Is the notion of a tastemaker critic dead?
I’d love to say they’re alive and well but I think it’s more a case that the tastemaker is more important than ever but the critical element (to slay terrible records, destroy demi-gods and deconstruct the things they adore) is OVA! People, especially those with influence in mainstream media, still rely on those who have searched out great things by listening to all the crap. The trouble is – with things like Hype Machine chart, BBC Sound of Polls – there are now so many ‘tastemakers’ that its become less about trusted individuals and more about democracy, which in my opinion is incredibly flawed as the agreeable is rising to the top, rather than the exceptional and the acts who ‘win’ are merely those who have the funds to invest long-term in acts, putting all the right dominoes in line….
