The Chicago Reader's Gossip Wolf column reported the shocking, SHOCKING, news that Pitchfork is moving the rest of their editorial headquarters to Brooklyn, NY, the hipster mecca. more ›

Day three of the Pitchfork Music Festival is now behind us so let's reflect on the hits and misses yesterday's line-up and the fest in general more ›

Day two of the Pitchfork Music Festival is now behind us so let's reflect on the hits and misses yesterday's line-up and the fest in general more ›

Day one of the Pitchfork Music Festival is now behind us so let's reflect on the hits and misses yesterday's line-up and the fest in general more ›

The 2011 edition of the Pitchfork Music Festival kicks off tomorrow in Union Park and continues through Sunday. One of the little joys of a bill like Pitchfork's is that we look forward to discovering new groups or finally having "ah-HA" moments with groups we thought we weren't all that into. One of the big joys, though, is the anticipation that builds up to see the acts on the bill that you're already excited about, be they fresh young talents or old friends coming through for an indie rock victory lap. After you've read our picks we recommend downloading the fancy new Pitchfork Music Festival app to help you map out your own weekend and then snag the free music sampler the site produced with the help of eMusic to help you get acquainted with any bands you're not already familiar with. more ›

Bon Iver will co-curate Pitchfork Music Festival Paris in October. more ›

If you've ever been curious about the concept and creation behind the four-audio-channel-demanding glory/mess of Zaireeka, or want to know why AC/DC rocks so hard on Highway to Hell, the good folks at Quimby's Bookstore would like to drop some knowledge on you with one of their always-excellent in-store readings. more ›

Pavement's Stephen Malkmus is often described as arch, almost the embodiment of the postmodern musician, but every time this writer has ever run into him Malkmus has always been unfailingly engaging and polite. So it's refreshing to hear him come across so comfortably and clearly in his interview with Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot on this week's Sound Opinions. He talks with the local music critics after Pavement's appearance at The Pitchfork Music Festival about his old band's entire career; from the earliest days of ex-drummer Gary Young's studio to Makmus apologizing for dropping names while mentioning it was on Thom Yorke's advice that they work with Nigel Godrich on their final album. He also discusses their "golden period" a.k.a. those albums upon which the critical tastes of almost an entire generation was formed saying: more ›

Well, summer is still here and we are slowly yet surely approaching another weekend, so yes, there is another festival to speak of in Chicago. As the end of summer is, sadly, approaching, we want to soak up as much outdoor fest goodness as possible. more ›

We know, we know, another festival. If we have gathered one piece of knowledge through covering summer events here at Chicagoist, it's that Chicago loves a festival. As if your skin wasn't burned enough from Pitchfork and your liver hadn't taken enough damage from all the day drinking that ensued there, yet another festival has decided to grace us with its presence. Well fear not, this one is a little less taxing on your body than Pitchfork and the forthcoming Lollapalooza. The Milwaukee Arts Festival, located in the trendy part of Logan Square, features a lot of the same stuff other festivals offer, i.e. art, local cuisine, local bands, booze, but it also offers a trolley to travel the grounds in to avoid even more blisters on our precious feet. There will also be the Logan Square Farmers market as well as some of our favorite local music acts to keep us entertained like The 1900s, Jon Drake and the Shakes and Bomba Deer. And lest we not forget what the festival is named for: art! There will be nearly 30-art-exhibitions, an indoor art market, open studios and galleries and a community mural project for those who want to get in there and make there own art. more ›

Pre-parties, after-parties, birthday parties, dinner parties, LOST watch parties, parties you never even knew about. It's festival season and, with Pitchfork right around the corner, there's just about as much stuff to do that's associated with the festival that isn't actually the festival. This Thursday, the Pitchfork Festival Official Kick Off Party at Bottom Lounge is among the first of these associated events, and besides having the ability to pick up your Pitchfork Festival tickets early, the event has a solid lineup and other ancillary benefits. more ›

Much like Noah Lennox's sister group, Animal Collective, we've come to expect a certain musical aesthetic and general vibe from their music. Layered tracks, delay, shiny and dense vocal harmonies accompanied by your general psychedelic instrumentation. This seven inch record is no different. Lennox's obvious love of Brian WIlson's take on sunny '60s psychedelia still seems to shine through every recording he does with Panda Bear and the better part of Animal Collective. Not that we're complaining. Though many before have sought to replicate The Beach Boys unique sound, few have done it with such an intelligence and ingenuity as Panda Bear. Though Tomboy still sounds similar to Panda Bear's other efforts, it lacks the sheen and ambiance that we have come to love in those records. The two tracks, each clocking in at four-minutes,19-seconds, seem more dreary and less radiant then their other efforts, each maintaining the same sort of tone throughout. We found ourselves looking for something more to draw us in, but came up short. more ›

The most notable new addition to this year's Pitchfork Music Festival, taking place July 16 - 18 in Union Park, is Canadian indie supergroup / powerhouse Broken Social Scene. The addition that excited us the most is skronk-boogiers The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion (and not just because we're hoping to catch sight of his hottt wife and frequent collaborator foil Cristina Martinez in the audience). Local kids The Smith Westerns have also been added, somewhat unsurprisingly given the press they've gathered form both Pitchfork and other sites across the land in the past year. Although their furious live show will certainly meet it's match in the Springsteenian punk of Titus Andronicus, making their second-appearance / victory lap through the festival. more ›

The Pichtfork Music Festival has gotten in the habit of releasing its festival acts in fits and spurts that constantly one-up each other, ostensibly to keep fans excited for the impending summer weekend it inhabits, but after today's initial line-up announcement we're curious how they're going to keep the momentum going to top this. more ›

