No idea how they’ve wrung that many words out of a 4 track, 12 minute E.P of obvious throwaways (one of the songs is gorgeous, mind)
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Absolutely nothing better than sitting down with a nice cuppa and reading The Wire’s review section from start to finish. Counting up the artists you’ve heard of on your fingers as you go and being completely confident you’ll still have a firm grip on your tea by the end.
More seriously, it’s just a reliable way to easily pick up on some stuff you might not otherwise hear about.
Also this:
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Much prefer informal stuff on here or reddit than proper journalistic writing
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Plus the added frisson of knowing that once you’ve finished reading you’ll still have no idea if they actually liked any of the records or not.
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Started following a few Instagram accounts that post short form write ups but it’s mainly because they’re really digging and talking about stuff released on DIY labels covering regional scenes.
I don’t need to read a review of something on Sub Pop or a Beggars label or whatever.
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I think criticism of any art is a good thing and absolutely needs to exist.
The main issue is that it can only exist in a commercial environment when it is forced to serve as a consumer warning or recommendation.
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Agree with this
Slightly separate point to reviews per se but I’m also a big fan of summary reviews of artists back catalogues (their albums ranked with a brief summary on vibe and context for each type of thing) as a guide on where to start / go next
I don’t ‘need’ reviews any more - gone are the days of reading one then rushing out to buy a cd.
But, when done well, it’s a form of writing I enjoy reading and I like reading reviews of albums I’m already enjoying - to add context or point out something I haven’t noticed.
It seems like divorcing it from its function as a quasi-advert also opens up scope for different types of album reviews that offer a more personal perspective or try more experimental ways of writing about music.
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What we need is a public education programme to ensure people have some level of media literacy
https://twitter.com/thatkindofcunt/status/1786251137928335522?t=kYxSY_R51wssePR9uLHS6w&s=19
Imagine calling Laura Snapes up and asking her why she’s reviewing music
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