me, I cannot understand the Pitchfork hate. The latest band they got all hyper about is crap? Don't listen to that band. They dogged your new favorite album? Repeat after The Dude: "Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion, man." They don't review the kind of music you're into? Don't waste your time on 'em. Is it the snarkiness? Well, they've toned that down significantly and seriously, fellow MeFites, what's the internet for if not snark? I know, I know. Porn. But snark is a close second.

If you're interested in discovering new music, it's a valuable resource. I guess I understand the idea that pop-music criticism in general is a flawed idea, but Pitchfork is not the last word in critical opinion unless you give them that authority.
posted by 2or3whiskeysodas at 6:06 AM on April 7, 2008 [7 favorites]

I cannot understand the Pitchfork hate.

Bad writing. bad taste. hipster hegemony.
posted by jonmc at 6:12 AM on April 7, 2008

I believe the pixies doc is "loudQUIETloud"
posted by brevator at 6:16 AM on April 7, 2008

I cannot understand the Pitchfork hate.

I hate Pitchfork 'cause it infringes on Jonmc's hegemony.
posted by octobersurprise at 6:22 AM on April 7, 2008 [2 favorites]

I enjoy Pitchfork. I enjoyed this, thanks.
posted by empath at 6:29 AM on April 7, 2008

Are you willing to duel me over that, brevator?
posted by Evstar at 6:39 AM on April 7, 2008

I just threw up in my meme a tiny bit.
posted by Stonestock Relentless at 6:43 AM on April 7, 2008 [1 favorite]

As long as it doesn't involve people talking over the music to tell you what they thought about what you could be watching if they weren't in the way, I don't have a problem with this.
posted by ardgedee at 6:44 AM on April 7, 2008

Evstar, I'm sure that you intended to capitalize correctly. You must have just had your caps lock on.
posted by brevator at 6:45 AM on April 7, 2008

I hope they run as many ads on the thing as they do on their own web site. Also, isn't this about 2 years too late?
posted by dobbs at 6:49 AM on April 7, 2008

For the life of me, I cannot understand the Pitchfork hate.

It's the curse of Lester Bangs. (Direct example on page 2.)
posted by NemesisVex at 6:59 AM on April 7, 2008 [1 favorite]

All's I'm saying, jonmc, is be careful. There's only one thing hipper than liking Pitchfork.
posted by 2or3whiskeysodas at 6:59 AM on April 7, 2008

yeah, that's the way you do it
get your therapy for nothin' and your meds for free
posted by pyramid termite at 7:04 AM on April 7, 2008

All things being all things.... If you were going to make a web tv site based upon your popular internet brand, this is the way you should do it.

I'd love to hate it, but the design is straightforward, the quality is good, it feels living and seamless yet there are permalinks, there aren't ads bleeding out of every orifice, and there's Bonnie Prince Billy covering Mariah Carey.

If they can keep ads under control and find a way to actually have fun, it'll be pretty hot. I have at least one friend who will sap everything out of this that it has to offer. And if I don't have to hear about Pitchfork's many personal vendettas, I'll tolerate its existence.
posted by pokermonk at 7:11 AM on April 7, 2008 [2 favorites]

I want to hate P'Fork but like has been said, they're useful. And I can't remember the last time I watched an honest to goodness music video. It had to be in the early 90's right before The Real World took over MTV.

Good luck Pitchfork. Don't fuck this up with "original content"...
posted by ryanhealy at 7:15 AM on April 7, 2008

Say what you want about the way pitchfork conducts their reviews, but this is awesome. I didn't realize half these people even had videos and I've already discovered several more I would have never heard about otherwise. Good stuff.
posted by o0o0o at 7:17 AM on April 7, 2008

This is an excellent site. I haven't enjoyed watching music videos this much since the heyday of Alternative Nation on MTV Europe in the mid-90s. Toby Amies where you at! (Lonely Planet Six Degrees, apparently)
posted by Kattullus at 7:39 AM on April 7, 2008

and there's Bonnie Prince Billy covering Mariah Carey.

Carey covering Bonnie Prince Billy/Palace/Will Oldham tunes would be so, so much better.
posted by octobersurprise at 7:46 AM on April 7, 2008

It reminds me a lot of the sort of wonderful live music programmes you see on British television. It's cool that it's on the web.

