Stereogum

Stereogum is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine.

Stereogum
TypeOnline music magazine
FormatInternet
Owner(s)Scott Lapatine
Editor-in-chiefScott Lapatine
Founded2002 (2002)
LanguageEnglish
OCLC number1142733705
Websitewww.stereogum.com

Stereogum was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awards and citations, including the PLUG Award for Music Blog of the Year, Blender's Powergeek 25, and Entertainment Weekly's Best Music Websites. The site was named an Official Honoree of the Webby Awards in the music category and won the OMMA Award for Web Site Excellence in the Entertainment/Music category. In 2011, Stereogum won The Village Voice's Music Blog of the Year.[1]

History

The site was named after a lyric from the song "Radio #1" by the French electronic duo Air.[2]

In late 2006, Stereogum received an influx of capital through Bob Pittman's private investment entity The Pilot Group.[3] In November 2007, it was purchased by SpinMedia (formerly known as Buzz Media). April 2008 saw the launch of Videogum, a sister site focused on television, movies, and Web videos. Videogum later closed.

In December 2016, Eldridge Industries acquired SpinMedia via the Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media Group for an undisclosed amount.[4]

Stereogum's first SXSW event in 2006 was hosted by then-emerging comedian Aziz Ansari and featured a headline performance from Ted Leo. In the years since, Stereogum's events have included sets from Ben Gibbard,[5] Sky Ferreira, Mitski, Beach House, St. Vincent, Deerhunter, Japanese Breakfast, Rico Nasty,[6] and other popular acts.

Stereogum was the first major publication to write about future superstar acts like Arcade Fire, Vampire Weekend, and Billie Eilish.

Popular musicians have been known to participate in Stereogum's active comments section, such as Father John Misty, Weezer's Rivers Cuomo, and Fleet Foxes' Robin Pecknold.

In July 2017, Arcade Fire created the parody site Stereoyum featuring a "Premature Premature Evaluation" of their forthcoming album Everything Now.[7]

On January 16, 2020 it was announced that Scott Lapatine, the site's founder and editor-and-chief, had reached an agreement to purchase Stereogum from the Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media Group, making it once again an independent publication.[8]

Stereogum senior editor Tom Breihan began writing the column "The Number Ones" in September 2018, in which he reviews, analyzes and provides historical context for every number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100.[9] In November 2022, Hatchette Book Group published The Number Ones: Twenty Chart-Topping Hits That Reveal The History Of Pop Music, a music history book by Breihan based on his column.[10][11] In July 2023, Breihan began a counterpart column available to the site's subscribers in which he reviews the number one singles on the Billboard Alternative Airplay chart.[12]

Album of the Year
Year Artist Album Source
2009Animal CollectiveMerriweather Post Pavilion[13]
2010Kanye WestMy Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy[14]
2011GirlsFather, Son, Holy Ghost[15]
2012Fiona AppleThe Idler Wheel...[16]
2013Kanye WestYeezus[17]
2014Run the JewelsRun the Jewels 2[18]
2015GrimesArt Angels[19]
2016BeyoncéLemonade[20]
2017LordeMelodrama[21]
2018Kacey MusgravesGolden Hour[22]
2019Lana Del ReyNorman Fucking Rockwell![23]
2020Fiona AppleFetch the Bolt Cutters[24]
2021The War on DrugsI Don't Live Here Anymore[25]
2022AlvvaysBlue Rev[26]

Music releases

In July 2007, Stereogum released OKX, a tenth anniversary tribute to Radiohead's OK Computer. Cover songs were solicited from fourteen indie rock artists including Doveman, Vampire Weekend, John Vanderslice, David Bazan, Cold War Kids, My Brightest Diamond, Marissa Nadler, Chris Funk of The Decemberists, and Chris Walla of Death Cab for Cutie. The album can be heard free of charge at http://www.stereogum.com/okx.

