July 2005
A Dangerous Game #1/#2, 53p/43p, full size,
$3
I was already feeling wary of this music zine when I picked it up. I was worried
that I wouldn't know the bands and that the overall vision might not interest
me. I'd like to think I know music pretty well. I can talk Tom Waits and can
differentiate vague sub-genres, but music zines like this leave me out of
my element. #1 is somewhat more my area, focusing on obscure noise music.
The interviews with The Locust, The Curtains, Wolf Eyes, Savage Republic,
and John French of The Magic Band actually held my interest, despite the fact
that the interviews were all at least 2-3 years old. I was especially interested
in John French's criticisms of Don Van Vliet working methods, which even he
admits got very specific results while alienating pretty much every person
he worked with. But beyond this, I was at a loss.I was even more lost with
#2, which billed itself as the "metal issue" and talking to bands
with colorful names like Lamb of God and 7000 Dying Rats. Not being a fan
of metal, none of these were of much use, beyond maybe Godflesh. I imagine
fans of the genre would get more out of this half than I do. Besides interviews,
A Dangerous Game also features some movie reviews, none of which
I found particularly useful or enlightening. Overall, the look of this offset
printed zine is DIY cut and paste. My primary lament was that the linescreens
were so poorly handled, leaving darker shades of gray nearly black and lighter
shades white. But this doesn't affect any of the text, which I found quite
legible and well laid out. If noise and metal are your thing, you'd do well
to check out this unique music zine. If you don't recognize any of the bands
I've mentioned, you might find yourself lost.
608-C Haight St.
San Francisco, CA 94117
USA
adangerousgame@mailcan.com
--AR
Electric Mariposa #2, 28p, half-size, $2
Cassandra fills her zine with prose and poetry that is lyrical, evocative,
and rich in sensual detail. Fans of the Pleiades will no doubt find themselves
attracted to her style, but this zine is less personal in scope, more fictional.
Most of the writing is brief, suggesting glimmers of a broader picture, with
characters and situations that are simply at the pinnacle of unfolding. While
this tendency is at times frustrating, it is also strangely evocative, as
in her collection of short-shorts titled "Thirteen Short Talks."
These so-called talks are reminiscent of Greenaway and Holst at their briefest,
as in this talk on letters:
Keiri lived in a house made of silky smooth envelopes and black scrawling
writing. Bethesda lived in a house of lost children and bare fet. Charles
lived in a house of decarations and poems written on napkins, but sent in
the mail. they all lived happily ever after in the post office.
At times the pedantic writer in me wanted to correct spelling and grammar,
but often the quality of writing was so strong I was able to ignore most errors.
Truly this zine reveals an interesting voice and talent, one I would certainly
like to read more from.
Cassie/electric Mariposa
PO Box 96
Spencertown, NY 12165
starrygirl119@aol.com
--AR
The Juniper #3, 12 p. half-legal, free in
person or stamp by mail
Published in Jan/Feb of 2005, The Juniper bills itself as a "zine about
learning to live the simple life." Lest this sound a little wonky, what
the zine's trying to do is "foster ideas and dialogue & to inspire
folks to live more sustainable & fulfilling lives" (Murphy put it
so well I couldn't resist quoting liberally here). This issue has some journal
entries, an excellent article about soil, an excerpt from an English zine
called Attitude Problem, a piece about raising chickens borrowed from the
Slingshot Collective in Berkeley, CA, as well as a seed-starting plan from
OrganicGardening.com. There are also excellent recipes and a list of recommended
reading at the back of the zine. As a zine, it's kind of short, but it's packed
with a lot of information but isn't a difficult read by any means. The layout
is excellently done and I love the fact that it's small enough to fold in
half, staple, and mail, thus not needing an envelope and also having a back
cover of sorts to display images and messages--this issue has a photo of a
crop duster with a cut-and-paste slogan placed underneath reading: Don't be
a pest--garden organically.
