Average Rating: 
Rating:  - better than rolling stone, occasionally insightful, but...
Every now and then Spin offers some high quality rock criticism. I, too, found it's 90 greatest albums of the '90s issue to be very good... yet so many of the artists they covered in that list go largely unnoticed in the magazine's regular issues, or end up buried beneath a lot of sub-par not music related articles and advertising.
If you are looking for a higher quality magazine of music criticism and rock journalism, I'd suggest seeking out some of the lower circulation, genre-specific magazines out there. Spin caters too much to evaluating pop trends and pushing bands that are already popular for my taste. If the subscription price is cheap enough and you just want something to browse, then go for it. But if you really want a quality music magazine, you'll have to look a little harder at your local bookstore, there are some out there.
Rating:  - You Spin Me 'Round
This magazine rocks. Not only does it give struggling, unheard of artists a genuine boost, it promotes honest and unflinching accounts of the lifestyle behind most of today's musicians (as well as yesterday's, now that I reflect). Beside accomplishing that, there is not "definition" to the type of music chosen. It isn't an alternative magazine. It's a MUSIC magazine. And that it has accomplished very well. By encompassing all genres (excepting country, I must admit) Spin has become one of the better music mags to have graced my mailbox. Spin is forward thinking, well-written, aesthetically pleasing and a gem of a monthly publication. There aren't stereotypes, typical photo shoots, boring stories or gimmicks. It is straightforward and real, and I am glad each month when my Spin arrives.
Rating:  - bigoldloser
I was very disappointed as a subscriber to this magazine. It is poorly written and is filled with articles that have little or no value. If you are interested in trivial details concerning Kurt Cobain or other marginal figures who have limited skills at best, it may be the magazine for you. But if you want information about innovative developments or noteworthy achievements in recorded music, you will rarely find it in the pages of SPIN. A quick look at any of their record reviews will confirm this. They aren't written in English or any other intelligible language. Hint to the editors-if no one is hip enoungh to understand the jargon-landen text of your publication--you aren't communicating.
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