Box Set

Wide Margins: An Exhibition of 'Zines and Self-Published Works from the Sublime to the Silly is currently on view at the WNY Book Arts Center. It runs from July 16-September 3, 2010 & includes hundreds of home-made, self-published works of literary and graphical self-expression. Zines were the blogs before the internet. They were made with typewriters, glue, scissors, tape, copy machines, old computers, press type, pencils, paper, markers, photos, stats, stickers and often staples.

Both my 1990-era pubs -- the Sign O' The Times (SOTT) and Slack Magazine, done by Wizard Graphics-- are highlighted in a glass display case. Thanks to WNYBA's Amy & Jessica for curating this super show. This is really a fine collection of hanging, stacked and piles & piles of literally a shit load of publications. Make sure you get down before Sept. 3 to check this show out- it is very cool!

I missed the opening reception as I was out of town, but I biked down the Saturday afternoon to check it out. I was pretty psyched to see the show. I took these snapshots -- heavy on the Wizard Graphics case -- for your viewing pleasure.

HELPFUL LINKS-
Facebook page- click. BuffaloSnooze preview- click. WNY Book Arts page- click. Slack Magazine online website.



The full Slack & SOTT case. Click on this image collage for big view....very nice. This display includes tee, Slacker in Space original comic art in stat & negative form, a poster, business card, watch, rubber stamp and original issues of SOTT and Slack Magazine.


Side view of full SOTT- Slack case- protected under glass!



Edits to Issue #1 of SOTT includes hand notes on laserprint proof.



Poster for Slack fundraiser at 3rd Room & one-of-a-kind original SLACK watch.


Various SLACK Magazines with Slack in Space comic by Don Keller.



SOTTs from 1991.



Zine case 01- colorful, fancy zines.


Zine case 2- very professional looking zine-age.


Hanging row of the great Duplex Planet zines.



More colorful Duplex Planets.



Hanging zines and tools (electric typewriter & 'pre-zine' print press).



Beer Frame- a classic from back in the day.


Artbabe!!



Stacks-o-Zines.



Event posters in WNYBAC window on the corner of Mohawk & Washington, Downtown Buffalo, NY.



Saturday morning, post opening party clean up.


BONUS BEATS- WNYBAC is a great addition to the Queen City -- they have been around for one year now. Please support this non-for-profit if you are a fan of the printed arts-- especially the antique hand-made, letter-pressed versions of book and all things printed. Become a member!

Flying High in The Brooklyn Sky

I work in the electronics department of a fine local department store. My days are filled with "May I help you sir?" and the ever-popular "Thank you and have a nice day." I love my job. The hours fit my rock-n-roll lifestyle, the money is decent and I can share my vast knowledge of music with the general public, whether they deserve it or not.
excerpt from "MUZAK: Delightful Sounds or a New Voice of a Generation?" Strick's Corner

Slack issue #14- The Cartoon Issue" Dec. 1994
(published 11.23.94)

Today I'm standing on my corner listening to the Mission of Burma instrumental track "All World Cowboy Romance." It's a warm Fall day, the leaves are turning colors, the sun is shining and the breeze is light. I have on my I-probe music player and I am waiting for my daughter's bus. The drums rush over and under like water and I can really concentrate on the ebbs and flow of the the song since I am just standing there... Man, it doesn't get any better that this for a Wednesday afternoon. How often do you just get to stand there? The bus can be a little late and I won't mind today.

When the bus arrives and the kids get home the 1st thing they want to do is watch TV.... man, did I watch a lot of TV when I was a kid....

Slack numero 14, the issue devoted to comics and cartoons is a sensational mag with a crappy cover. Though one of the bullet points on the cover promotes:

• Typos (sorry...)