Dan Murphy
c/o The Juniper
PO Box 6352
Boise, ID 83707
messyelephant@hotmail.com
www.juniperbug.blogspot.com
--Ann Motes
Legal Underage Pornography #7/#8, 24p/24p,
half-size, $1
As the tongue-in-cheek title implies, this zine is all about fun. Most of
the articles are goofy rants that cover a wide ranage of topics from college
life and making fun of foreign countries and honesty and evolutionary mishaps.
It's no surprise that this zine runs in conjunction with a website, since
irreverent, off-the-cuff comedy is the bread and butter of the web. And while
this zine is no Something Awful, it's good for a few laughs. The clean layout
and snazzy covers offer a welcome change from the usually rougher zine format.
AGB International
PO Box 60822
Reno, NV 89506
USA
www.anarchygolfballs.com
feedback@anarchygolfballs.com
--AR
Media Whore #4, 32p, half-size, $2 (?)
Oh, I love this zine even if I'm way behind in the reviews (see the July section
for a review of Media Whore #5). This issue, like others before it, is focused
on one particular theme--for #4, it is "the ways that feminism presents
itself and is expressed through art, both visual and performance." I
was really excited about this theme as someone who does a feminist autobio
comic-zine. Articles include an interview with Krissy Durden, one of the founders
of FATASS, a Portland radical fat cheerleading group. (By the way, FATASS
stands for Fat Action Troupe Allstar Spirit Squad), as well as an article
about a "renegade feminist synchronized swimming team" in Houston.
There's also an interesting piece about Chrissy Conant, who I'd read about
before. She's a feminist artist who, when thinking about the commodification
of women and reproduction, decided to create Crissy Caviar (tm). You'll have
to go to her website (or order this issue of MW) to see the images, but her
work is a particularly viseral and evocative blend; the article in MW #4 aptly
explains and illunimates the work and its genesis. MW #4's last long article
is about attending a Sex Workers Art Show, which wasn't quite what the author
expected (fewer readings, more performances), but her voice is so evocative,
direct, and engaging that I went back and read it again right away. Overall,
I loved the issue and I was excited also to see reviews, links, information
about various Ladyfests that were planned, mention of the Guerilla Girls,
the Dressing Room Project and a host of other fascinating feminist organizations
and projects. Highly recommended.
12 B Wolcott St.
Malden, MA 02148
USA
mediawhorezine.com
randie@mediawhorezine.com
Also available through Atomic
Books, Bulldog
News, Echo
Zine Distro, Finger
Bang Distro, Gluestick
Distro, HousewifeXcore,
Lady Men Distro,
Needles and Pens,
Parcell Press,
Quimby's Books, Reading
Frenzy, Silent
Star Distro,
Gladys Sells Things, Stick
Figure Distro, Sticky,
Stranger Danger
Distro, Tastes
Like Newsprint Distro,
Truth Fairy Distro, Unbound
Books, Union for
Gender Empowerment, Valiant
Death Records
--Ann Motes
Media Whore #5, 32p, odd size (6.25"X8.5"),
$2
While the last couple of issues of Media Whore focus on particular subjects,
this one returns to a more varied approach. Of particular interest to many
feminist zinesters is the article regarding differing viewpoints on riot grrrl
and whether the movement is or is not dead. In a brief profile on Emily Brandt,
founder of Take Back the News, we see how one woman wants to change the media's
portrayal of rape and its victims. Another article offers three alternatives
to the typical male-centered video games. An interview with Fafi shows how
one female artist has crafted her own niche in the male-dominated area of
grafitti art. At times the articles seem to suggest more than they fully reveal,
but that could simply be a limitation of space. I found the sheer variety
of articles interesting, since Media Whore isn't just looking at the obvious
areas of media (i.e. pop culture). Also, the book and zine reviews at the
end offer more avenues for the reader to explore. All in all, the writing
is solid and opinionated, while also being positive and accessible.
