Finding Good Music Reviews Online
Pitchfork Media
www.pitchforkmedia.com
Pitchfork is one of the Internet’s best known music review sites. It covers a wide array of music, from indie-pop and alt country, to electronica and hardcore. The site does focus largely on independent acts and music snob favorites, but manages fit major releases in as well. Pitchfork has a host of talented writers whose prose is often full of anecdotes and lengthy philosophical asides. Sometimes it makes for incredible and informative reads, while other times it merely comes off verbose and tiresome, with not enough focus on the music.
Pitchfork offers album, track, and concert reviews, as well as news stories, interviews, columns, and features.
Reviews and news are updated every weekday.
Metacritic
www.metacritic.com/music/
Metacritic does not offer original review material, but instead combines ratings from numerous sources to create an overall rating. Reviews from websites like Pitchfork Media, and All Music Guide are combined with reviews from publications like The Los Angeles Times, Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly, Vibe, and The New York Times. What you get are short blurbs from each publication, their rating, and then an average rating created from all the sources.
Metacritic offers album reviews.
Updates are made frequently.
Punknews
www.punknews.org
Don’t be fooled by the name. While Punknews does offer extensive coverage of the punk scene, it also hits up indie rock, hardcore, metal, and other genres. The review staff is a mixed bag, and because it is a community based site anyone can submit a review, but for the most part even if the reviews are not well written they at least make it clear what a band sounds like. The fact that responses can be posted to a review also helps out. If a review seems biased someone who disagrees can post and give his or her own opinion on the album.
Punknews offers album and concert reviews as well as news stories, interviews, a release schedule, and daily concert schedule.
Reviews are posted on Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday, while news is updated daily.
Jazz Review
www.jazzreview.com
Jazz Review offers a massive amount of info on the world of Jazz music. Whether you are looking for some new discs to buy, a concert to attend, or just some Jazz info, Jazz Review is a great resource. The tone of the site is a bit more serious and simple than some of the other review sites, but this straightforward style is helpful if you are just looking for the facts.
Jazz Review offers album and concert reviews as well as concert listings, features, and numerous resources.
Updates are made frequently.
Tiny Mix Tapes
www.tinymixtapes.com
Much like Pitchfork Tiny Mix Tapes caters to the “music snob” crowd and often reviews obscure acts. What makes Tiny Mix Tapes a good way to find new music though is the fact that their reviews are often short in length, allowing you quickly read a review without all of the literary ramblings of other review sites. Also listed at the top of each review is the reviewed band’s style as well as similar aritsts.
Tiny Mix Tapes offers album and concert reviews, as well as news stories, interviews, features, and classic reviews.
Updates are done randomly.
Coke Machine Glow
www.cokemachineglow.com
Coke Machine Glow offers reviews of a wide range of mostly independent acts. Their reviews not only show the initial reviewer’s rating of the album, but a combined rating based on the opinions of the entire staff. This is helpful in showing if a reviewer is a merely a fan or sharing a common opinion. Coke Machine Glow’s show reviews are also a bit more involved than most review sites.
Coke Machine Glow offers album, track, and concert reviews, as well as interviews and classic reviews.
Updates are done about once a week.
