zine, [zeen] noun. 1. abbr. of fanzine; 2. any amateurly-published periodical. Oxford Reference

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Tuesday, July 31, 2007

DARE #1, Pickel Press

via Small Press Newsroom by -AF on May 17, 2007

DARE #1, Pickle Press, Nik Havert and Renatus (2006). Price on cover $7.95. Full size comic, square-bound, glossy color cover, 78 black and white pages with lots of gray tones. This mature readers only comic is a mix between porn, a female James Bond, and well, more porn.....The story by Nik isn't that bad actually, but if you are not into the heavy sex action portrayed here then you won't even get into the story anyway. The art is from very good to OK. In parts it looks rushed but overall it is above average and the artist knows his anatomy well (too well?). The cars and backgrounds are excellent. His use of gray tones is over handled and makes most of the pages way too dark, but the story does move along and besides the sex there is some very violent action sequences. So you can tell this was a labor of love for Nik and Renatus but it remains to be seen how many will be turned off by this "guy" magazine. I'm sure you'll have to be over 17 to buy this and not easily offended to say the least. For people that love porn and violent action intermixed with some good story telling...this is for you. (I give it 3 stars)
_________________________________
Pickle Press / 157 East Van Buren / Napanee, IN 46550 http://www.picklepress.net or email: picklepress@earthlink.net

Nobody Can Eat 50 EGGS #31

via Small Press Newsroom by -AF on May 17, 2007

Nobody Can Eat 50 EGGS #31. Digest, color cover (wraps around), 25 black and white pages, counting inside covers which are also in color. No company name, no price no credits on cover. very nice cover, reminds me of a cartoonist from the 70's and 80's, Ted Bolman. This zine has great little strips...don't see any names on this yet..."The Cement Shoe Brothers in" What A Goon Thinks is a little funny diddy about some thugs and how they must collect money owed. This was very well done. Nice art. Reminds me of some of the Mad Magazine artists. "Frank and Eddie in" Lizard Love part 1. Still no credits, two guys arguing and one that gets attached to a pet lizard. This doesn't seem to go anywhere. It is continued farther in the book but doesn't seem to lead to anything...maybe I needed to read some of the other issues. How to Trap Bigfoot, was interesting but not as funny as it could have been I guess. The art again is excellent and fits the messages. Warning Signs Your Boss is Really A Thinly Disguised Alien Creature THAT EATS PEOPLE....this was very well done and was even closer to the Mad Magazine look and feel. In fact they would have used most of this I bet. Hunchback Intern was very good and the art was great. Same guy doing this whole book? Looks like it. Love to see more of these hunchbacks. Bruno in Anger Management about two rhinos was also well done. I could go on and on as there is allot packed into these pages. This is worth every penny, if we knew how many pennies.... (4 stars)
____________________________________________
445 1/2 randolph street / Meadville, PA 16335 (still no name?) http://freewebs.com/50eggs or email: eat_50_eggs@hotmail.com

ghost pine 10

 
 

via she reviews zines by craftyone on Jul 06, 2007

ghost pine
Originally uploaded by craftyone77

(jeff miller)
1/4 letter; 48 pages

the tenth issue, on the 10th anniversary of a tremendous zine, celebrates all things incomplete. the several pieces in this zine are all parts of other works, each sitting perfect in it's unfinished state. a must-read, and it compels me to read the first nine issues as well, in effort to learn more of this writer's world.

po box 45017
rpo jeanne-mance
montreal, QC h2w-2t3

 
 

galatea's pants 17

 
 

via she reviews zines by craftyone on Jul 06, 2007

galatea's pants 17
Originally uploaded by craftyone77

(lauren)
1/2 legal; 20 pages
www.galateaspants.com

this new issue springs at you with more phenomenal political discussion from page one. with discussions of "liberal" media, the situation in Venezuela, homage to John Stewart, several zine reviews, and tons of other stuff, lauren hits us again with her truth. activism put to words, lauren's zines are always worth picking up!


 
 
 

Introvert #4

 
 

 
 

via she reviews zines by craftyone on Jul 17, 2007

introvert #4
Originally uploaded by craftyone77

(nicole introvert)
1/2 letter; 20 pages
nicole.introvertATgmailDOTcom

after a six-year break nicole is back. this time she brings with her a variety of writings from her time away, each of which reflects a part of who she is, or in some places who she once was. personally, i'm a big fan of the last piece in the zine, which describes contact and friendship with an introvert such as herself. love this zine, and i'll read it again and again.


 
 

 
 

Semi Bold #7

 
 

via she reviews zines by craftyone on Jul 24, 2007

semi bold 7
Originally uploaded by craftyone77

(kathy mosely)
1/2 letter; 20 pages
$2; SemiBoldATaolDOTcom

as the 20th gave birth to the 21st century, so too Kathy brought forth this zine. written about her travels from Chicago to NYC for the event, the zine also includes an amazing and brutal look at Chicago Public Housing.