12 B Wolcott St.
Malden, MA 02148
USA
mediawhorezine.com
randie@mediawhorezine.com
Also available through Atomic
Books, Bulldog
News, Echo
Zine Distro, Finger
Bang Distro, Gluestick
Distro, HousewifeXcore,
Lady Men Distro,
Needles and Pens,
Parcell Press,
Quimby's Books, Reading
Frenzy, Silent
Star Distro,
Gladys Sells Things, Stick
Figure Distro, Sticky,
Stranger Danger
Distro, Tastes
Like Newsprint Distro,
Truth Fairy Distro, Unbound
Books, Union for
Gender Empowerment, Valiant
Death Records
--AR
Mmph #3, 10p, full size
The only thing to dislike about this zine is that it's simply too short.With
the color-copied covers, cut-and-paste vintage clipart, and varied collection
of writings, it's a delight to look at and to read. Nearly all the prose piece
are strong works of imagery and language, like in Kate's "The Observer":
the shadowed towers are of reflective glass and steel, clothed with a shroud
of stars...." The requisite zine reviews are finely detailed, and the
instructions for making flower pins are useful. Still, I wanted to see more
of what this collective of writers and artists had to offer. At the very least,
this is a quick and thorougly memorable read.
Nathan Jr #2, 28p, half-size
Considering that one of my favorite subjects is cinema, it's no wonder I read
this movie review zine from cover to cover. While the cover looks questionably
rough, I found the majority of the reviews to be thoughtful and well written.
We begin with an article about a test-screening of the Strangers With
Candy movie and a criticism of Robots. One of the more interesting
articles covers the highs and lows of films released in 1984, comparing it
it to the quality of American films 20 years later. While I agree with the
essential conclusion of this article (that many good films today lack what
good films 20 years ago contained) I had to disagree about 1996 being the
year independent film broke. With the rise of directors like Tarantino, Smith,
and Linklater, I'd place the break at 94, or even 92. This, however, is geeky
banter and no criticism of the quality of the article. The rest of this issue
rounds out with mor humorous articles about Thumper, Adrian Brody, scariest
film babies, "Soul Man Revisited," and adoration for the Back
to the Future series (which I share). All in all, the writing is smart,
fun, and referential without being obnoxious. Don't let the cover fool you--if
you like talking about movies, check out this zine.
1726 Winona Blvd. #201
Hollywood, CA 90027
USA
nathanjrzine@hotmail.com
Orange and Blue #15.5, 40p, quarter-size,
$2
This in-btween issue of Orange and Blue is all about Iza andhow she
met some of her closest friends. As always, her writing is clear, crisp, and
efficient. Reading one of her zines is like talking to an old friend. She
brings you into her world and you meet a fun, interesting cast of characters
along the way. Though this zine is text-heavy, it's short, breezy, and a pleasure
to read.
Iza Bourret
5591 St-Laurent
Levis QC G6V 3V6
Canada
www.geocities.com/orangeblue_zine
orangeblue_zine@yahoo.com
This Magazine Should Be Read Aloud, 70p,
full size
Apparently a sister zine to ADG, this zine is far more confusing
and chaotic. The featured bands are either so obscure or so local as to be
unrecognizable. The interviews read more like drunken conversations than anything
coherent or even interesting. Inexplicably, a review of Royal Tenenbaums
is thrown in for good measure. Twice the reviewer gets lost in pointless tangents
and fails to make any specifica point about the film itself. The sloppiness
of this review seems merely a catalyst for that of the zine. It's organic
and sloppy, lacks focus and reads like one long drunken ramble. Even the music
reviews reflect this sort of carelessness. At the very least the cover elicited
a chuckle and maybe those from San Francisco will understand more of it than
I do. As it stands, I feel like I've just read an elaborate inside joke I
will never understand.
608-C Haight St.
San Francisco, CA 94117
USA
adangerousgame@mailcan.com