Music Magazines Suck

[asthenia*]

so i just got the latest issue of Alternative Press magazine in the mail (Ive never personally loved it, it was a christmas gift) but I was looking through it and I have to say... it is the worst issue of a music related magazine that I have read in a very long time. Worse than Rolling Stone or even the now defunct Blender. It used to semi-original and kind of focus on decent bands and it's reviews were decent. Now, it only focuses on lame trends, shits on bands it used to praise and is generally a dull read. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Are there any magazines worth checking out?

[ted is lying]

I blame FOB, P!atD and paramore. Or fueled by ramen

[asthenia*]

haha AP loved new paramore, even more than this website.
I believe it got 4 & 1/2 stars.

[AMackChuck]

I used to enjoy reads on Circa Survive, Fear Before, etc. But they just kept putting cycles of shit bands on the cover.

[Meeze]

it tends to put FOB, Paramore, The Academy Is... , and Anthony Green on the cover often...but the latest issues have been pretty week. ever since they made the mag smaller in size...not number of pages, but dimensions. fuck the smaller dimensions really.

[nerdvglc]

intense... i don't know where to start, so i won't.

actually, i just feel like i've had this conversation too many times to care anymore.

[Derka Derka]

Music Magazines are a business, they put articles in their magazines that will help them sell more issues. It's not that hard of a concept to grasp, it's all about the money.

[HometownHero]

Paste is a good read

[anthonydarko]

That's the way it's been for the last two years.

[cirerelleum]

not that i think alternative press has been great or anything, but the magazine industry has really been suffering with the way the economy's been. Less pages and less issues have hit basically every magazine.

[secretsociety92]

Kerrang! are the least bias magazine I have ever read, they say it like it is and have given some of my favorite albums top marks.

[Charles777]

This months AP is actually okay. They have a pretty sweet collection of comics in there and there's a little interview with Set Your Goals

[popdisaster00]

I remember like 5 years ago I had an issue that had Saosin as one of the "featured bands you need to know about." They had a half paragraph box that took up 1/10th of the entire page. Now they could (or have?) be on the cover

[drudo182]

AP used to be good but now it's nothing but trashy bands. I love Fall Out Boy and stuff, but putting up with stuff like 3OH3! is too much.

[jco3]

Technically, this is a magazine...

[ted is lying]

Why does all thing indie have initial AP?

[yellowhouse]

Read Death and Taxes and Under the Radar. Excellent music magazines.

[lauren1234]

AMP and Hails and Horns are pretty decent. For both of them it's $14 for a one year subscription.

[asthenia*]

Kerrang! are the least bias magazine I have ever read, they say it like it is and have given some of my favorite albums top marks.

all i remember about kerrang is that they gave the latest offspring album a really high review and i thought it was ridiculous. but they do cover a lot of my favorite bands

[asthenia*]

AP used to be good but now it's nothing but trashy bands. I love Fall Out Boy and stuff, but putting up with stuff like 3OH3! is too much.

its the full page ads for the brokencyde tour that get me

[zachff]

Fuck music magazines, just stick to AP.net

[secretsociety92]

all i remember about kerrang is that they gave the latest offspring album a really high review and i thought it was ridiculous. but they do cover a lot of my favorite bands
You can't judge an entire magazine that has been going since the early 80s on one album.

[Chrisj182]

Kerrang is the only I ever really read, though their reviews of Download festival for the past 2 years have been shit.

[asthenia*]

You can't judge an entire magazine that has been going since the early 80s on one album.

oh thats not what i'm saying. to be fair i've never read it, only browsed through it and that was what i saw. like i said, i'm pretty sure i would enjoy it.

[chassmariee]

I really like AP, I've been reading it forever. You have to understand that they have to have those ads and shit to sell magazines. They don't mean to portray that image, they had an article on this but it was so long ago that I can't remember where to find it. I think it's a good magazine overall and it does inform me of some pretty good bands. You shouldn't hate.
Where as Rolling Stone is the shittiest magazine known. It's completley liberal and it's main focus isn't music.
If you don't like AP do Kerrang! and I kind of like Blender too.

[summer skin]

or you know you could just use this little thing called the internet to get your music news AS IT HAPPENS rather than paying money to hear about something a month later.

[secretsociety92]

oh thats not what i'm saying. to be fair i've never read it, only browsed through it and that was what i saw. like i said, i'm pretty sure i would enjoy it.
I am pretty sure most people on here would enjoy it, they like a lot of albums highly that are considered god like on this website plus a lot of my favorites.

[raychull]

That's the way it's been for the last two years.
This.

I think it's been about two years, if not three, since I've bought one.

[nonamesleft]

I really like Q magazine. It's a bit expensive but worth it 'cause the bands and articles are pretty good. (..If you're into British stuff)

[tfot11]

I stopped reading AP when the 5 bands that were on the cover of their "100 bands you need to know" issue all happened to be on AP's upcoming tour.

[friskycurtain]

Ever still Steven's Untitled column was taken out of the AP, I have noticed the magazine has shrunk drastically in size and in general has nothing of interest in it anymore. The bands they interview suck and the album reviews are a waste of my time these days. Thankfully my subscription is almost up

[anthonydarko]

Ever still Steven's Untitled column was taken out of the AP, I have noticed the magazine has shrunk drastically in size and in general has nothing of interest in it anymore. The bands they interview suck and the album reviews are a waste of my time these days. Thankfully my subscription is almost up
I remember three years ago the magazines were pretty big and cover an average of 6 or 7 bands in one issue, now it covers only about 2 or 3 and often, if not all, the bands are the biggest trends at the moment.