That text right over the Duck Dogers cover photo is painfully wrong. Though maybe I did that on purpose-- bad design for good reasons was creeping into my mind at the time. The thing is, the rest of the issues has some great, tight layout and the 'cartoons' theme was much appreciated by the staff. Articles include Cartoon Characters Posing As Real People (Michael Jackson, Ollie North, Rush Limbaugh, the Royal Family and Jesse Helms- hello, again 1994), Raisin Blowme's Welcome To My My Cartoon Life, Homer Simpson, My Hero by Dave Koch and this list of Cartoon and Comics Top Slackers:

• Bugs Bunny
• Road Runner
• Fred Flinstone and Barney Rubble
• George Jetson
• Pink Panther
• Snoopy
• Dagwood
• Beetle Baily
• Shaggy
• Jughead
• Daffy Duck
• Zonker
• Andy Capp
• Calvin (of "& Hobbs")
• Wimpy
• Ren and Stimpy
• Beavis and Butthead
• Homer J. Simpson

True slackers, all of them... it makes you start to realize all the Warner Brothers stars were some serious slackers! Some advertisements of note in this issues #14 include ads for Yeast West Bakery, a coming soon Concrete Cafe (it opened in Dec. 94), and the only Slack ad I have ever censored: the Das Boot condom man ad. I covered the lube tip of condom man's condom head and Bob at Das Boot was mad at me. Andre and I discussed it ... and well, we were all worried that it would get us in some sort of trouble or the scant few other advertisers wouldn't like it.. or the shops and bars would pull them from the shleves (and from the top of cigarette machines)... Oh, I don't know!?!?! What the hell? it all seems so stupid now, but this act enabled Das Boot to run that OJ ad without us even saying 'boo' later on down the road....

Download PDF here:
Slack Magazine n. 14, the Cartoon Issue (6.2 mg)

Don't forget these issues already up (6 more to go)!:
Slack Magazine n. 18, The Two-Year Anniversary! issue
Slack Magazine n. 13, The Food & Beverage Issue
Slack Magazine n. 12, The One-Year Anniversary Issue
Slack Magazine n. 11, The True Crime Issue
Slack Magazine n. 10, Summer Fun Issue
Slack Magazine n. 9, The Dead Rock Stars Issue
Slack Magazine n. 8, The Beer Issue
Slack Magazine n. 7, Slack Goes to The Movies Issue
Slack Magazine n. 6, The Buffalo Issue
Slack Magazine n.5, The Slack TV Issue
Slack Magazine n. 4, SEX in the '90s Issue
Slack Magazine n. 3, The Politico Issue
Slack Magazine n. 2, The Travel Issue
Slack Magazine n. 1, The Debut Issue

Stoned and Dethroned

Not lively; sluggish.
Not busy or active.
Not taut or firm; loose.
A period of little activity; lull.
Trousers or casual wear.

He who possess slack, shall rule the world.

Slack issue #12- The (1 year) Anniversary Issue
Sept. 1994 (published 09.01.94)

I just saw the Steam Donkeys for probably the 300th time, man those guys are good. As I sat amongst the neighborhood folk in the grassy knoll of Bidwell Parkway enjoying the band I felt a sense of calm. Though the kids were running rampant, dancing, spinning and laughing and the music was really loud in the front- I was at peace. What a better way to spend a Summer August night- truly a slack experience. This was sure different than seeing them at the Club Utica circa 1994, that is for sure.

Slack no. 12 was the theme-less Anniversary Issue. One Year Strong as the cover proclaimed! This issue attempts to once again explain the theory of slack by outlining the history of slack and touching on the church of the sub-genius- purveyors of 'slack.' A no-theme issue found writer Eric Morse explaining "Fine Things I Appreciate in Life (no theme)" which included:

• Comedy Central
• The Mary Tyler Moore Show
• James Ellroy
• Elmwood Strip Post-Bar Food
• CFNY

There are some 1994 nuggets for ya, huh?

This issue featured the second column by newcomer Raisin BlowMe, reviews of a Bootzilla record and Prince's Come ('his best release in years...' or so it says), an extended Dre's After Dark (which gives you a great snapshot of the Buffalo club and music scene circa Sept. 94), record review by 'The Scotster', a great Strick article called So Called Democracy in America & Why the Local Media Sucks Up, a tasteless DasBoot ad, and a piece about a band I don't remember at all, but I do remember it was an article by someone 'not in the Slack circle' so I published it to make the mag seem not so 'cliquey'... and it was written by a girl. Slack girl writers were scares in those days.

