07.08.07
Punk Rock Confidential
#10-
(Summer 2007)- I was bummed when Kevin Chanel decided to
hang up his spikes and stop doing his baseball/punk rock
zine, CHIN MUSIC (for the time being, at least) but was happy
when he told me he was gonna be in charge of a new sorta
thang . PUNK ROCK CONFIDENTIAL is the STAR (or WEEKLY WORLD
NEWS ) of punk rock mags. It’s all about gossip and
photos (mostly about your fave punk rock heroes with their
wives, kids, dogs, cars, etc.). This latest issue has a photo
album of punk rocks dads (including Greg Hetson with his
daughter, Violet, sticking her tongue out at the camera..ha
ha ha ) plus a Darryl Jennifer (Bad Brains) photo album as
well as Clorox Girls do tai chi, Don Bolles of The Germs
gets arrested and a photo of Metal Mike Saunders (Angry Samoans)
looking every bit his age. This part if from my favorite
part of the mag, the PUNKS NOT DEAD section where it shows
old punks, what they look like now, how long they have been
doing it and their days jobs (Jeff Pezzati from Naked Raygun
says “online gambling hobbyist”) . P.R.C. is
all that and much more. You must. Subscribe. NOW! www.punkrockcon.com
07.08.07
Rock Mania
#1-
This came out late last year but I just heard about
it recently thanks to Ric Menck’s column
in the latest UGLY THINGS (see review below). Menck has hit the
skins for The Tyde, Pernice Bros, Matthew Sweet and, of course,
his main vehicle, Velvet Crush so you know the guy has great
taste. Tho’ this is the first issue I see some big things
in the future for this mag that is made by serious lovers of
power pop (probably the least respected music genre ever). Inside
are pieces on Nikki & the Corvettes, Justin Love, Milk N’ Cookies,
and plenty more. There’s plenty of reviews (of old school
power pop records), photos, collages and even a pinup and it’s
all printed on nice, glossy paper with a bright color cover and
color interspersed throughout. They even have a review of my
beloved INTERNATIONAL DISCOGRAPHY OF THE NEW WAVE, a book I bought
back in 1982 ( or maybe ’83 ?) and have cherished ever
since. Not sure what the future holds for this mag but toss lots
of money at them and make em’ continue! www.totalrockmania.com
07.08.07
Ugly Things
#25-
Mike Stax, oh Mike Stax how do you do it? Issue #25 of
UGLY THINGS clocks ion a 225 pages
! This is Stax’s biggest monster yet and he shows
no signs of slowing down (and he and his wife just had
a kid…congrats !). If you’re unaware of U.T.
(“Wild sounds from past dimensions” as it says
at the top of the mag) it’s all things garage rock/freakbeat
and the like. This is a guy who had like a 4 part piece
on obscure 60’s band The Misunderstood ! In this
issue is interviews/pieces on The Music Machine (a U.T.
favorite…the piece is 30 pages long! ) , The Light,
Freedom’s Children, The Namelosers, The Attack, Rubber
City Rebels plus more and all the usual columns, reviews,
photos and the like. It comes out about once a year which
is good cos’ it takes me a full year to get through
one of these monsters. One of my favorite parts of the
mag is the recent additions of columnist Ric Menck (Velvet
Crush ) who write about old power pop records and the like
in his CALL ME LIGHTNING! column . Also, if you’re
a label and you’re thinking about sending Stax a
record or cd to review don’t do it unless it’s
a reissue cos’ he won’t review it. www.ugly-things.com
