Pitchfork
 | |
| Type | Online music publication |
|---|---|
| Author | Ryan Schreiber |
| URL | https://pitchfork.com/ |
| Launched | 1996 |
| Status | Active |
Pitchfork is an online music publication and website that publishes news, album reviews, features, lists, columns and video. Its home page also includes a section for reader reviews.[1]
History
Pitchfork was founded by Ryan Schreiber, who ran it from his bedroom in Minneapolis, coordinating the distribution of promotional CDs to writers around the country. Its first review, a 132-word assessment of the Amps' Pacer, was published in 1996.[2]
On 13 October 2015, Pitchfork announced that it had been acquired by Condé Nast. By then Pitchfork had expanded its coverage, started music festivals in Chicago and Paris, introduced video programming in 2008, and published The Pitchfork Review in 2013.[3]
Editorial output
Pitchfork groups its editorial work under News, Reviews, Best New Music, Features, Lists, Columns and Video, over an archive of album reviews, interviews, reporting, essays and lists organized around artists, genres and periods of music history. By 2021 the publication had reviewed more than 28,000 albums and published tens of thousands of news stories and features covering 19,757 artists.[1][2]
Rating system
Pitchfork publishes album scores using a 101-point scale from 0.0 to 10. Its published rubric assigns descriptive bands to scores, including 10 for a masterpiece, 8.0–8.5 for essential listening, and 6.6–6.9 for a good record with some issues.[4]
Events
Pitchfork Music Festival was held in Chicago for 19 years. In November 2024, Pitchfork announced that it would not host the Chicago festival in 2025, while saying it would continue to produce events.[5]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Pitchfork". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2026-09-16.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Puja Patel (2021-10-04). "Introducing Pitchfork's 25th Anniversary Project". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2026-09-14.
- ↑ Anthony Ha (2015-10-13). "Condé Nast Acquires Pitchfork". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2026-09-16.
- ↑ Pitchfork (2026-01-20). "How to Rate Albums Using Pitchfork Scores". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2026-09-14.
- ↑ Pitchfork (2024-11-11). "An Update on Pitchfork Music Festival". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2026-09-14.