Stylus Magazine, Respected Online Music Publication, Will Fold After Halloween

StylusMagazine.com, a portal for fans of experimental and independent music, will cease publication at the end of the month after almost five years. While never quite as widely read or immediately influential as Pitchforkmedia.com, Stylus built a name for itself among music specialists interested in rigorous, and often personal, criticism of little known artists, as well as Top 40 singles. (In recent years the site also expanded its coverage to include film.) In an e-mail, Stylus editor Todd Burns—who was good enough to publish a few of this reporter's music reviews many years ago—said there was no immediate impetus behind his decision to the end the site.

"I just got off the subway one day and said, 'I don't want to do this anymore,'" he said.

"Todd has done an exemplary job of providing an outlet for content that is writer-friendly and allows them to stretch out and explore ideas," Mr. Plagenhoef said.

"One disappointing thing about it is that there aren't very many music magazines anymore," he said. "Even online, since having a blog has simply been a matter of hosting a song and then saying, 'hey, here it is.' That's been pretty much the end of the conversation in a lot of places about music."

Mr. Plagenhoef said he has been talking to Mr. Burns about Stylus writers who might now find a home at Pitchfork. "We've consulted with Todd and talked about certain writers who are a good fit, and we're in the process of possibly bringing on board a few people," he said.

Mr. Plagenhoef said Pitchfork has already hired Mike Powell, who wrote regularly about music for Stylus and served as an associate editor.

Stylus will publish its last reviews this week, and close out on Halloween with a "Greatest Hits"-style retrospective.