To really give you a look at 1994 music in Buffalo, here is Lance's (Tuesday, 3rd Room) Top Five DJ List. Ah Tuesday night in a bar, not a care in the world.

1. Blast of the Universe- Bootsy Collins
2. Classic- 1/2 Pint
3. Whip Smart - Liz Phair
4. File Under Easy Listening- Sugar
5. Natural Ingredients- Luscious Jackson

Scanning, adjusting, layouting and PDF'ing 3 issues of Slack in 7 days (man...!) is not Slack, though I guess I always worked too hard to be a true slacker.
Ask Oprah!

Dre, where have you been. Please cease the media silence, eh?

Download PDF here: Slack Magazine n. 12, the Anniversary Issue (3.3 mg)

Don't forget these issues already up (8 more to go)!:
Slack Magazine n. 18, The Two-Year Anniversary! issue
Slack Magazine n. 11, The True Crime Issue
Slack Magazine n. 10, Summer Fun Issue
Slack Magazine n. 9, The Dead Rock Stars Issue
Slack Magazine n. 8, The Beer Issue
Slack Magazine n. 7, Slack Goes to The Movies Issue
Slack Magazine n. 6, The Buffalo Issue
Slack Magazine n.5, The Slack TV Issue
Slack Magazine n. 4, SEX in the '90s Issue
Slack Magazine n. 3, The Politico Issue
Slack Magazine n. 2, The Travel Issue
Slack Magazine n. 1, The Debut Issue

Indian Summer

Music. Food. Patio is OPEN. All are welcome by the Friends of SLACK! Summer Rules!
Ad for the Summer Solstice Slack Cocktail Party, Tuesday, June 21st, 1994 at the Third Room.

Slack issue #10- Summer Fun Issue
June 1994 (published 06.04.94)

I am going to see Riders On The Storm tomorrow night- they are senior citizens Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger pretending they are still The Doors. My philosophy is that 1/2 the Doors is better that none, eh? I know both Ray and Robby still have chops, who needs John Densmore- he's bitter anyways, and well, Jim is dead (or so they say). Nothing like 1/2 a band from the 1960s on a warm summer night in Lockport to say "summer!" (update: looks like 'Riders on the Storm' rain for tonight!)

I think the fact that the last Slack posting was a little lame (the issue I mean, not the post) that I felt obliged to make up with a really great issue of Slack. Oh, and I have with this PDF of Slack no. 10 the Summer Fun issue.

This is a super issue. Following that lame Goes to the Movies issue, Slack really picked up speed with the next 2 which were the infamous Beer issue and the fan favorite Dead Rock Star issue (already posted). Issue number 10 has all the good stuff the kids learned to love about Slack: biting commentary, top ten lists, Dre's After Dark (the Buffalo nightlife column), Bitter Boy in fine form and the serial comic Slacker in Space (already a few issues old).

The cover was eye catching with the Summer Mellon Girl and had an endorsement from Lori Githens of the Buffalo News: "Slack, this area's funniest, most creative 'zine..." they used to love us (more on that later). Summer in Buffalo is always great and this was 1994-- the year the Beastie Boys released their fourth CD, Ill Communication (1,2, oh my god!) which went on to be the soundtrack for that summer and a classic for sure.

The main article titled Top Slack Summer Activities included a lot of beer drinking and makes fun of the Allentown Artfest. 14 years later and it still the same crap-fest, unbelievable...

The Top Slack Summer Activities (1994):

1. Road Trips & Cruising (I don't think I meant that cruising......)
2. Tanning & Sweating
3. BBQs
4. Weddings a.k.a. open bar
5. Boating & Floating
6. Camping
7. Watching Re-Runs on TV
8. Artfest (see above)
9. Outdoor Rock Shows (whooooooooooo... whooooooo!!!)
10. Drinking Beers Outdoors

Combine any of the above for the ultimate SLACK summer experience.. or so it says....

Now if only I could take back the really bad kerned apostrophe 's' on the cover, I would feel complete about this issue.

