I think Pitchfork gets a lot of unwarranted hate, but at the same time I'm also very ambivalent about them. I used to be an avid read back in high school, which would be 4-5 years ago and what I'd consider their peak. Sure, the arrogance was a tad annoying, but that's part of the shtick. Their historical lists were fabulous, however, and covered the 60s, 70s, and 80s fantastically. It was awesome to see eclectic bands like Can, Neu!, James Chance & the Contortions, Gang of Four, My Bloody Valentine, Funkadelic, Cabaret Voltaire, Public Enemy, Pere Ubu, PiL, etc. - really a who's who of the most forward-thinking, influential, and progressive groups of the past half-century. Why even pick nits about these lists - they're not going to involve mainstream acts for the most part - that's not what they want nor their audience. That they know their history is very commendable and something I've always enjoyed. They also had very creative and well-crafted articles, along with the occasional bizarre outburst resembling a dadaist essay which combined form and content superbly.
I've found that much of this has been lost in the past couple years. The site's form - now a glossy web 2.0 zine - has taken priority over the content and there aren't as many unique columns any more. I haven't touched the site in the past couple years as I started sensing a downward spiral from the start of their video initiatives, which signalled to me that they knew just how influential they were and started ignoring the kitsch that drew me toward them in the first place.
While the hipster vibe definitely rubs many people the wrong way, they are catering to a certain audience. Still, the posturing and thinly-veiled irony does get old. But I think the hate largely derives from the all-encompassing role the site has assumed in today's music industry. Positive reviews have literally made a band, many of whom I don't think deserved it, and of course the opposite is also true - many careers have been ruined due to the power of a few numerical digits. It is disturbing and resembles the sort of power RS had in it's heyday. Other blogs, zines, and publications are often ignored with p4k being the sole critical influence. This alienating effect hasn't gone unnoticed and I've had similar sentiments expressed to me from some colleagues. No, it's not irrelevant, perhaps to an individual or a collective of such - often who have no interest in alternative genres - but like it or not, p4k is largely influential and relevant to the modern music industry.
