# Pitchforkmedia fans -- did you see their top 50 albums of 2003? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 5, 2004, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitchforkmedia-fans-did-you-see-their-top-50-albums-of-2003/222770 "2004-01-05T07:04:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mouthbreather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a698b9/32.png) [@mouthbreather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mouthbreather)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitchforkmedia-fans-did-you-see-their-top-50-albums-of-2003/222770/1 "2004-01-05T07:04:03Z")
Grrr, after losing my post, here’s a shorter re-type of it. * * * After browsing through [Pitchforkmedia.com](http://Pitchforkmedia.com)’s [top 50 albums of 2003](http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/top/2003/index.shtml) , I feel like I have stepped out of my body, and looking back at myself I see my grandmother trying to program the VCR. “What’s this thing do? … What are they talking about?” If PFM has their ear to the ground with what is new and hip, then I con only conclude one thing: I am officially “out of it”. I guess it was bound to happen. I turned 30 this year. Time to resign myself to an adulthood of Babs’ CDs and Lawrence Welk shows. Back on topic – looking at their top 50 albums for 2003, here goes the mathmatical breakdown for what I know/own/like/don’t like: **Albums on the list that I Own:** #34 Cat Power’s “You are Free”. One of my fav’s of the year. Loves me some Chan. #29 The Postal Service “Give Up”. Meh, decent record but it never grabbed me. Probably only listened 3 or 4x. #22 : Outkast “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below” – Just got it for Xmas, haven’t digested it yet. #4 Radiohead’s “Hail to the Thief” – solid record. **Heard snippets, and want to own/hear more of:** #9, Broken Social Scene #7, The Shins \*\*Don’t want to hear or own: \*\* #41 The Darkness – ugh, I hate this band. # 21: Songs: Ohia – Will Oldham has recorded every song you’ve ever written. #17 Jay-Z He was garbage way back when and the fact that he has supposedly “matured” doesn’t mean anything to me. You can’t polish a turd. #11 The Strokes – nothing bad to say about this band, just not sure why they make every critic cream their pants. They’re ok. #1 The Rapture – I’ve heard two singles – “House of the Jealous Lovers” (cool music but ANNOYING vocals) and “Sister Savior” (borrr-ring). **I’ve heard of 'em, but have no opinion:** #33, My Morning Jacket #26, Ted Leo & the Pharmacists **Have no clue what they are talking about:** ALL the rest of them. THIRTY-FUCKING-SEVEN records they have listed and I am sitting here scratching my head. Does anyone have a Mario Lanza record I can borrow? ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Dragon\_Phoenix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@Dragon\_Phoenix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dragon_Phoenix)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitchforkmedia-fans-did-you-see-their-top-50-albums-of-2003/222770/2 "2004-01-05T07:56:01Z")
I have the Radiohead, and have listened to the Strokes, but the rest… I don’t even recognise the names. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Universe\_Lashes\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8797f3/32.png) [@The\_Universe\_Lashes\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Universe_Lashes_Out)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitchforkmedia-fans-did-you-see-their-top-50-albums-of-2003/222770/3 "2004-01-05T07:59:11Z")
I recognized and have heard maybe 20 of them. The rest, no clue. And I’m only 23 and try to stay in touch with what the cool kids are listening to. ---
**Author:** ![Tarrsk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/97f17d/32.png) [@Tarrsk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarrsk)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitchforkmedia-fans-did-you-see-their-top-50-albums-of-2003/222770/4 "2004-01-05T09:09:00Z")
Pitchforkmedia has a pretty distinct pro-indie rock feel, so don’t expect to see many Top 40 hits on any list of theirs. Not that I mind- “Top \_\_\_\_\_” lists that feature more obscure albums/ movies/ books frequently expose me to some stellar work that I never would have heard of otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![gex\_gex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@gex\_gex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gex_gex)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitchforkmedia-fans-did-you-see-their-top-50-albums-of-2003/222770/5 "2004-01-05T11:20:22Z")
