I’m a music journalist complaining about music journalism. I know how that looks. But the state of music criticism and reporting in Australia deserves an honest assessment, and the people best positioned to give it are the ones working in the field.

The short version: we’re in trouble. Not terminal trouble — not yet — but the trajectory is concerning.

What We’ve Lost

The list of Australian music publications that have closed, downsized, or dramatically reduced their music coverage in the past decade is depressing. Junkee’s music coverage has thinned significantly. FasterLouder closed entirely. The Vine went. The daily newspapers that once employed music critics have cut those positions or reduced them to freelance arrangements.

What remains is Triple J’s editorial team, Tone Deaf, The Music (in reduced form), a handful of independent blogs, and freelancers pitching to general-interest publications that sometimes run music pieces.

The ecosystem that used to support critical music writing in Australia has contracted dramatically. There are fewer paid positions, fewer outlets, and less space for the kind of long-form, analytical music journalism that does more than preview upcoming releases.

Why It Happened

The causes are familiar from broader media decline. Digital advertising revenue collapsed. Print publications folded or went digital-only with smaller teams. Social media fragmented attention. Audiences who once read album reviews now watch TikTok reactions.

But there are music-specific factors too.

Artists became their own media. When an artist can communicate directly with their audience through Instagram, TikTok, and newsletters, the intermediary role of music journalism shrinks. Why give an interview to a journalist when you can control the message yourself?

Algorithm-driven content incentives. Online publications are rewarded for clicks, not critical quality. A listicle of “10 Songs You Need to Hear This Week” generates more traffic than a thoughtful 2,000-word album review. The economics push toward superficial content.

The attention economy. Reading a 1,500-word review requires fifteen minutes of focused attention. Watching a thirty-second TikTok reaction takes thirty seconds. In a world competing for attention, the longer format loses.

What’s at Stake

Some people argue that music journalism doesn’t matter — that the music speaks for itself and artists don’t need critics to validate or contextualise their work.

I disagree. Music journalism serves several functions that no other part of the ecosystem provides.

Documentation. Critics and journalists create a written record of musical culture. Without music journalism, the story of Australian music is told entirely through commercial metrics (chart positions, streaming numbers) and self-promotion. That’s an incomplete and distorted record.

Contextualisation. Good music writing doesn’t just say whether an album is good. It places it in context — historical, cultural, social. It connects a new release to what came before and what it means for what comes next. This kind of analysis helps audiences understand music more deeply and helps artists understand their own significance.

Discovery. Despite the rise of algorithmic discovery, many music fans still find new music through trusted critics and publications. A recommendation from a journalist whose taste you respect carries different weight than an algorithmic suggestion.

Accountability. Music journalism can hold the industry accountable in ways that self-promotion can’t. Reporting on exploitative contracts, unsafe venues, industry inequity, and institutional failures requires independent journalism.

What Might Help

Subscription models. Some international music publications have successfully moved to subscription or membership models. The key is building an audience that values the writing enough to pay for it, which requires consistently excellent work.

Institutional support. Australian arts funding bodies should recognise music journalism as cultural infrastructure and fund it accordingly. Music Victoria and other state bodies have started supporting music media projects, but the investment needs to scale.

Collaboration with artists. Rather than viewing artists-as-media as competition, music journalists should find ways to collaborate. Podcasts, video content, and social media partnerships can extend the reach of critical writing while maintaining editorial independence.

New business models. Substack, Patreon, and similar platforms have enabled individual music writers to build direct relationships with audiences. The economics are tough — most music writers on these platforms earn modest income — but the model at least exists.

What I’m Doing About It

This site is my small contribution to the problem. Independent, honest music journalism that doesn’t depend on advertising revenue, label relationships, or algorithm optimisation.

I can’t solve the structural problems facing music media in Australia. But I can write the kind of music coverage I want to read — critical, informed, and genuinely useful to people who care about Australian music.

If you value independent music journalism, support it. Subscribe to the publications that do good work. Share their articles. Pay for quality when you can afford to. The alternative is a music media landscape dominated by press releases, advertorial, and algorithm-friendly content that tells you nothing you couldn’t learn from scrolling Spotify.

We deserve better than that. The music deserves better than that.