Download PDF here: Slack Magazine n. 10, Summer Fun Issue (4.4 mg)

Don't forget these issues already up:
Slack Magazine n. 18, The Two-Year Anniversary! issue
Slack Magazine n. 11, The True Crime Issue
Slack Magazine n. 9, The Dead Rock Stars Issue
Slack Magazine n. 8, The Beer Issue
Slack Magazine n. 7, Slack Goes to The Movies Issue
Slack Magazine n. 6, The Buffalo Issue
Slack Magazine n.5, The Slack TV Issue
Slack Magazine n. 4, SEX in the '90s Issue
Slack Magazine n. 3, The Politico Issue
Slack Magazine n. 2, The Travel Issue
Slack Magazine n. 1, The Debut Issue

BONUS BEATS: a review of Slack issue 4 in Night-Life Magazine's written by friend Kevin Hosey.
Click below for larger view.. read it, he didn't like the Horrorscopes. March 28, 1994!

Peaches & Creme

Pecha Kucha Review- Typecon Day 0

The TypeCon2008 edition of Pecha Kucha kicked of the conference with a bang! Though the actual Typecon begins today, last nights PK pre-opening event was great. J. and I presented (in slot number 4) following book cover designer Shasti O'Leary Soudant (who is a Photoshop master) and preceding Mark Brickey of Hero Design Studio-- who wrote his speech while us 1st four presenters were on!

The evening started with type guy Stephen Coles. Next was my friend, local artist Julian Montague, who reviewed a lot of his work , talked shopping carts and spiders and discussed type used throughout.

J. and I discussed our background in the pre-computer days of design and presented some behind the scenes looks at 4 different logo projects. We discussed our reasoning for using certain typefaces and went back and forth about our design process. J. and I have very different ways of designing- she is a meticulous planner and she equates my style as "driving with your eyes shut"- which isn't entirely true, but close.

Other presenters included Rick Griffith from Colorado who was crazy/fun and the AmpersandAmpersand kids from Hamilton, Mark Byk and Kristine Tortora who played a weird, old song (my friend Paul K would have loved this) and let their slideshow speak for itself. I also enjoyed local designer Greg Meadows who talked about his love of type and how it all began. I missed the last two presenters, Toronto's Brian Maloney, and Emily Luce, as I had to run to DJ the Book Arts after event party.

it is great to meet a lot of out-of-town designers that came to our fair city for this great event. What a way to get the creative juices flowing-- talking about design! The other thing that j. mentioned this AM was there is a lot of hands-on artists involved, screen printers especially. It is great to see a lot non-computer design.

I am really looking forward to seeing Sagmeister tonight at the Manuscript Museum in the heart of Allentown. FREE tickets still available. You all better be there!

Heaven 90210

"Straighten me out Bert, I musta got some bad liquor."
Dave Koch's Top Ten Quotes From It's a Wonderful Life (#4)

Slack issue #5- The SLACK TV Issue
Holidays 93/94 (published 12.12.93)

I turn on the television and my kids stop and stare-- they literally become zombies! It is amazing the effect it has on them. They don't watch a lot of TV at all. I read in the newspaper last week the national averages of 2-3 years old kids that have TVs in their rooms-- and it makes me nuts-- why should a 3 year old child have a TV in their room!! My kids don't have a TV in their room. They maybe watch 2-3 hours of TV a week! A week!... some kids younger that 3 watch that much a day- it is crazy!

Now when I was a kid I did watch a lot of TV. I watched it in the morning before school, after school and in the evening. Some Saturdays I literally watched TV from 6:00 AM (the Canadian station had the original Spiderman cartoon on, the one with the catchy theme song) until noon. I somehow managed to turn out all right... if you disregard my short attention span, irritability issues, wild mood swings and an inability to concentrate.

This fifth issue of Slack- the SLACK TV ISSUE is when the magazine really hit it's stride and got going. Sixteen pages chock full of musings on TV including the marketing of It's a Wonderful Life, TV as a drug, the heroes of Beverly Hills 90210, and an article about how TV isn't to blame for all the violence in the world (in 1993).

This issue features a great interview with Mr. Lance Diamond, one of our first angry letters from a reader (a Miss Holly Sinnott), a thorough list of Batman TV villains, Top Ten Xmas Gifts From the Dollar Store (how slack can you get), 14 DJ lists, and a compiled list of the best Xmas rock songs.