I was pleased that I knew a whole lot more of Pitchfork’s top 50 list than I did last year (or any other year). Sure, some of it is obscure, but I don’t mind. It’s my best way of exposing myself to new music, and although they can get somewhat elitist, I’m just grateful for a music reviewing site that will review the music I care about and will do it intelligently. It’s also refreshing to see a year-end list that doesn’t look like all the others out there - no Coldplay for a start! Here’s my breakdown: **Albums on the list that I Own** #29 The Postal Service “Give Up”. #22 Outkast “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below” #12 Dizzee Rascal “Boy In Da Corner” #11 Strokes “Room On Fire” #4 Radiohead’s “Hail to the Thief” **Heard snippets, and want to own/hear more of:** #37, DM and Jemini #36, Junior Senior #35, 31, The Decemberists #30, Aesop Rock #27, Ellen Allien #26, Ted Leo & the Pharmacists #25, Viktor Vaughn #21, Songs: Ohia #19, Non Prophets #17, Jay-Z #13, Mu #10, The Unicorns #9, Broken Social Scene #7, The Shins #5, Manitoba #3, Sufjan Stevens #2, The Books #1, The Rapture **I’ve heard of 'em, but have no opinion:** #47, George #42, Broadcast #41 The Darkness - I haven’t actually heard anything, but they sound pretty awful #38, Califone #33, My Morning Jacket #28, TV on the Radio #18, The Wrens #15, Four Tet #8, M83 #6, Prefuse 73 So, if I counted correctly, my WTF total is 12, although really, I only own a few more of those albums than you do (though, I’ll point out that the only reason I don’t have The Shins yet is because my vinyl hasn’t arrived). A hell of a lot of it is music that I like but I haven’t heard the full album yet. I’ll probably get a lot of it this year - I’m always a little slow with these things. If you want to get back in, I’d recommend trying The Decemberists. I don’t know if it was just that I started listening to it at the same time as I started listening to the Shins, but I think that fans of one should appreciate the other. ---
**Author:** ![Nightime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Nightime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightime)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitchforkmedia-fans-did-you-see-their-top-50-albums-of-2003/222770/6 "2004-01-05T14:50:15Z")
Albums on the list I own: #4, Radiohead - Hail to the Thief _Good album_ #5, Manitoba - Up in Flames #7, The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow _Great album, I love the Shins_ #9, Broken Social Scene, You Forgot it in People _Meh… I don’t find this interesting, and I don’t listen to it_ #13, Mu - Afro Finger & Gel #16, Deerhoof - Apple O’ _Highly recommended, fun to listen to_ #23, Lightning Bolt - Wonderful Rainbow _I like this a lot, but I like all the noisy Boredoms albums too_ #24, The Clientele - The Violet Hour _I find this more charming than The Postal Service, I go to sleep listening to this often_ #25, The Postal Service - Give Up _A going-to-sleep album like Violet Hour, it’s not bad, but it doesn’t make me want to listen to it again_ #32, Menomena - I Am the Fun Blame Monster _Cool music, kind of annoying vocals, overall thumbs up_ #34, Cat Power - You Are Free _I like pretty much everything by Cat Power_ Heard part of: #1, The Rapture _Cool, but I’m not that interested in hearing more_ #3, Sufjan Stevens _Probably really good, but I don’t know if I’ll ever listen to more_ #8, M83 _I definitely want to get this, but because of the price I had to…_ #11, The Strokes #14, Exploding Hearts _Loved what I heard, I’ll definitely get this one_ #18, The Wrens #21, Songs: Ohia _Songs: Ohia is not Will Oldham, though they are similar_ #31, The Decemberists #42, Broadcast So that’s 11 that I have, 9 I’ve heard parts of, and 30 I haven’t heard any of (though I’ve heard of a lot of them).