PitchforkStaff

10.0

SCHNIPPER

If you look back at the site 5 or even 10 years ago, there was a lot of pop and rap being covered and that stuff was well represented in year-end lists, but if there has been a shift, I'd say it happens for a couple reasons: 1) our younger writers don't see divisions between "indie" and "mainstream" in the same way people once did, they experience music on a more even plane; 2) there's a lot of great, creative music happening in the more mainstream sphere that deserves to be covered. We still cover a ton of indie rock, and I don't think that'll change. But like, check out our top 3 songs of 2003: OutKast, Jay Z/Beyonce, Justin Timberlake - MARK

1. We hate David Bowie and shoegaze, so seems like you’re out.
2. We love covering things when they intersect with music, or when it seems like our audience can’t stop reading about them. Stranger Things, for example, is a show we loved, and found the same for our readers. It makes sense to cover culture made by people who, if they made music, we would love.
3. No
4. We now work in the World Trade Center and have access to an ice machine and consistent heat. So, generally, we are happier.
5. All of our staff members and regular contributors vote. There are two rounds of votes for tracks, one for albums, and there’s a points system. Ratings are not considered.

SCHNIPPER

Cultural context has to be in there, it's part of how people experience music, no listening happens in a vacuum. So I think that is in there whether you want it to be or not, so a smart writer will find some way of addressing it. But obviously, it's more important for some records than others, depending on the sphere they are operating in. -MARK

The only thing we encourage our writers to do is 1. Not go over word count 2. Hit their deadlines. What they imbibe to make that happen is their business.

SCHNIPPER