Picks of the 'Fork

By Lizz Kannenberg in Arts & Entertainment on Nov 11, 2008 6:30PM

"Hey, what's your favorite song?"

Don't have a good answer for that one, do you? Luckily, your tastemaking pals at Pitchfork Media are standing by to provide you with myriad hip answers to that timeless pickup line. The Pitchfork 500 is the online music magazine's second coffee table-style publication, and it was no small undertaking: identify and wax upon the cultural, social and aesthetic contributions of the "best" 500 songs of the last 31 years.

The subtitle, Our Guide to the Greatest Songs from Punk to the Present, centers the essay collection on the more subversive element of modern modern music. Not surprisingly, punk, hip-hop, electronica, and indie rock get the spotlight, but Top 100 pop fare, metal, and experimental noise are also given their just desserts (Duh, JT and Boredoms).

The entire list has leaked to the interwebs, and we're especially happy to see Hall & Oates' "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)" and Jens Lekman's "Black Cab," among myriad others, included on the list. [Ed. note: And, to my glee, Kelly Clarkson!]

Take a gander at the 500 and let us know what Pitchfork missed. Worldwide acclaim among the hipsterati for the coolest response, 0.0 for the lamest.

Catch Pitchfork editor-in-chief and apparent PR rep Scott Plagenhoef talking about The Pitchfork 500 This Thursday, November 13 at the Borders in the Lakeview, 2817 N Clark St,. 7:00 p.m.