Some Notes about this issue:

> Charlie Quill, I borrowed your Reverend Horton Heat CD cover to scan to include with your review in this issue- I still have it, if you want it back. Your CD may be lonely without the liner notes.

> A great Lance Diamond quote:

"A busload of Nardin Academy girls passed me the other day and they hollered, 'Lance Diamond... we saw you on MTV... you were awesome." You know... I felt good about that."

> The photo (to the right) of me with my face pressed against the inside of a TV screen was achieved by scanning my face on the flatbed scanner- with my eyes open... I am still seeing spots 15 years later...

> The space issue (or lack of) is really apparent in this issue- I think the Horrorscope is probably 3 pt. type. Again, get me the magnifying glass.

> The Batman Villains list was apparently incomplete- the next issue features a letter from a reader named Southpaw Joe (the 'King of Ice and Snow'), that filled in the blanks with some missing villains including: Lady Penelope Peasoup, Clock King, Lola Losange, Nora Clavicle and lawyer Lucky Pierre, who was played by former JFK press secretary Pierre Salinger. The fans got a little creepy once in a while...

Download it here: Slack Magazine n. 5, The SLACK TV Issue Issue (6.1 mg)

Don't forget these issues already up:
Slack Magazine n. 18, The Two-Year Anniversary! issue
Slack Magazine n. 11, The True Crime Issue
Slack Magazine n. 9, The Dead Rock Stars Issue
Slack Magazine n. 8, The Beer Issue
Slack Magazine n. 6, The Buffalo Issue
Slack Magazine n. 4, SEX in the '90s Issue
Slack Magazine n. 3, The Politico Issue
Slack Magazine n. 2, The Travel Issue
Slack Magazine n. 1, The Debut Issue

BONUS BEATS: Lance & Goo Goo Dolls on MTV Bitch- -click here-- Rockin in 93!

Sexy MF

Yo, what's up? Here you have SLACK issue #4 and it is so over filled with copy that it'll take U the whole month 2 read it! - from start of the Editor's Desktop

Slack issue #4- SEX in the '90s Issue
November 1993 (published 11.10.93)

Often when my neighbor Nate comes over and we hang out in the OW lounge, we get stuck on a Prince thing. We will go back and forth playing Prince LPs, 45s and CDs for an hour or more. It may not be for everyone, but if you like funky grooves- the P-man has a lot of good songs.... I mean a lot of really good songs. Sure, there are a few stinkers-- the Dolphin Song (and I am gonna stop there). But pound for pound, the good P songs are a-good and a-plenty.

Well this Slack issue came out following the release of the 3-CD Prince collection The Hits/B-sides. So this means, these 3 CDs were all I listened to while I designed this issue (I have 2 Prince songs in my DJ list). For a lot of people, songs remind them of special and memorable moments. Well, a lot of the Prince B-sides remind me of designing this particular issue of Slack. Wierd, huh?... especially She's Always in My Hair and 17 Days.

Slack Magazine, Issue no. 4 is really so full of text that most of the typefaces are pretty small and some articles are extremely ledded- gettin' the Led out! The Special Feature by Brad as Dear Mr. Heartthrob is set in Optima, so dense, it looks like a set of squares on the page. Man, oh man. The mag is 16 pages, could never afford to add 4 more to 20, so I just crammed it all in-- great writing, as many ads as possible, small graphics-- and I filled a lot of the leftover fractions-of-a-column-inch with in-house ads for SLACK advertising and the phone number.

This is the 1993 Sex Issue and the article on Digi-Porn has definitions to help you out including 'modem: a device that hooks a computer up to a phone line' and 'America-On-Line: a popular above ground bulletin board information service' what tha?! Highlights include a drunken rebound story, a voyeurism tip guide, a sex in pop music piece ridiculing Buff News' Tony Violanti's review of a Toronto Madonna concert (1993), and well, the Prince CD review is a little sexy too.