 

Elephant Mess #17

 
 
 

via she reviews zines by craftyone on Jul 24, 2007

elephant mess 17
Originally uploaded by craftyone77

(dan murphy)
1/2 letter; 24 pages
messyelephantAThotmailDOTcom

glimpses into the life of an introvert, via moments of self-proclaimed "lucid moments when words poured out rhythmically." in the end, this zine gives you nothing more than glimpses into dan's life, but they are brilliant glimpses via amazing words.


 
 
 

The Juniper #7

 
 

via she reviews zines by craftyone on Jul 24, 2007

juniper 7
Originally uploaded by craftyone77

(dan murphy)
1/2 letter; 12 pages
free; juniperjournalAThotmailDOTcom

this great zine is all about gardening, from what Dan grew last year to great growing tips for both indoor and outdoor gardeners. i love the advice and i've already put it to use in my budding garden! the best part? all you need to get this zine is a stamp!


 
 
 

Troll Pocket 1

 
 
 

via she reviews zines by craftyone on Jul 26, 2007

troll pocket 1
Originally uploaded by craftyone77

(christian walker)
1/2 letter; 16 pages
9903 santa monica blvd, beverly hills ca, 90212 / $1 or trade

written about a week-long trip out of LA and towards the bay area, christian captures the disillusioned west coast mid-20's mentality perfectly. his oversvations about the trip, the spaces, the people, all exude intelligent detachment. a unique travel journal and a great read.


 
 
 

Frank, Joe, and Phil #1

 
 
 

via she reviews zines by craftyone on Jul 26, 2007

frank, joe, and phil 1
Originally uploaded by craftyone77

(tanner robbins)
1/4 letter; 16 pages
po box 17131, anaheim, ca 92817-7131 / $1 or trade

the first in a series of comics, this is the story of 3 brothers left alone. i wonder which brother is the author! cute and funny, i can't wait for the second issue.


 
 
 

Solid Gould 1

via she reviews zines by craftyone on Jul 26, 2007

solid gould 1
Originally uploaded by craftyone77

(suzy greenburg)
1/2 letter; 40 pages
suzygreenburgATsbcglobalDOTnet

this zine begins a series of zines based on a unique concept. suzy will follow verb conjugation and creat each issue around one of them. thus, the "I" issue, where readers are invited to get to know her. furture issues will explore you, he, she, it, we, they - in an effort to bring people together in understanding. this issue is phenomenal, revealing, and full of poetry, prose and pictures. it was amazing and i'm exicted for more! pick up one and send her something for the next issue (you).


 
 

Monday, July 30, 2007

Rose Gardens of Life No 1

via underground publication reviews by veritas@tearitalldown.com on Jan 24, 2007
Zine Review - Rose Gardens of Life No 1

Rose Young's initial foray into the zine world brings us a lightly collaged poetry zine, very simple and very evocative. Her poetry is direct, and it's intention is to cause the reader to think and feel. From works based upon battles to finding herself, this little quarter/rough zine is a bit like life itself - a bit of this and a bit of that. A buck and a half and a very good little poetry zine.

Snippet:

"Finding myself, with every single breath

Finding my way, in a tide of rage.

The way I was raised.

Breaking and Shaking, my crystal cage.

Watching the pieces shatter,

To the ground.

Each piece a glittering treasure

But so very dangerous, too."


LinkieLinkie
for more info...


Frater Mine #4

via Small Press Newsroom by -AF on May 17, 2007

Frater Mine #4, Making Comics Studios. 2006. Full size comic, color cover, 28 pages, black and white interiors. $2.95. I had the pleasure of lettering issues #2 and #3 last year and I found the art and story for this comic very original and entertaining. The story by Sean McGrath mixes real life situations then spins you into some characters with strange and mystical powers. Don't want to give anything away but it keeps you reading. You get involved with the characters and this is something that most comics don't take the time to do. The art is always excellent on the series as well. The covers are very creative and you can tell that Sean is not afraid to push the envelope here and there. Well worth getting the full run of issues 1-4 with #5 looking to come out in 2007. Written by Sean McGrath, drawn and inked by Juan Romera, Lettered by Ed Brisson, Cover at by Scott McGrath, Edited by Scott McGrath. (I give this 5 stars.)
_______________________________________
http://makingcomicsstudios.com or http://www.myspace.com/fratermine or stseanoftheknife@austin.rr.com

