Pitchfork “Sells Out,” Moves to Brooklyn

Do you hear that?

It's the sound of Chicago's music scene losing one of its major points of pride: The Reader is reporting that Pitchfork's editorial staff is ditching us for Brooklyn.

In a way this does and doesn't make sense.

The snooty online music publication that dishes out album reviews with decimal points -- and in some cases has gone back to tweak or delete review scores after public opinion has gone in another direction from the tastemaker's -- and is synonymous with the major summer festival has always been, therefore, synonymous with Chicago.

But it has always had more of an East Coast elitist vibe, so Brooklyn is a natural fit. And true, this isn't the first instance of a Chicago-bred success story leaving for one of the coasts, but it's still somewhat of a shock.

More from the Reader

What remains of its Chicago editorial staff [will now be] under one roof in Brooklyn. Longtime news editor Amy Phillips and editor in chief Mark Richardson will depart at the end of January, while the marketing, advertising, and festival staff will remain here. Phillips's squeeze, Scotland Yard Gospel Choir's Elia Einhorn, will move with her. 

So, what does this mean for our music scene? Why the move at all? Is the Pitchfork Music Festival also in jeopardy? Will Billy Corgan also soon desert us? Can he, please?

UPDATE: Okay, some answers are emerging now. WBEZ has the scoop: "Only the top editorial staffers, including news editor Amy Phillips and editor in chief Mark Richardson, are being forced to relocate." That means the festival's staying put, as are Pitchfork's, er, rockin' web biz ops. 

David Wolinsky is a freelance writer and a lifelong Chicagoan. In addition to currently serving as an interviewer-writer for Adult Swim, he's also a columnist for EGM. He was the Chicago city editor for The Onion A.V. Club where he provided in-depth daily coverage of this city's bustling arts/entertainment scene for half a decade. When not playing video games for work he's thinking of dashing out to Chicago Diner, Pizano's, or Yummy Yummy. His first career aspirations were to be a game-show host.

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