This was a very popular issue with the now deceased, Anna Nicole in her glory days on the cover. She was a 1993 sex symbol for sure, especially with the little tattoo on left breast of a small SLACK logo and a little heart. Sweet. 10 DJ lists, an Andre Bad Brains interview, a bizarre Strick jury duty/Jim Morrison tale- what more could you ask for. Delirious.

Download it here: Slack Magazine n. 4, SEX in the '90s Issue (3.7 mg)

Don't forget these issues already up:
Slack Magazine n. 18, The Two-Year Anniversary! issue
Slack Magazine n. 11, The True Crime Issue
Slack Magazine n. 9, The Dead Rock Stars Issue
Slack Magazine n. 8, The Beer Issue
Slack Magazine n. 6, The Buffalo Issue
Slack Magazine n. 3, The Politico Issue
Slack Magazine n. 2, The Travel Issue
Slack Magazine n. 1, The Debut Issue

Mirror People

The early 1990's were a heady time for us independent publishers in the Queen City. There was a lot of hanging out at dance clubs (hey, someone had to do it!). A club that ruled Buffalo in the '90s was the ICON at 391 Ellicott Street.

As I have been posting the Slack Magazines archives, I have been noticing all the great bands listed in the ICON ads that have played the club days gone by. The Drost brothers brought some great acts to Buffalo as well as having some of the best club music. Techno was king and the third floor on Thursday nights-- with reggae DJs Chief and MKO- are now legendary.

A few great club shows (that I remember) include:

• Peter Murphy
• David Byrne
• Gil Scott Heron (2x)
• 808 State
• Dread Zeppelin
• Urge Overkill
• Gwar
• Adrian Belew
• Buzzcocks
• Wu Tang Clan- which I think was the gunshots-show, the final show that finally forced them to shut the club for good.

While searching for some old files, J. ran across a box filled with some vintage goodies including an Artvoice from Aug-Sept 1991. Since there was a good 1/2 dozen of them stashed, I knew I must have had an ad or something that I designed in it. I did find a Wizard Graphic's designed ICON ad in it, but then I found this photo in the Photo Section (above). This was from Canadian ska masters King Apparatus appearance at the club, and it must have been an encore (notice the lighters lit- a pre-cellphone show of appreciation).

Oh, the good ol days... scary, huh?

If any one remembers any other great ICON shows, comment below. I'd love to hear them.

Knockin on Mine

I Have Been to the Mountain & I Have Walked With Kings- My Revelations at Graceland
Slack no. 2 - The Travel Issue
Sept. 1993 (published 9-8-93)

As I got the pop-up up in the yard, I was musing on camping trips of the past and how much I really like hitting the road. I am hoping this summer can include a camping trip, roadtrip, trip to Earl's Diner... and more. I am going to sell my 1980-era Viking Popup Trailer and it could be yours. You my friend can 'live the dream!' We are a cabin family these days.. we went from tent camping to small trailer to cabin.

So I had to pull another oldie out with issue #2- the Travel Issue. Cooler that a new shirt! This 2nd issue of 'all the news that's fit to be tied" followed a return from a roadtrip to Graceland and is good issue at sticking to a theme. Chock full of travel text including Strick's Rastaman Dictionary, the Elvis-Graceland report, top roadtrip songs (including lists from musician's Matt Smith, Dave Meinzer, Charlie Quill, Terry Sullivan, ICON manager David Drost and BNY dj Rich Wall) and a Dave Koch tale of hitting America's highways with the family in tow.

Again this issue manages to be stuffed to the gills with a lot of music copy including Dre's interview with My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult and surf record reviews from Mr. Quill.

Highlights of this issue:
> Slack of the Month is the Buffalo News for a typo on the first word, on the first page of the the first issue with the new masthead and layout.
> Smashing Pumpkins being referred to as the 'new kids of rock.'
> A really weird 3rd Room ad.

