Love them or hate them, Pitchfork has gotten this list thing down pat. After releasing a worthwhile list of the top 500 songs of the decade back in August, Pitchfork staff have now amassed their list of top albums, and it’s really not much of a surprise (especially if you read Pitchfork) what ends up #1.
Click here to find out and post your comments.
Have to give credit where it’s due, and folks this is one dandy of a list. Something Fuzzy Thoughts was planning to do at the end of this year, Pitchfork has gone ahead and named names– of the top 500 songs of the 2000’s. While there are certainly some choices that will stir their share of controversy, I have to say they did a hell of a job (especially with the #1 pick).
What turned out to be one of the better Chicago festivals attended, Pitchfork 2009 puts a lot of pressure on the upcoming Lollapalooza festival, as the little festival that could has slowly crept up on its counterpart in terms of not only attracting quality bands, but also in the overall atmosphere. With nearly 55,000 fans entering Union Park during the course of the three-day festival, this little brother packs quite the punch.
Of course, there were things to nitpick over, whether it be the bleeding audio (which Lollapalooza still hasn’t even figured out in the much larger Grant Park setting), bathroom/beer lines, etc., but for all intents and purposes, Pitchfork was perfectly imperfect– a fantastic weekend of music.
Highlights
The Flaming Lips put on an expectedly exquisite show.
Of course the highlights begin with the heavy hitters of The Flaming Lips, Built to Spill and The National, all of which lived up to the hype and then some. The Lips played some new material and also a rare b-side just for fans, but otherwise most bands stuck to the Write the Night list based on what the fans voted.
Pharoahe Monch was incredibly solid, bringin the soulful flair that's sorely missing from most hip-hop.
Other highlights include Pharoahe Monch, who really energized the crowd, as well as Yo La Tengo and Blitzen Trapper. Also, the music and art vendors deserve a lot of props as well, as there was a ton of worthwhile shopping options (particularly for vinyl lovers).
Lowlights
There weren’t many, but one of the notable ones was of course DOOM (aka MF Doom, aka Viktor Vaughn, aka King Geedorah, and more), who looked to be more interested in hitting up the food vendors afterwards than actually performing. He’s never been known as a terrific live act to be sure, but at points it would have been equally interesting to simply have his music piped into the festival speakers. Tortoise was equally uninspiring as they looked to be going through the motions, seemingly forgetting that they are in fact playing in front of an audience.
As far as the festival itself was concerned, bathroom lines were a problem to the point that Pitchfork organizers had to call in an emergency shipment of portable johns. Another point of contention for many was the food selection at the festival– apparently the higher ups overestimated the number of people interested in vegetarian/vegan options, because there were definitely a large number of people bemoaning the lack of “normal” food options.
A Great Event
Yes, that is indeed the line for the Green Line post-Pitchfork.
Of course those are minor quibbles, and in the grand scheme of things, they really don’t amount to much. The fact is that Pitchfork put together one hell of a festival this year and are poised to overtake Lollapalooza in quality in the next year– if you don’t think they have already.
Pitchfork may attract a smaller crowd, but it's enough to shut down Ashland Ave.
Yes, you read that correctly. As you may recall, Fuzzy Thoughts joined Twitter just a short while ago, and here’s one of the main reasons why. The live updates will begin at around 4:30 CST and will continue throughout the evening.
Here are the acts that will be playing at Union Park in Chicago tomorrow:
Tortoise 5:00 (C)
Yo La Tengo 6:10 (A)
The Jesus Lizard 7:20 (C)
Built to Spill 8:40 (A)
Well, well, well… looks like Pitchfork may just upstage Lollapalooza this year. The Chicago-based media site, which has become (for better or worse) synonymous with indie music , has cultivated a lineup that seems too good to be true. If the headliners aren’t enough, fans will choose the setlist for the four bands that play on Friday night—how’s that for an idea? While many more artists are to come, below is what Pitchfork has officially unveiled thus far. Tickets go on sale March 13.
Friday July 17
Built to Spill
The Jesus Lizard
Yo La Tengo
Tortoise
Saturday July 18
The National
Pharoahe Monch
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
and more
Saturday July 18
Grizzly Bear
The Walkmen
Vivian Girls
and more