I just wanted to point out that Jools is also now doing a live broadcast!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/later/
posted by chuckdarwin at 7:47 AM on April 7, 2008

I thought this was going to be about Psychic TV.
posted by Sticherbeast at 8:00 AM on April 7, 2008

the man man video is something akin to spinal tap... i hope its intentional, for their sake.
posted by joeblough at 8:08 AM on April 7, 2008

I'm at work so I can't spend a lot of time checking out the site, but from the looks of it, it seems to be pretty slick. And <3 Radiohead.
posted by booticon at 8:19 AM on April 7, 2008

I'm now always a fan of their writings, but I have enjoyed some of their new music recommendations. Was nice to watch the Pixies documentary, though.
posted by TheWaves at 8:20 AM on April 7, 2008

This is awesome. Period. I don't care what anybody says about Pitchfork, hipsters, etc. (But I still lurrve you, jon.)

How is this not the best of the web? It's a better use of the technology than many others I can think of.
posted by jokeefe at 8:21 AM on April 7, 2008

*puts jokeefe on the deprogramming list, right after hadjiboy*
posted by jonmc at 8:27 AM on April 7, 2008

A great one-link post AND you pissed off the locals! A Metafilter twofer! Nicely done, brevator!

On first look, this seems excellent. Good bands, good quality video. But as soon as they start in with a Pitchfork Spring Break Douche Extravaganza in Cancun, I too will join the haters.

Who am I kidding! I TOTALLY would (secretly) watch that!
posted by paddysat at 8:39 AM on April 7, 2008 [1 favorite]

I don't look for that to happen, paddysat.

Don't worry about jonmc. He's just pissed off because no one likes Night Ranger anymore.
posted by chuckdarwin at 9:02 AM on April 7, 2008

Yay!
posted by ludwig_van at 9:05 AM on April 7, 2008

jonmc, I'd go back to shooting TV's. It sends a much clearer message.

I like some of the bands Pitchfork endorses, but I agree wholeheartedly that the Pitchfork brandname only has power over you if you give it that power.

And, while I like a portion of the music and have nothing vs Pitchfork, it always seems some of the biggest music snobs I meet seem to be reading from the Pitchfork playbook.

**shoots jonmc's monitor** BOOYAH! That's power!
posted by not_on_display at 9:18 AM on April 7, 2008

(I'm waiting for Lana...)
posted by progosk at 9:23 AM on April 7, 2008

The Jay Reatard show is fantastic. I'd like to be cynical/snarky but [this is good].
posted by basicchannel at 9:43 AM on April 7, 2008

I do think the writing on the site has gone downhill over the last few years.


In what sense? It seems to me that when people complain about the writing on pitchfork they're usually bitching about stuff that hasn't been on the site in years. I wouldn't say I read the majority of their reviews, but I read them with some regularity, and I feel like they tend to be more straightforward and less gimmicky than in the old days.
posted by ludwig_van at 9:50 AM on April 7, 2008

For the life of me, I cannot understand the Pitchfork hate...If you're interested in discovering new music, it's a valuable resource.

It is a valuable resource for discovering a certain field of music, no question, and some of that music is even pretty good. For that reason alone, I sometimes read Pitchfork.

The problem is that they suck as critics. Badly. They're dismissive of worthy efforts in genres they don't understand. They don't seem to understand many genres. Heck, they don't seem to know much about music beyond how it affects them. And while there's nothing wrong with those things in particular, they're not things you should be doing if you're acting in the role of a critic, which they are.

It's true that being a good critic is very hard. Anyone who can write a review of music that can actually give people an idea of how likely they are to enjoy it is a rarity. But the Pitchfork folks don't even seem to be trying to work at it.

Bad writing. bad taste. hipster hegemony.

Also a good summary.
posted by weston at 9:53 AM on April 7, 2008 [2 favorites]

They're dismissive of worthy efforts in genres they don't understand. They don't seem to understand many genres.

Ok, I'm not going to keep playing pfork apologist, but what does this mean? And what genres are they dismissive of, and how? Do you mean giving negative reviews, or just lacking coverage? And what qualifies as "understanding many genres?" I feel like they cover a relatively broad range of music, especially compared to the caricature of the narrow-minded indie listener they're often associated with. They obviously give the most attention to music of a certain aesthetic, but I think they've branched out a lot over the years.
posted by ludwig_van at 10:06 AM on April 7, 2008

I think the only way to combat this would be to create a web-video whatever run by the Hound from WFMU, Little Steven and Handsome Dick Manitoba. It would be the Anti-Pitchfork.
posted by jonmc at 10:12 AM on April 7, 2008 [1 favorite]

I think the only way to combat this would be to create a web-video whatever run by the Hound from WFMU, Little Steven and Handsome Dick Manitoba. It would be the Anti-Pitchfork.

Shit yeah, I'd totally watch that, too!
posted by 2or3whiskeysodas at 10:29 AM on April 7, 2008

I'd guess at least 75% of Pitchfork's readership have loudly hated on Pitchfork at some point in their lives. It seems to be the thing to do.
posted by naju at 10:53 AM on April 7, 2008

jonmc doesn't want to admit that the Jay Reatard show is awesome. jonmc is old and wants you all to know that.
posted by basicchannel at 10:56 AM on April 7, 2008

And I can't remember the last time I watched an honest to goodness music video.

