Fanzines reviews from 1999

So here's some reviews i wrote in 1999 of fanzines from 1999. All contact details have been removed because I assume everyone involved has moved house in the last 20 years. I did attempt to make contact with some of the writers but with no luck.

Oh youthful exuberance.

_______

Fracture

This is a general review of all issues of Fracture. Fracture is a free zine(or at least an incredibly cheap zine) which review almost every punk record released and features some great interviews and columns.

Subscriptions are £5 for 10 issues (postage for an A4 zine). Get it before it gets you. 

Vision-On #15

Vision-On is a another great free zine (BASTARDS!!). This issue features the Dickies, Stampin’ Ground, The Vandals and other such quality bands. It also features some good columns from the likes of Tony Suspect and the ever insane David Stuart (check out his contribution to FSU!)!

Lip Sink #1

Luna Grrrl's first 'zine is rather good. It is a riot grrl zine, featuring poems and articles about school, religion and the media along with the usual reviews and shit. But not as good as...

Lip Sink #2

Features an interview with a load of public school kids, more stuff about how shit the mainstream is and why you should avoid Nestle products like the plague, plus a review of FSU #2! Purchase! 

Happy House #9

This is briliantly set out, and features some great columns (the best I've seen since Mad Monks), but when they sent it THEY DIDN'T SEND A NOTE! Just 'cheers' would have done! It's free, though, so I might let 'em off and include the address later. Then again...

I got some old zines like Beer-Mat, TCDS, Why? and Punk And Disorderly, but the addresses are likely to be wrong by now. All are good, so if anyone knows more, TELL ME!

In Media Res #9 

This is a Croatian 'zine, mainly handwritten, featuring a huge section on the Spanish scene. It's not very good. So there.

Duhhh  #5/Shag Stamp #4

Shag Stamp is a fukkin ace zine, different to most zines because it's a punk zine written by a woman. And written well. Duhhh is an unothadox zine, featuring loads of contributors. This one has an interview(conversation) with Russ Remains so buy it goddamit!

Duhhh #8

More strange, subtlely distubing scribblings. Just read a Button article to see what I mean! This one's dubbed 'The Knocking Shop'. Guess why...

Heartattack #16  free

A cheap (hence advert filled) zine which is a big, staeming pile of donkey cack. The creators are obsessed with turning their lives into a soap for us. Eastenders for hardcore kids if you will. Crap.

Lost Dreams #4  £1ppd

This is good stuff. Some great art, amazing poems and stories, giant evil Cheshire cats and little bits cut out from Neil Gaiman’s ‘Sandman’ series. A quality item, made better by the fact that I’ve got some stuff in there!

Synthesis #4  £1ppd

A political zine with stuff about revolution, human rights, some anti-Nestle stuff and, of course, reviews. Also some stuff about feminism, if you like that sort of thing. All in all a great read!

Geek Essay #3  20p w/ SAE

Not a bad little zine. Interviews with Stinking Polecats, Resolve Records and Beauty School Dropout. Very much like FSU infact. But not as good, obviously!

Puke #4  50p w/SAE

Quite literally FSU’s kindred spirit! Collage background mixed with bizarre stories from newspaper and other such crazy shit, combined with stuff about UFO’s and some serious stuff. Features soap reviews (as a means of hair styling!). BUY NOW!!!!!! 

Six Pack

FSU’s own Jinny put’s together a zine of her own. Some interesting stuff in there. This review will get better if she writes back anytime soon.

Planet Blue #3

There’s nothing actually wrong with Planet Blue. The content is of a high standard (Descendents, Sick Of It All, Diesel Boy), but the layouts are, well, boring. When your reviewing this many zines that’s not good. Some of it is excellent, if you’ve got the time to be arsed to read it. Check it out, as I’m just being a harsh lazy bastard. 

Suspect Device #32

Now, I’d been ordered to get this by David Stuart, as he was hurt by the fact I’d never seen a copy! Other zines go on about how good it is, and I see their point. ‘Tis quality stuff, with, as always, David Stuart’s own stuff stealing the show (I’ll take payment in cash, DS!). £1 + SAE

A Punk Kid Walks Into A Bar #10

I e-mailed Barclay, the man behind APKWIAB:

>Hi Barclay!

I'm Lukas, from FSU zine in England. I just found a copy of your zine (#10) under a big pile of crap (ie. a bunch of other zines) and was well impressed ('well impressed being a result of regional dialect rather than a

Grammatical error BTW)! I find your obsession with grammar quite odd, considering the fact that you're a)a punk and b)American. Bearing in mind that your 'English' is a shitty bastardisation of our fine language (it being a mixture of several hundred languages, dialects and grunts) oh shit I've forgotten my point. Still, a great zine, well written and such shit. Knowing my luck this address will be long defunct and I've wasted several minutes of my life.

Damn you fate!

Lukas

Lukas -

Yes, I am doing my best to prove that punk rock and talking good are not

mutually exclusive, and I'm glad you appreciate my efforts. For the record,

though: We may not sound too pretty, but we could sure beat your asses in a

war. Oh wait, we already did!

Shop Smart/Shop S-Mart

APKWIABarclay

This says about all you need to know. If you have no sense of humour, don’t fukkin bother! If you do, get dis innit! “You’ll be glad you did” as the advert for something crap at the cinema says! $1ppd (in the US)