It's on! The Pitchfork Music Festival will take up residence in Union Park this summer from July 16 to 18. Tickets go on sale THIS Friday, February 5, through their website with single-day tickets selling for $40 and three-day passes selling for $90. Who's playing? You'll have to wait until Friday to find THAT out since they're holding off the announcent of the first round of bands until then. more ›

We hear that there's a new bar opening in town called The Pitchfork Saloon, and while it has zero connection to the music site of the same name, Idolator has rounded up some pretty hilarious quips as if it was. (Also, aside note to the proprietors of The Pitchfork Saloon, you have your SEO work cut out for you if you ever want someone to find you via the internets...) more ›

This is part of Chicagoist's continuing coverage of the 45th Chicago International Film Festival. more ›

We close our coverage of this year's Pitchfork Music Festival with a collection of photographs taken by Chicagoist staffers. We had a great time at the festival this year, and if you were there we hope you did too. more ›

Thanks to our pals at Pitchfork - who are busy enough - for pointing us to this bizarre phone call from former Smashing Pumpkin D'Arcy Wretzky. D'Arcy called in to Q101's Ryan Manno. It's...kind of weird as the conversation randomly bounces around. There's talk of the death of her ex-boyfriend, farms, and Davey Jones. Take a listen here. more ›

The final adds to this year's Pitchfork Music Festival have been announced. Saturday gets Final Fantasy -- the dude with the violin from Canada, not the game -- the polite bucolic folk of Bowerbirds, Cymbals Eat Guitars -- does anyone else think these dudes are a Pavement tribute band? -- and Chicago trio Michael Columbia, while Sunday will now include the Thermals (YES) and Killer Whales. more ›

The Flaming Lips have changed their mind and decided they will participate with the "Write The Night" fan requested setlist during their appearance at this year's Pitchfork Music Festival. This is exciting news, primarily amongst music critics filled with glee at the idea of Wayne Coyne picking up a guitar and rocking out to the oldies that most new Lips followers would be less familiar with. After denying early reports that their setlist would be chosen by popular vote, Coyne said tday “The Lips are more than glad to be part of ‘Write the Night’. They will do their best to accommodate the wildest and most obscure of requests - covers included.” more ›

[Ed. note: Lizz was our eyes and ears at this year's SXSW ... here's our last peek at what she saw.] more ›

Our pals at Pitchfork posted the following video from the Chicago/Detroit hip-hop duo, The Cool Kids, for the song "Pennies," from their allegedly forthcoming LP When Fish Ride Bicycles. While the wait for the debut full-length hasn't been as arduous as Kid Sister - Cool Kids released their Bake Sale EP last year - we're still anxious to hear more from Chuck Inglish and Mikey Rocks. It's even prompted our own Tankboy to coin this new motto: "THE CHICAGO HIP-HOP SCENE: It would totally blow up if anyone ever got around to actually releasing a full-length album!" more ›

If you haven't been watching Beardo on Pitchfork.tv, you've been missing out. Chicagoan Fred Armisen makes an appearance in this latest episode of Tim Harrington's eccentric show, along with an all-star indie rock cast under the moniker USA for Affluence, singing an epic ode to consumerism. more ›

We've already weighed in with our thoughts about the 'Fork's new book offering their take of the 500 best songs of the past 31 years. Well, now you have a chance to give your thoughts directly to the editors since they'll be attending the release party for the tome tonight at Sonotheque from 9 p.m. until 2 a.m. Pitchfork publisher Chris Kaskie, editor-in-chief Scott Plagenhoef, and managing editor Mark Richardson will spin selections from The Pitchfork 500 and staff will be on hand to sell you a copy of the book should you want to leaf through the songlist and make any requests. more ›

"Hey, what's your favorite song?" more ›

As Duke Ellington might have said, Arthur Russell was a musician and composer "beyond category." In his short life (he died of complications from AIDS at the age of 40) he composed and recorded music that could be classified as folk, disco, ambient, classical, pop and even country. He was born in Iowa and followed in his mother's footsteps by taking up the cello as a child. Later he moved to San Francisco (befriending Allan Ginsberg) and then eventually New York City, where he became a catalyst in the art scene of the 70's as musical director of The Kitchen. Ginsberg, who lived in the same apartment building as Arthur for many years, described his music as "Buddhist bubblegum," and it's that sly tension between childlike joy and a more cerebral experimentation that has posthumously made him a favorite of David Byrne, Jens Lekman and Pitchfork. more ›

The Pitchfork Music Festival rolled to a triumphant close yesterday with a much-delayed set by Cut Copy literally stealing the show from the headlining Spoon. A few scheduling changes led to minor confusion between crowds from time-to time, but the organizers did a good job of trying to constantly remind people where they should be and when from the various on-stage announcements delivered by either Tim Tuten or Damon Locks throughout the day. It was also the dryest and warmest day of the weekend, but folks were looking out for each other and helped each other cope with the bright heat that settled over Union Park. more ›

Pitchfork's organizers are pretty strict when it comes to what one can bring into the fest. Among the regulations are no outside food and a maximum of two sealed bottles of water. During our visits to the fest over the weekend we were searched thoroughly to ensure we were keeping in line with those rules. Walking from stage to stage in the humid weather smothering the area all weekend all but guaranteed that we were going to wind up both hungry and thirsty. more ›

Ah, the rain. In previous years we've always half jokingly call the Pitchfork Music Festival "Sweatfork" due to the usually oppressive heat, but this year the afternoon storms brought about "Mudfork" and the attendant rise of the mud people. Saturday is usually the most crowded day of the festival and this year was no different, although we must admit we're seeing less and less of the ironic gym suited American Apparel crowd and more and more of, well, normal folks. more ›