That being said, the review was totally dickish.

Mr.NoMo

gorillavsmarykate

the knock keeps getting faster and faster.

katie_a_princess

There's no need to make the same point paragraph-after paragraph- that is unless you just wanted to tear through writing the review just to get it done.

A poorly thought-out review is bad no matter where it runs, it just so happens this one comes from P4K.

It'd be nice if Pitchfork had some sort of comments sections, where people could discuss things like this instead of having to do it elsewhere.

Something tells me that wouldn't sit well with the people over there though.

AquaLung

CaptainPeacockSuit

maplebanana

And Pelican played the very first Intonation festival which was curated by Pitchfork. Surely if they were good enough to be on the roster in 2005, they couldn't have fallen so far in two years as to merit a 4.4 rating... or maybe Pitchfork aren't such good tastemakers after all?

any such name

But then I saw them live. Herweg was terrible-- he came off as being very amateur and unskilled. Like he just picked up the sticks a few months prior...

Anyhow, here's my joke contribution (rather fitting, I think):

Q: What do you call a guy who hangs out with musicians?

A: A drummer.

gerf

@coolfer: Too true.

Charlie Kerfelds Jetsons Tee

rockstarjoe

themeparkexperience

capn_guthrie

What used to feel like a site run by record geeks inept at things such as interviews now feels like a site run by industry insiders who are inept at doing things such as appreciating or criticizing music outside of all the trappings of a closely-analyzed site (hype, hipsterism, anti-hipsterism, advertising revenue, etc.).

So now you either get stuff that feels like reviews-by-committee or you get the once-in-a-while "Grayson Currin has gone off his meds" review.

nonce

[www.pitchforkmedia.com]

Different reviewer. Or same guy under an equally wacky nom de plume. I mean, Grayson Currin... IF that is your REAL name...

Luciferous

The album is pretty damn good, imo.

brooks

catdirt

BillRocksCleveland

statolith

If Pitchfork writers are going to start judging albums based in part on the technical prowess of the band members, there are going to be a lot of scores in the 0.0 to 1.9 range. Indie rock is overflowing with mediocre musical skills.

Yes.

Musical talent does not a good band make. A certain amount is important, but skill is only one part of an equation that cannot entirely replace the other parts.

As for the Pelican review specifically, I'd agree that the drummer stumbles his way through the record. But bad drumming alone should not be enough to drop an otherwise great record below a 5 or a 6. However, maybe the album would've only gotten, say, a 7.4 had the drums been good (or ignorable) but it was bad enough to justify subtracting 3 points. In other words, one can't assume that the album would have gotten a 10 if it hadn't been for a sub-par drummer when we all know that even the greatest albums only get 7's or 8's.

Furthermore, it's possible that those criticizing the album are unaware of the band's intentions. Who's to say they didn't mean for the drums to sound exactly as they do?

Josh Mock

Five. One to screw it in and four to stand around with their arms folded saying they can do it faster.

noamjamski

parrotrunner

romannose

Requisite drummer joke:

Q: How many drummers does it take to screw in a light bulb?

A: Five. One to screw it in, four to argue how Neal Peart would have done it better.

coolfer

Say "transcendent" one more time.

Lax Danja House

It reminds me of one time when a guitarist friend of mine wrote a riff that was almost 12/8, but not quite. I think he was missing a 16th note in the figure somewhere, but don't quote me on that. Anyway, the riff sounded a bit off, so my helpful suggestion was to hold out a note so it slid into a proper time signature. Y'know, one that actual human beings play. He responded by inviting another drummer to our next practice, and then goading me about how I sucked and the new guy could play 23/16, whereas I refused for the good reason of "why make everything about you when it confuses the listener and the rest of the band, not to mention detracting from the flow of the song?"

My point? Getting to it . . . Here's my new band. I think I'm doing OK playing in time signatures commonly associated with rock and roll. I view that incident the same way I viewed his love for bizarre alternate tunings-as a way to be impressive without having to make something that actually impresses. He also had a lot of fancy gear, coincidentally.

The guy from Pitchfork, much like that guitarist, is just a wanker with enough rhythm to be dangerous, blaming the drummer for the whole band's problems. Why is their time so muddy? It isn't. The drummer is spot on with everyone else, and stuck making awkward transitions. So, in short, you're not going crazy, and Schreiber listens to too much Dream Theater. And Pelican needs to pick a tempo and stick with it, because that is the difference between what they're doing now and what they'll be doing on the record that gets a 9 or so from the Fork.

Damn. That was short enough.

emeryemeryemery

The Lord God

and a pretty retarded review.

pjohn

However I am reminded of an old saying:

A good band with a bad drummer is a bad band.

noamjamski

I actually think he's a good drummer, if a bit busy. I guess I need to listen harder to catch the mistakes. I DO like a critic talking about the music and musicianship for once. Because they are instrumental, no lyrics to pontificate about, which is nice. I hate reading reviews (Rolling Stone anyone?) that focus solely on lyrics.

Having said that, I thought it was pretty harsh.

Lucas Jensen

I agree someone certainly fucked someone's girlfriend.

GeezDatsAnnoying

Charlie Kerfelds Jetsons Tee

But that's my standard reaction to reading anything on pitchfork.

DigitalLogic

tankboy

The review for Wooden Wand was also in the realm of "Huh?"

(Sidenote: Pitchfork uses the 6.* review just like Rolling Stone's 3 stars, I swear to god.)

Snowbrigadier

Nicolars

Pitchfork is based in Chicago.

My best guess? The drummer fucked Schreiber's girlfriend.

Charlie Kerfelds Jetsons Tee