Not even this one?
posted by Flashman at 11:03 AM on April 7, 2008

The flash player there is a hundred time more impressive than youtube's or any other I've seen. I hope there's more content like the Pixies doc and the Radiohead jam tape.

And brevator, quit being so levelheaded. I'm trying to antagonize you.
posted by Evstar at 11:14 AM on April 7, 2008

I'd guess at least 75% of Pitchfork's readership have loudly hated on Pitchfork at some point in their lives. It seems to be the thing to do.

I hated Pitchfork back when it wasn't cool to hate Pitchfork.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 11:18 AM on April 7, 2008

"But as soon as they start in with a Pitchfork Spring Break Douche Extravaganza in Cancun, I too will join the haters."

You know, that sounds dumb, but I'd really dig on seeing the dudes from that ManMan bunch just tearing it up in Mexico. Agreed, no one likes the artificial beauty that MTV showcases, but this is just artificial geek.

I mean, who drinks a beer while they're riding a bike?
posted by resurrexit at 11:50 AM on April 7, 2008

Dear Dominant Culture,

It's nice of you to finally swing your gaze back towards Memphis, but this Jay Reatard adoration is growing more difficult to wrap my head around by the day. I mean, if it was Alicja Trout or the Oblivians, even the Subteens, I could understand the hype. They're great unsung trash rock legends one and all. Jay Reatard though? That's like deciding to try a new salad bar and loading your plate up with nothing but bacon bits and olive oil.

Please restore Jay Reatard back to punch line status please.

Sincerely,
moi
posted by bunnytricks at 12:11 PM on April 7, 2008

That's like deciding to try a new salad bar and loading your plate up with nothing but bacon bits and olive oil.

You say this like it's a bad thing.
posted by turaho at 12:30 PM on April 7, 2008

bunnytricks is more local and meta than your favorite band which sucks, by the way.
posted by basicchannel at 12:45 PM on April 7, 2008

TV is so fucking played
posted by spiderwire at 12:51 PM on April 7, 2008

bunnytricks is more local and meta than your favorite band which sucks, by the way.

Not only that, I'm being entirely earnest, and that's the new irony.
posted by bunnytricks at 1:08 PM on April 7, 2008

This looks pretty good, on the whole.

And I pretty much agree with what Ludwig_van has said about the fork here: They do seem to have backed off on some of the most egregious bullshit of the past, and have pretty decent interviews. The only problems I usually have with 'em are that I don't much like their interface, which this .tv solves pretty well, and that I tend to disagree with them about a fair amount of the stuff they really like. Oh, and I tend to find out about music in the same places that a bunch of their writers do, so it doesn't do me all that much good (as opposed to when I was a bit younger and hadn't found my crazy tape-swap pals yet).
posted by klangklangston at 3:28 PM on April 7, 2008

jonmc, I tried to warn you against mixing Willie Nelson-endorsed whisky with Frank Zappa-endorsed beer, but did you listen? No. My only error was instead of your head 'sploding, it sprung a leak and slowly collapsed accompanied by a loud farty noise. Stick a Pitchfork in him. He's finished.
posted by wendell at 5:03 PM on April 7, 2008

I figure that, when someone with an ironic t-shirt tells me they love Pitchfork, I know all I need to know about them (and all I need to know to hate them). I blame Pitchfork for pretty much everything that's wrong with the world.
posted by Mael Oui at 8:23 PM on April 7, 2008

No offense.
posted by Mael Oui at 8:26 PM on April 7, 2008

Bad writing. bad taste. hipster hegemony.


Thats three of my FAVORITE things!


Bet you hate Daytrotter too?! Those kids with their silly outfits and love of new music.

Why don't you just go kill all rainbows while you're at it?

big meanie..
posted by MiltonRandKalman at 8:36 PM on April 7, 2008

next up: videogum (info here).
posted by progosk at 4:46 AM on April 8, 2008

next up: videogum

fixed that for myself (it's about everything but music...)
posted by progosk at 8:38 AM on April 8, 2008

There are so many inside jokes here... someone needs to make a translator so I can understand wtf you are saying.
posted by benfitts at 9:52 AM on April 8, 2008

Enjoyed the Thermals, Radiohead, and Liars vids. I read Pitchfork review occasionally when I'm considering downloading something; as with many others, I like a lot of the same music they do, but disagree often with their opinions. What's wrong with that?

Daytrotter rocks as well.
posted by mrgrimm at 10:55 AM on April 9, 2008