Let me start off my saying Pitchfork is an amazing place to find new music, to read up on the latest news from popular and non-popular bands, and it has also become very popular in reviewing albums. Let me also say that I am a major fan of the site and what it represents.

Yet, my major peeve is the bias and views from the site’s reviewers. 

The rating scale, in my opinion, is harsh, and at times, highly unbeliveable. I thought I’d give some examples. (All ratings are out of 10)

Note: Please understand this is far from a bashing. It is only an opinion on Pitchfork’s system of measuring the worth and creativity of an artist’s hard work.

Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.

Pitchfork Rating: 10.0

Sure, the album is solid and sure, Kanye is one of the better hip hop artists in the industry at the moment. But Pitchfork is agreeing collectively that Kanye’s latest achievement is a perfect release. Yes, perfect. 10/10. And this could be based on my own opinion and bias but there are only FEW, if any, albums without flaws. I believe this album does have such flaws and could not, and should not, be deemed a perfect album. What album do I believe is perfect? I still haven’t found one. And that is what the beauty of music is. We are flawed beings trying to make sense of the world through flawed means. And my letter to you, Pitchfork, is that it is okay. We need not try to reach perfection, but get close enough to always be reaching for something.

My Rating: 8.0

EMA - Past Life Martyed Saints

Pitchfork Rating: 8.5

Are. You. Kidding. Me.

Look, I’m a sucker for interesting music. I get the love of noise rock, whispery vocals, off-timed… everything. But when artists do things for the sake of doing things, what is that even? Is it art or laziness? Is it music or thievery? It’s hard to respect music when it is so uninspiring that it seems to be recorded out of bordem. The fact that Pitchfork would be enthralled by such a noisy and sonically distant release confuses and infuriates me. I love such indie movements: of pushing the envelope and twisting all modern popular progression. But who says you can take out everything and only bring out-of-key vocals and simple chordal structures? 

My Rating: 6.5 (at best)

Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

Pitchfork rating: 8.5

SERIOUSLY! I’m really joking on this one because I’m the only one who dislikes this band apparently. But seriously. Take a bath.

My Rating: 4.5 (only out of spite)

The Lonely Island - Turtleneck & Chain

Pitchfork Rating: 7.1

Holy Moses. Since when have we given a comedy album 2.1 points above the latest Death Cab album? Maybe someone just needs to sit me down and run this by me. There are bands who starve, travel, live, and breathe for music. There are bands out there who are more talented than every one on pop radio combined. Yet, Pitchfork believes that the latest album by Lonely Island, fueled by SNL fame, is more intellectual, sonically pleasing, and ground-breaking than Yeasayer’s Odd Blood? I call bullshit.

My Rating: 4.0

Mumford & Sons - Sigh No More

Pitchfork Rating - 2.1 (!?!?!?!)

I could probably rant all day on this one. It makes you wonder how Pitchfork listens to the music they review. “Hmm. This band breaks a lot of ground and has created a platform for indie bands into the mainstream. But being at the forefront of the indie folk revival isn’t enough. Maybe they need more noise.” 

The whole point of this article is for us to rethink how we listen and judge music. It all depends on the mood you’re in that day or how tired your ears are. We throw away so much good music without even giving it the time of day. I say take Pitchfork’s reviews as you take RottenTomatoes’ Tomatometer: if you love a movie, won’t you see it again regardless of a critic’s review? Pitchfork, put more heart into your reviews. Give things a second listen, hell, maybe even a third. But regardless, I love you.

What do you think about Pitchfork’s album reviews?