Download it here: Slack no. 2, The Travel Issue (3.5 Mg)

Don't forget these issues already up:
Slack Magazine n. 18, The Two-Year Anniversary! issue
Slack Magazine n. 11, The True Crime Issue
Slack Magazine n. 9, The Dead Rock Stars Issue
Slack Magazine n. 8, The Beer Issue
Slack Magazine n. 6, The Buffalo Issue
Slack Magazine n. 3, The Politico Issue
Slack Magazine n. 1, The Debut Issue

Serve The Servants

We have reached the end of an era as we bid adios to hizzoner
Slack no. 3, The Politico Issue
ROCKtober, 1993 (published 10-11-93)

When I awoke on a chilly Memorial Day Monday I went downstairs to make some coffee and read today's delivered holiday issue of my local paper. I was surprised to see the front page obit for hizzoner, James D. Griffin. Buffalo mayor for 4 terms, Jimmy had a reputation that grew (for bad and worse) as his years in office went on and on and on... He will always be remembered for tearing down Billy Lawless's dancing neon penis sculpture that was aside to the Thruway-- every tom, richard and harry (and their wives and mothers) could see it on their commute into the city. He threatened reporters and actual punched a few, and he gave Buffalo one of it's most famous quotes about staying in and getting a sixpack during the big blizzard of '77.

Well as my tribute to a Buffalo political legend-- I give you Slack no. 3, The Politico issue. The issue hit the streets as Jimmy was finally leaving Buff's top spot in 1993 and features some nice close range reports on Jimmy's history in office. There is some riotous journalistic screed about politics nationally in 1993 & 1st Prez Bushie by Horrorscope writer Brad M as well.

The poltics end there.... The rest of the issue is full of musical features including ,nirvana, nirvana, nirvana (the kids were crazy for that band, ya know...) Strick's Top 13 "Never Listened" To Albums (a record by Strange Advance is to remain sealed until his death which at that time it should be 'played in accordance with his will.'), a whopping 10 DJ lists, an 808 State interview by Andre and a Bitter Boy piece bemoaning 1993 rock as "inexperienced fluff."

Looking back at issue number 3 I was happy to see:

• a more polished layout
• better quality photosand scans
• Horrorscope's 'official outlaw of the month'. Capricorn was Stinky Al D'Amato.
• an actual photo shot for Slack by a photog for the cover (which was cool)
• eight paid ads (one for The Jumpers Reunion Show and one which I scanned plastic wrap for the background)

Looking back at issue number 3 I was sorry to see:

• Optima
• an Urge Overkill song in my DJ list (what was I thinking with this band again!)
• begging for subscriptions in the editorial
• that's about it...

Download it here: Slack n. 3, The Politico Issue (4 Mg)

Don't forget these issues already up:
Slack Magazine n. 18, The Two-Year Anniversary! issue
Slack Magazine n. 11, The True Crime Issue
Slack Magazine n. 9, The Dead Rock Stars Issue
Slack Magazine n. 8, The Beer Issue
Slack Magazine n. 6, The Buffalo Issue
Slack Magazine n. 1, The Debut Issue

We'll Make Great Pets

Reared on Television, Slackers are Defining a Generation in the '90s
Slack no. 1, The Debut Issue
no month, 1993 (published 7-27-93)

"The Son of SOTT" was the subhead from the cover of every issue of Slack magazine-- this was a reference to the Sign O' The Time, Slack's predecessor from 1990. Oh yeah, the birth of the 'slacker,' as us kids were labeled, Generation X... ah good, old July 1993. Paul Westerberg's 1st solo record just came out! What a heady time fueled by rock and roll, grungy shenanigans, only 2 bars on Chippewa you dared set foot in (3rd Room and Atomic), Bass Ale and Phototshop filters.

This first issue took months, maybe even a year to actually come out. Much hype proceeded it's street debut at coffee shops, bars, nightclubs, record stores, college campus's, restaurants, and shops up and down Elmwood Ave. It was started-- as it says in the editorial-- 'because I found myself with a lot of time on my hands and a lot of powerful computer equipment beneath my fingertips..." I had a job at The Retouchables, a pre-press outfit by the airport, and I had access to some good macs, scanners, and an imagesetter.