Other free Stereogum compilation albums include: Drive XV, a tribute to R.E.M.'s Automatic for the People (featuring Rogue Wave, Meat Puppets, Sara Quin, and Dr. Dog); Enjoyed, a tribute to Björk's Post (featuring Liars, Edward Droste, Dirty Projectors, Final Fantasy, and Atlas Sound); Stroked, a tribute to The Strokes's Is This It (featuring Real Estate, Owen Pallett, Peter Bjorn & John, and The Morning Benders); MySplice Vols 1-4:, an annual mashup collaboration with team9; and Stereogum Presents... RAC Vol. 1, the first release from Grammy-winning producer RAC.

In 2020, as part of a fundraising effort to keep the site operational and independent,[27] an original 55-track compilation of covers of songs from the 2000s by various artists titled Save Stereogum: An '00s Covers Comp was released as an incentive for donors to the site's Indiegogo campaign.[28][29] The campaign totaled over $370,000 in donations.[30] It debuted at #1 on Billboard's Compilation Albums chart and #11 on Billboard's Top Album Sales chart.

References
  1. Stabile, Francesca (December 7, 2011). "The Winners Of The 2011 Village Voice Web Awards". The Village Voice. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
  2. "Q&A: Air's Jean-Benoît Dunckel On The Future Of The Band, Working With Sofia Coppola, And Inspiring The Name "Stereogum"". Stereogum. August 14, 2015. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
  3. Lauria, Peter (December 7, 2007). "Pittman Flips Stake". New York Post. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  4. "Billboard Buys Spin and Vibe in a Quest to 'Own the Topic of Music Online'". Adweek. Retrieved March 10, 2017.
  5. Duffy, Robert. "SXSW Updates Stereogum Brings Ben Gibbard". Done Waiting.
  6. "Superlatives from SXSW Music". Austin Monthly. March 19, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  7. "Arcade Fire spoof music website with 'Premature Premature Evaluation' review of own album". NME. July 22, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
  8. "Billboard-The Hollywood Reporter Media Group Sells Spin, Agreement in Place for Sale of Stereogum". Billboard. January 16, 2019. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  9. Unterberger, Andrew (October 25, 2022). "'The Number Ones' Author Tom Briehan on the Book Version of His Chart Column and Why There's 'More Interest in No. 1s Now Than Any Time I Can Remember'". Billboard. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  10. "The Number Ones: Twenty Chart-Topping Hits That Reveal The History Of Pop Music Is Out Now". Stereogum. November 15, 2022. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  11. Greene, Jayson (November 17, 2022). "Tom Breihan's The Number Ones Tells the Secret History of the Pop Charts". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  12. Breihan, Tom (July 5, 2023). "The Alternative Number Ones: Siouxsie And The Banshees' "Peek-A-Boo"". Stereogum. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  13. "Best Album 2009". Stereogum. December 7, 2009. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  14. "Stereogum's Top 50 Albums Of 2010". Stereogum. December 8, 2010. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  15. "Stereogum's Top 50 Albums Of 2011". Stereogum. December 5, 2011. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  16. "Stereogum's Top 50 Albums Of 2012". Stereogum. December 5, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  17. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2013". Stereogum. December 3, 2013. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  18. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2014". Stereogum. December 2, 2014. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  19. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2015". Stereogum. December 1, 2015. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  20. "50 Best Albums of 2016". Stereogum. December 1, 2016. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  21. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2017". Stereogum. December 5, 2017. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  22. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2018". Stereogum. December 4, 2018. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  23. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2019". Stereogum. December 3, 2019. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  24. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2020". Stereogum. December 1, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  25. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2021". Stereogum. December 6, 2021. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  26. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2022". Stereogum. December 6, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
  27. "Save Stereogum: An '00s Covers Comp". Stereogum. June 29, 2020. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
  28. Tan, Emily (June 29, 2020). "Ben Gibbard, El-P and More to Help 'Stereogum'". Spin. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  29. Curto, Justin (September 10, 2020). "How Stereogum Made Its 2000s Covers Compilation". Vulture. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  30. "Indiegogo-Save Stereogum: An '00s Covers Comp". Indiegogo. June 29, 2020. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
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