State of the 'Gum

InMyTree and I have had many conversations regarding Stereogum's place in the online music world to the point that we finally just pulled it off our blogroll. This, of course, really has nothing to do with driving traffic off of our site but more as a mini-statement. I haven't followed the 'Gum for nearly as long as others but I've noticed the downward trend in the quality of posts. I've also noticed that the backlash is starting to grow in size from the comment threads on the site to rumblings from other blogs. Idolator's post yesterday caught my attention because while it's almost like the pot calling the kettle black, I thought it pretty well sums up the current state of the 'Gum. This line in particular:

"Stereogum seems to be turning more and more into a radio station: You can check in for some new music, but you'd better be prepared for a lot of boneheaded chatter."

Compare this to Brooklyn Vegan, which for my money, is the best music blog out there (present company excluded, of course) and while he has brought in some contributors for interviews or Hip Hop Round-ups, etc., the site has grown in stature but continues to remain true to its roots.

I guess that's just the nature of World Wide Web, there's a fine line between what's "indie cred" and "selling out" for what Scott probably considers some hard-earned dollars. I don't really care either way, if the site frustrates you, move on. Stereogum is still one of my daily reads because it attracts a wide forum of music fans and I can weed out the junk for things that appeal to me. If anything, what bothers me most is this anonymous "we" concept that some of these sites, Stereogum and Idolator in particular, incorporate. I have a hard time believing that everyone writing has the same opinion on the music? "We love this band..." or "we're psyched about blah blah" There are two of us here at Metro D and while InMyTree and I have very similar musical tastes, we sure as hell don't agree on EVERYTHING (read: I'm not a fan of DFA 1979...sorry dude).

Ok, I'm rambling but this is just something I find interesting.