I'll admit from the outset I've pinched this idea from the Indiecast podcast. A fun game which doesn't take long, and doesn't actually require you to listen to any music! The idea is to predict five albums that you think the critics will love.
The rules are simple:
- PM me five albums that are due out between April 1 and June 30.
- No re-issues or box sets please, only substantively new albums are allowed.
- Your score will be the sum of those five albums' scores on Metacritic at the end of 30th June.
- If for any reason your album is released, but doesn't get a score on Metacritic, its score on albumoftheyear.org will be taken instead.
- If the release date of any of your choices is delayed beyond June 30, or cancelled altogether, you can replace it with another album, provided that other album has not been released yet.
- The closing date for submissions is 31st March
I have already made my choices to ensure that I'm not influenced by anyone else. We'll also be playing against music critics Steve Hyden and Ian Cohen from Indiecast. They have to take it in turns to choose their five albums, but that's the price they pay for being (to some extent) insiders. I'll be posting regular updates throughout the quarter, and if it's successful we'll do it every quarter.
