The 25 best music websites: Nos. 16-20
16 PITCHFORK
A webzine people love to dis. Its dense reviews often are overwritten, underedited thickets of pretentious prose. The attitude? Frequently flip, mean, and smarmy. Grudgingly, however, we admit that the Chicago-based site has become a tastemaking institution that's impossible to ignore. When it anoints an obscure band with a glowing review — as it did with a then-unknown Arcade Fire — we pay attention.
GREAT FIND Clap Your Hands Say
Yeah's self-titled debut
17 RADIO DAVID BYRNE
We're dying for a Talking Heads reunion, but we'd be bummed if it took Byrne away from this fascinating monthly show. Each program is based on a theme: ''Latin Rock'' or ''Rednecks, Racists, and Reactionaries: Country Classics'' or the unexpected ''All Missy Elliott.'' He also pens related essays that are as insightful as you'd expect from the pop smarty.
GREAT FIND Ray Baretto's ''Indestructible''
18 INSOUND.COM
An Amazon-type megastore for hipsters, Insound makes it simple to explore the newest indie boomlet or Brit-rock trend. Most folks come for underground and import-only CDs that iTunes or the local Best Buy doesn't stock, but we're also partial to the excellent in-house music stream, which is a great summary of what's on college radio stations nationwide. Recent selections included Nick Drake soundalike José González, raunchy Baltimore rappers Spank Rock, and lo-fi bizarro folkies Wooden Wand. If you hear anything you like, buy it with an easy mouse click.
GREAT FIND Alexi Murdoch's ''Breathe''
19 LEMON-RED.ORG
This audioblog is the cheapest and easiest way to experience the hedonistic thrill of a sweaty late-night dance club without paying a cover, risking a hangover, or even leaving your sofa. Every month, expect a substantial new set from such DJs as Montreal's Ghislain Poirier and Rhode Island's Certified Bananas. No single genre dominates — Southern hip-hop, Jamaican dancehall, and old-school funk have all been tackled — though a mash-up aesthetic dominates. Never heard the Beach Boys, Young Jeezy, and Black Sabbath in a single hip-grinding mix? Time to log on.
GREAT FIND DJs Caps & Jones
20 MUSIC.FOR-ROBOTS.COM
A blog run by eight different people, which explains its broad, unclassifiable taste. Minimalist techno, ragged indie rock, spiky post-punk, and earthy hip-hop all make regular appearances on the slickly designed site, which posts a couple of MP3s a day. May's highlights include a song from Texas-born chanteuse Jolie Holland's new album, a prerelease Sufjan Stevens track, and a stunning psych-folk meditation by singer Findlay Brown, who just became our favorite new artist. That is, until we visit again.
GREAT FIND Hysterics' ''Potato Famine''