Street Pizza, An Anti-Nuke Fable

via Small Press Newsroom by -AF on May 18, 2007

Street Pizza, An Anti-Nuke Fable, Andy P., Under Core Comix. Magazine size, color on covers, black and white interiors. 2o pages. $5.00. Uh, well, what can I say but "lots of potential here". Well, actually I'm not sure. The story of a pizza store owner and his delivery guy after a nuclear war. This is a very bleak comic to be sure. The people in charge of the country are clueless, the pizza guy and his sidekick are clueless.....lots of cussing and non PC comments here and there....I could only make it through about the first 1/4 of the book and that was painful. If this is a first effort with a young creator as it appears to be then give publishing a break and work on your story writing and take some art lessons. There, that's constructive criticism, right? (But I just checked his MySpace link and he is 25 years old. Well, it's never too late to take art lessons and writing classes.....) (Zero stars)
______________________________________
http://www.myspace.com/streetpizzacomix

HaVen #2, Making Comics Studios

via Small Press Newsroom by -AF on May 17, 2007

HaVen #2, Making Comics Studios. Full size comic, color covers, 22 color interior pages. Created and Written by Christopher Moshier, Pencils by William C. Jamison, Inks by Yul Espinosa, Colors by Cathy Ann Gouin, Letters by Jay La Valley, Edits by Sean McGrath & Percival Constantine.

From their web site: In this second issue Thomas Scarrett must face his jailers creating an uneasy alliance. But having little choice the HaVeN council grants Scarrett his demands, freeing several political prisoners to his custody in hopes to thwart the impending threat.

This is what the site says about the first issue: (Reviewed here, look in the archives.) In this first issue a military team from the space station HaVeN must convince Thomas Scarret to return with them to save the station and rescue political figures taken hostage at a peace conference by his own brother, Scott Scarret.

So you can see they have a great story unfolding here, with art that has greatly improved in issue #2. Plus the coloring is much better. Please try out this series, written by the soon to be famous Chris Moshier. (Who wrote the novel MORGANA X soon out from Fan-Atic Press!..among other things.) (4 stars)
________________________________________________
http://www.makingcomicsstudios.com
who have some other great comics like Frater Mine, look up for review....

Thursday, July 12, 2007

Art Humor and Hate #85


Art Humor and Hate #85
19 Pages, 8.5 x 11, side stapled
$ ?

I didn’t care for this, but to be fair, poetry tends to be lost on me. The poems start right on the cover; you be the judge.

Lima_bean_puree@email.com

Wednesday, July 4, 2007

Underworld Crawl #5

Underworld Crawl #5
40 Pages, Pocket Size
$1


This is a nicely produced little zine. This issue is all about contempt for work, bosses, and co-workers. It begins with observations on the absurdity of motivational campaigns and corporate job-love rhetoric, and I find it somewhat pathetic, despite the obvious ability of R. Lee to write. Just as I am thinking this is going to be one long ice pick in the eye, he grinds it into gear recounting stories of the workplace and the thing lurches forward. There is nothing particularly pleasant or enlightening for the remainder of the ride, but to the extent he sticks to storytelling and steers away from propagating, it ends up being a very readable series of glimpses into this slice of his life.


R. Lee
PO Box 1421
Oshkosh WI 54903

Tuesday, July 3, 2007

Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet #20

Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet #20
June 2007; the 20 of Robots tarot card issue
60 Pages, Half Legal $5

Fast becoming one of my favorite rags. Bite sized morsels of speculative fiction. Zine on the outside, literary journal inside. There are parts I don’t love and skip over, but the parts I love make the whole thing worthwhile. Sometimes creepy, sometimes dreamy. Favorite bits by Karen Joy Fowler and Steve Bratman. Well worth the price. Submissions send SASE for guidelines.

Small Beer Press
176 Prospect Ave
Northhampthon MA 01060
info@lcrw.net - lcrw.net



a second opinion:

via HorrorScope by Miranda Siemienowicz on 9/8/07


Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet is a well established small press magazine edited by Kelly Link and Gavin Grant, both of whom have also joined Ellen Datlow to produce the Year's Best Fantasy and Horror anthology series. Lady Churchill's publishes a brand of lyrical, sweetly strange fiction that ranges from solid to very special.

The most remarkable stories in Issue 20 are Anil Menon's "Invisible Hand", a bantering, hilarious and poetic piece about an argument between three Hindu gods, and Edward McEneely's "Consider the Snorklepine", about a fantastical little beast whose sense of human virtue has influenced its human friends through the centuries. McEneely's style is subtle, sweet and perfectly understated.

Other inclusions are well put together even if they lack the delightful touch of "Invisible Hand" and "Snorklepine". "Under the Skin", by Steven Bratman, describes a small town plastic surgeon and his experience of his seriously ill daughter's encounter with the local eccentric. The piece is fit to burst with the weight of so many significant and complex characters but the juggling act is, in the end, smoothly handled.