[asthenia*]

I am pretty sure most people on here would enjoy it, they like a lot of albums highly that are considered god like on this website plus a lot of my favorites.
yeah thanks man. i'll go take a look at their website maybe

[asthenia*]

Ever still Steven's Untitled column was taken out of the AP, I have noticed the magazine has shrunk drastically in size and in general has nothing of interest in it anymore. The bands they interview suck and the album reviews are a waste of my time these days. Thankfully my subscription is almost up

i liked that column - steven's a very interesting/informative writer

[Freud]

so i just got the latest issue of Alternative Press magazine in the mail (Ive never personally loved it, it was a christmas gift) but I was looking through it and I have to say... it is the worst issue of a music related magazine that I have read in a very long time. Worse than Rolling Stone or even the now defunct Blender. It used to semi-original and kind of focus on decent bands and it's reviews were decent. Now, it only focuses on lame trends, shits on bands it used to praise and is generally a dull read. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Are there any magazines worth checking out?
who the fuck celebrates xmas in october?

oh and decibel is a decent music mag.

[asthenia*]

who the fuck celebrates xmas in october?

oh and decibel is a decent music mag.

no i mean i got it as a gift last christmas

[Chris Fallon]

AMP is pretty much a better version of AltPress. They cover more of the punk scene than the neon, "popular" stuff. They're like how AltPress used to be years and years ago.

[alexa_ATL]

unfortunately, rock journalism died with lester bangs

[asthenia*]

I really like AP, I've been reading it forever. You have to understand that they have to have those ads and shit to sell magazines. They don't mean to portray that image, they had an article on this but it was so long ago that I can't remember where to find it. I think it's a good magazine overall and it does inform me of some pretty good bands. You shouldn't hate.
Where as Rolling Stone is the shittiest magazine known. It's completley liberal and it's main focus isn't music.
If you don't like AP do Kerrang! and I kind of like Blender too.

blender no longer exists.

[asthenia*]

or you know you could just use this little thing called the internet to get your music news AS IT HAPPENS rather than paying money to hear about something a month later.

jesus christ you just can't get enough of me can you.

magazines are a good secondary source to the internet, they provide different information/opinions than this website.

[asthenia*]

AMP is pretty much a better version of AltPress. They cover more of the punk scene than the neon, "popular" stuff. They're like how AltPress used to be years and years ago.

intriguing - examples?

[Freud]

no i mean i got it as a gift last christmas
ohhhh lol had me confused.

oh and for amp:
http://www.ampmagazine.com/

and decibel:
http://decibelmagazine.com/Home.aspx

and outburn is somewhat iffy. they sometimes cover good bands, then theyll cover the used and its like hmmm.
http://www.outburn.com/

[friskycurtain]

I remember three years ago the magazines were pretty big and cover an average of 6 or 7 bands in one issue, now it covers only about 2 or 3 and often, if not all, the bands are the biggest trends at the moment.

They did an article on Metro Station and crowded All Time Low their band of the year...they are very briskly becoming the MTV of magazines

[asthenia*]

They did an article on Metro Station and crowded All Time Low their band of the year...they are very briskly becoming the MTV of magazines

or is mtv becoming the AP of television? :-|

[FTeric]

question: can i get Kerrang in the states?

[fly_guy]

Ever still Steven's Untitled column was taken out of the AP, I have noticed the magazine has shrunk drastically in size and in general has nothing of interest in it anymore. The bands they interview suck and the album reviews are a waste of my time these days. Thankfully my subscription is almost up

I was PISSED when they took that column out. My mom renewed my subscription even though I told her not to, so Im stuck with another year. :-(

[fly_guy]

question: can i get Kerrang in the states?

Yes, but it costs more...I think

[asthenia*]

This months AP is actually okay. They have a pretty sweet collection of comics in there and there's a little interview with Set Your Goals

oh really? the issue in which Annie Zaleski interviews Max Bemis and quotes him referring to the song "Admitted" off of Say Anything's first album?

I'm sorry that's just lazy writing/editing and it proves they are staffing people who don't know what is even going on

[murrich]

You should get the music magazine Uncut, it's good.

[Charles777]

oh really? the issue in which Annie Zaleski interviews Max Bemis and quotes him referring to the song "Admitted" off of Say Anything's first album?

I'm sorry that's just lazy writing/editing and it proves they are staffing people who don't know what is even going on

Haha, wow. Anyway, I'm just saying that every now and then they have really good stuff. In that issue they have a column on pretty much all of my favorite comedians.

[asthenia*]

Haha, wow. Anyway, I'm just saying that every now and then they have really good stuff. In that issue they have a column on pretty much all of my favorite comedians.

i'm gonna say that i understand what you're saying, but its... ironic, that you're favorite part of a music magazine is a feature on comedians.
just saying

[KingsCrossing]

Technically, this is a magazine...

True, but it's more commonly referred to as a webzine.

[Colorblind!]

Only magazine worth reading is Adbusters.

[Charles777]

i'm gonna say that i understand what you're saying, but its... ironic, that you're favorite part of a music magazine is a feature on comedians.
just saying
When did I say that my favorite part of the magazine was the comedians?

[asthenia*]

When did I say that my favorite part of the magazine was the comedians?

Haha, wow. Anyway, I'm just saying that every now and then they have really good stuff. In that issue they have a column on pretty much all of my favorite comedians.

not trying to be a dick, but you did say this to justify why you think this months issue is decent, correct?
i wasn't saying that that's the only thing you like about it.

[Charles777]

not trying to be a dick, but you did say this to justify why you think this months issue is decent, correct?
i wasn't saying that that's the only thing you like about it.
I thought you were talking about Alt Press in general, not that one issue