| MAXIMUMROCKNROLL #313 JUNE 2009 ***** Good cover shot greets us in this issue featuring a consumed Cult Ritual singer (Dan) bawling into a mic. Indelic images like these remind me of the good/bad old days of MRR, when American hardcore punk was exciting, and new! Not just another gang of crusty clones. From what I read and hear of this Tampa Bay outfit, they can can talk it like they walk it, both on and off stage. They remind me of a 21st century Black Flag but without the brawn or surf. Lets face it the youthful approach is definitely how punk should be, instead of another faceless Mohawk or an old cunt going through his bloated routine. We also get a bulging Boston scene report which is a neat catch up on whats happening in little Ireland. Disappointingly, there's a very brief skim through the Sydney, Australia scene! A shame, coz I reckon it deserves a major profile if Melbourne and other city's are anything to go by. Hunx And His Punx is a camp joke, right? Especially when we read about this particular brand of 'queer core' that's about 15 years too late, since Pansy Division et all last filled the hole (ahem). I think our hairy fairy is desperately trying to create a pink niche but failing. Witty observations are mildly amusing, but his backing band of 3 over the top BBW punkettes are a lot more easier on the eye, than the cheesy 70's moustache of our lead crooner. Back to some straights ville or should I say belligerence with Acid Reflux who are a big, sweaty in your face bunch of drunks from Albany, New York. We then get a 6 page nostalgic trip round Toronto's late 70's punk scene, via the memoirs of new wave punks the Existors and Shades fanzine fame. Meanwhile back in Frisco come the shouty NN that features a social worker, postal worker, school teacher and video producer in their line-up. No wonder our mail and our kids are getting lost in the system. Or as NN put it...unidentified. On a less noisy level Grass Widow are full on feminists who offer some melodic, psychedelic indie punk to sit back and sow your backdrop too. Sounding somewhere in the vein of the Raincoats. There's an Anarcho retrospective by the late Lance Hahn, but it ain't one of his best. Scraping the barrel this time is some poxy combo no-ones ever heard of called Toms Midnight Garden? Staying with the protest and survive movement, but taking it to another extreme are screamers Project Hopeless (who have since renamed themselves as Crutches). You'd certainly need some crutches as you batter your way to the fire exit to escape their annoying noise! Meanwhile Defect Defect hail from Portland, Oregon and seem like a hard working gigging bunch of misfits. Its always good to hear what the young, ugly kids do in PDX these days. Herds from some god forsaken Milwaukee outback are very camera shy. In fact there's no band pics on any of their interviews or albums. Mind you, the music is about as interesting as watching Buffalo roam. The book reviews are pretty diverse this time round. Highlight is probably another tome on graffiti icon, Banksy. A geezer so popular in the art world he has books chronicling his London graffiti locations. Can't see the real attraction myself? If me or you spray painted a wall, we'd get arrested while Banksy gets canonised! Books about zine creation always brings a smirk to my face. And 'Make A Zine' is no different. Trust me, you don't need a book to write a zine. The real fun of fanzine production is just doing it with whatever you have at your disposal. Don't forget imagination and an opinion are your ultimate tools, so just go and do it! Of the movie reviews 'Cleveland's Screaming' stands out as one to watch out for and also Pansy Divisions 'Life In A Gay Rock Band', which should be good for the early soundtrack and to see how these pioneering Queens fared in a hostile 'hetro' punk scene. The record review section now boasts 2 pages of demo's, which by the size of the large print suggests the official punk records influx ain't swamping MRR quite so much these days. The zine reviews seem to be holding out though. So whatever your views on MRR, it's still the best shop window for punks various wings and printed angst! $4.00 from www.maximumrocknroll.com |
| AGITATE #11 Autumn 2009 ***** Had this sent in anonymously? So whoever did cheers. Now here is a zine that was running when I first started cut 'n' pasting in the Suffragette days, all be it with a different name (Aversion). Chris the editor had previously put out issues as Noise Fest then reverted to Aversion, which I think was his most prolific fanzine. However Agitate seems destined to be taking over and certainly sounds a lot more descriptive for this kinda zine and the scene it covers. It's stark, bleak format and vibe definitely reflects the sounds and growls. I really do like its clean lines, easy to read A5 layout, with black and white blocks, that benefits greatly from a decent print job this issue. Even the ads which are few and far between (unlike some zines) seep into the dark mood and overall style. The music or soundtrack to hell is pure and utter Crust and D-beat in style and attitude. No pop punk in here, and certainly no crooners either. You'd be hard pressed to find the growlers hitting the high notes but musically if done right can create a truly demonic presence. The Bradford One In 12 club seems to be the centre of Chris's gigging regime. And luckily for him they do invite a load of his favoured style of punk to its stages. At least Chris has embraced the Internet instead of shunning it as some kinda impending threat on zinedom. You can check out some of his exceptional gig shots that adorn his my-space page if you become his friend. Interviews are with the beguiling London crusties Beginning Of The End who had the enigmatic Aga singing for them. I even managed to catch them live in Brum a few years ago. They have since split up. There's a Jakarta raw crust punk scene report, which takes some understanding as you stumble through the script with those hard to pronounce band names. One thing you do realise in the bands that lurk in the bowels D-beat is the perpetual crust uniform of black band t-shirts and studs. It's a little worrying to see