Karen Joy Fowler's "The Last Worders" warrants particular attention. This is a long story that requires a good deal of stamina from the reader, but the writing is marvellous with some heartbreaking turns of phrase. Two sisters travel overseas to confront someone from their past and encounter a strange, almost mystical cafe in the town of their destination. The great strength of this story lies in its treatment of the fabulous; throughout the process of discovery and investigation, the reader remains more curious than the characters are of the mysteries around them. This allows the strangeness of the setting to impact the reader directly, rather than forcing them to notice by having the characters act out their (artificial, affected) wonderment.

Some stories frankly fail to deliver. "Workshop", by Laura Evans, is a ponderous walk through false intrigue leading to disconnected scene of desolation and despair. It has all the frustration of listening to an anecdote told by a dear friend with a knack for circumlocution, though this approach does come into its own in the details of that final scene. It is harder to appreciate Amelia Beamer's "Krishnaware", a retelling of the familiar premise of a protagonist sacrificing real life for immersive virtual reality. There is no new layer or extension of this oft-tried framework, and the narrative is too heavy with unnecessary explanation for the reader to settle in and enjoy the characters.

"The Third Kind of Darkness", by M. Brock Moorer, opens with a dull poetical exposition along the theme of the title, but goes on to unfold an intriguing world of adult politics and manoeuvring seen through the eyes of a child. The backbone of the narrative is a mass of smoke and mirrors and there is not quite enough flesh to grasp or magical illusions to distract and entertain. The protagonist is a fascinating portrait of sex versus gender but, disappointingly, more time is spent on building the two peripheral child characters than on developing the character at the centre of it all.

In amongst the poetry and other various snippets, Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet is a great repository of fantastical writing. The style of the pieces is generally warmer and richer than other magazines, with greater focus on language craft and originality of imagination. A rewarding read, expansive in its creativity.

Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet
Editors: Gavin Grant and Kelly Link
Publisher: Small Beer Press
ISSN: 1544-7782
The magazine is available from the publisher's website for $US5.

The Pornographic Flabbergasted Emus

The Pornographic Flabbergasted Emus
A Rock & Roll Novel from the World of Zines
By Wred Fright

Originally published as a series of zines. Emus is a tribute to the multitude of bands that never make it big, while it also speaks unintentionally to the larger subject of life as a young adult. This could be a story about any group of college age kids; smart, witty, energetic, uninhibited, irreverent, rebellious, and ready to party.
99.99% of bands do not make it, but are a crucial part of the backdrop of our social world when we’re young. Fright captures both the subculture and the larger culture brilliantly. Just like real life, a year goes by and a lot happens while nothing really happens. Point of view shifts effortlessly from character to character, while the persona of Funnybear dominates.
“Funnybear would think that George would be happy that Funnybear got the house a new roommate but nooooo. And Funnybear would think that George would be happy that Funnybear tested out the video projectors for him before his video shoot but nooooo. Funnybear gets yelled at by George for both things. Funnybear doesn’t blame George though. It’s all Adam and Eve’s fault. If they had just left everything alone, everyone would be living in paradise right now. Instead, Funnybear has to deal with ingratitude and narkiness, not to mention pride, greed, envy, anger, lust, gluttony, and sloth, although Funnybear doesn’t really mind dealing with lust, gluttony, and sloth. How’d those make the list anyway? Funnybear would edit the seven deadly sines down to four or maybe replace the ones Funnybear likes with some better, um, worse ones like stupidity, selfishness, and cockblocking.”
There are instances where the prose absolutely sparkles, strung together by the longer narrative that in it’s slowest parts are still above average and more than adequate. Extremely readable. No one should shy away for fear of not getting their money’s worth.

The book is $16 postpaid in the USA from ULA Press/Out Your Backdoor, 4686 Meridian Rd., Williamston MI 48895 http://www.ulapress.com/ 517-347-1689 jeff@outyourbackdoor.com. It's also available for the same price direct from me autographed and shipped anywhere in the world (usually the cheapest way) until I run out of author copies: Wred Fright, P.O. Box 770984, Lakewood, OH 44107 USA http://www.wredfright.com/ wredfright@yahoo.com.

Monday, July 2, 2007

Welcome to Flavor Country #10

Welcome to Flavor Country #10

40 Pages, Digest Size
$1 or some stamps

This is a thick perzine with commentary, fiction, poetry, art, and some reprinted stuff about the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW.) Much of this issue revolves around work related issues. Kurt talks about his job as an environmentalist, and his personal journey into corporate America, while trying to hold onto his punk and anarchist roots and values. Kurt’s strong suit is his first person narration. His writing about his thoughts and feelings is intelligent, concise, sensitive, and honest. I both agreed and disagreed with parts, but I felt throughout that this was someone I could sit down and have a worthwhile conversation with. In comparison the fiction isn’t bad but not near as seamless. While the writing shows promise, here he is reaching to find expression, whereas his first person writing is already spot on.


Kurt Morris
8820 Stone Ave. N. #301
Seattle, WA 98103
welcometoflavorcountry*gmail.com

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