Book

If you’re ready to pronounce the death of the album, the editors at Pitchforkmedia have the book for you. The Pitchfork 500 (Fireside/Simon & Schuster) is a scrupulously compiled guide to the popular website’s idea of the greatest 500 songs from the last 30 years. A crash course for the iPod generation, it begins in 1977, the formative year that shaped punk, disco and hip-hop. Being Pitchfork, the narratives all give in-depth analyses about each song’s impact, and not unlike the website itself, make it a tough read in one sitting. But more than anything, it demonstrates their obstinate attitude towards their field and plus, where else will you find detailed lists of the top "post-Fugazi emo” songs or ten must-hear noise tracks?