such a uniformity spread worldwide amongst the bands and fans from East of Java to the snow swept Fford's of Finland. Closer to home, Belgium's crusty boozers Visions Of War get interrogated as they discuss the important intricacies of drink in their worldwide vision. There's smaller profiles on European crust merchants Beton and a Swedish Distro Not Enough, that seems to be anti almost everything. We terminate with an interview with Italian d-beaters Kontatto who are musically my fave of the bunch. The review section, seems to have more zines than records so maybe the propaganda about zine sales on the wain is a whim to scare us into buying more? If you do like Crust and D-beat I'd say Agitate at 28 pages for only 50p or trade is a good place to start and certainly up there with similar zines like Ripping thrash, Hell And Damnation etc. For a good crawl through the Discharge legacy, Shipley is certainly rising! www.myspace.com/chrisagitate |
| SPYING ON THE SCENE #3 2009 ***** Had this snotty little effort sent in when I stumbled across its editor on the Punkrockers.com fanzine forum. He was offering free copies for review, which I took with a pinch of salt (especially with over-sea's postage and only a 100 print run). But when one turned up unexpectedly a month later from Tampa Bay, Florida I was impressed with his promise. Its always good to get a punk zine from places you don't always associate with punk rock. Seems Tampa ain't just full of rowdies of the football fraternity. I'm sure Spying On The Scene don't normally reach a bigger audience, so any zine traders out there please get in touch with the editor. It's the smaller publications that are usually the most unique in some way or other. Usually spotlighting local bands or scenes which we would never hear about otherwise. And Spying On The Scene does have that personal touch. This zine comes in a photocopied electric green cover and that neat title gives it an air of observation. As we know most fanzine writers are little spy's, reporting what they see and hear, well the good ones do. To be truthful you can blitz through this 20 page cut 'n' paste job in one sitting and has a lot more enthusiasm than actual content. But kicks off with a funny obituary and pic on our editors car (the whale) which sadly hit the big scrapyard in the sky. The more serious stuff features an interview with thrashers Trash Talk from Sacramento and some mundane recipe from the Klix. Highlight had to be an enthralling heart to heart with Rob from LA's Total Chaos, talking about why his band is hated so much and the demise of street punk. Rather be hated than ignored, springs to mind. And to get a different perspective, we get the Hammer Bois singer talking about strait edge. Which after witnessing some rowdy YouTube footage seems pretty hard to believe. These geezers must be on somert? The reviews were a few pages, but were in-depth enough to give you an idea on what was spinning inside the disc. I'm informed there's gonna be a new edition out soon, when the PC is fixed, but I get the feeling other distractions may intercede? We shall see. Tampa Bay's only zine worth a buck and it costs $2 or trades I presume. For more information contact OISTER_77@YAHOO.COM |
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| FAILSAFE #6 2009 ***** Really glad to come across this fanzine that has been circulating way under the radar for way too long without much recognition (fanzine wise). And given that it isn't actually sold as such (but donations are appreciated, and rightly so!). All I can say is why none of the other zines seem to give it much exposure or credence? Anyhow their loss, our gain! A lot of effort and research has gone into this one. Failsafe covers its early 80's fascination and genre exploration with an almost stalking passion. It certainly becomes a breath of fresh air to get reacquainted with so many bands and individuals, that you read about, bought records by or wondered if they were still even on the planet? David the editor doesn't do email interviews, he either phones or in some cases has been known to travel stateside to search out his prey. So you can’t fault his determination to get that scoop! This issues cover star features a bewildered looking Jennifer Blowdryer. Now I dunno about you, but I ain't got a clue who she is/was and in some respects I doubt she knew either. But her life story in punk gets unravelled and she’s a fascinating creature that dwelt within the SF punk scene back in the late 70's. She fronted a minor outfit called the Blowdryers, wrote zines and was a scenester before becoming a writer in New York, where she is now based. Blyth Power on the other hand show a different take on punk. Very English and unique in their almost indie take on punk. They get interrogated or should I say Josef Porta their well known drummer who was also in Zounds and class act The Mob for his sins. He offers a surprisingly frank and open opinion of punk and its intricacy's. Without a hint of superior preachy bollocks or the general Anarcho line. He's currently writing for a plastic model magazine in between his various musical projects. TV Smith the gigging machine gets interviewed for the third time in over a year. Not quite sure what was in the previous interviews? But this one concentrates on his new album 'In The Arms Of The Enemy', which having not heard can't comment on? But hard working TV or Tim to his mates plays a staggering 120 gigs a year without any label support. He survives from his extensive European jaunts that attract 200 +, more so than the paltry 30 odd people he pulls in at some UK venues. Which is a shame. James Stark San Fransisco punk photographer and book author gets drilled about the SF punk scene and the book he's currently writing about punk club the Mabahu. Finishing off with a slightly uncomfortable interview with Red Kross's Steve McDonald from LA. Reviews are at a minimum, but are thorough. The other great bonus this has on other zines is the exceptional photography. All black and white shots but beautifully presented and along with the slick sheen paper finish makes this fanzine stand out from the crowd. Contact failsafezine@yahoo.com |