The 1st Slack was lightweight, with only 12 pages and included poorly reproduced dark-ass graphics- I remember being so disappointed with the reproductions after meticulously scanning images, cutting, pasting, clicking and dragging this baby together. It has only 4 stories (counting the editorial), 4 paid ads and 8 DJ lists. Hey, it was a start. I was a little gun-shy after the Sign 'O The Times came crashing down after only 6 issues. But this still felt pretty good to get this thing patched together-- visiting DJs and hanging around as they wrote down their list for the month, scanning the hand-drawn comics by JH Mack Nair, and folding and stapling the some 500 or so issues that were delivered during an afternoon and a night of drinking and delivering around Buffalo.

Slack magazine was the beginning of a three year journey of writing, editing, curating (writers stories, DJ lists, hand-made ads, and ad payments). This was my first publication which turned out to be a success judged by it's fans, current collectors, and writers that went on to become writers- who knew?

The cover promised:

• Social Commentary
• Outdoor Adventure
• The return of ROCK
• DJ Lists
• Comics
• Comedy
• Grammatical Errors
• Horroscope Returns!

Other Notes on Slack no. 1:

The comic artists in Slack:
JH Mack Nair was a leftover from the SOTT era. Jim's comics only appeared in the first two issues of Slack before he literally disappeared and was replaced by Hump and the Slacker in Space serial written and drawn by Don Keller. Jim's Captain Barfly bears a slight resemblance to the artist himself as well as a certain Replacements lead singer...

The bravado in my editorial is pretty funny to read these days. Man, I was so full of piss and vinegar- we thought we had the greatest thing going with Slack! And for a time, we did....

"Read on and enjoy, you slackers. And if you own a business in Buffalo, please buy an ad space in what will be the greatest alternative publication to unearth from the streets of Buffalo. The tradition is once again 'in yo face' and 'in yo mind.' Wake up Slackers, this magazine is for you."

The Horroscope (another SOTT carry over) continued a tradition of having a special feature every month along with really crazy ass horoscopes, ramblings, magic and predictions.... a spellcheck nightmare!

This issue includes an Official Sure Sign of Summer for each Horrorscope:

Birthday: Outdoor cuisine that is charred beyond recognition.
Aries: Driving and driving and driving. Are we there yet?
Taurus: Drinking because it is sooooooo hot out there.
Gemini: People who let their pets drive.
Cancer: People who insist on wearing the wrong clothes.
Leo: The high concentration of mass commercialism and a faulty attitude toward the safety of the peoples (huh?).
Virgo: Men wearing tights in the park and trying to recall their Shakespearian lines.
Libra: The eternal blinker on the expressway of life.
Scorpio: A romantic stroll with Tom Arnold. Yikes!
Sagittarius: The beach, the waves, the sunburn...
Capricorn: Lots and lots of Perry's ice cream with all manners of sprinkles and toppings on it.
Aquarius: Barbecue, backyards, beers, beaches.
Pieces: A sort attention span.

Download it here: Slack n. 1, The Debut Issue (3.1 Mg)

Don't forget these issues already up:
Slack Magazine n. 18, The Two-Year Anniversary! issue
Slack Magazine n. 11, The True Crime Issue
Slack Magazine n. 9, The Dead Rock Stars Issue
Slack Magazine n. 8, The Beer Issue
Slack Magazine n. 6, The Buffalo Issue

Sign O' The Times: Oh So 1991...

My baby steps into magazine design and publishing began with my first zine, Sign O' The Times created 16 years ago! Designed on my Mac SE30 (black and white, 8" monitor) using Pagemaker, Photoshop and Typestyler, it was pure 'Gonzo-journalism', Buffalo-style. With all the articles having a Hunter S. Thompson bent, the SOTT featured satire by the bucketful, DJ lists, comix and stolen, scanned photos from old magazines and newspaper clippings. It was output on stat paper (I worked in a pre-press shop at the time), copied at Kinkos and assembled by hand at a monthly beer drinking event.

Writers included some of Buffalo's brightest stars at the time including Brad Maione, Steven Trask, Strick, Dan Carlson, MKO, Andre Frazier, Cappy, Mike Van Horn and Charlie Quill. The first few issues dealt with the war (Gulf, that is..), an Eva Watch, American excess, Buffalo Summers, greasy spoon diners, the Steam Donkeys, Bills Super Bowl losses, NYC, hip hop music, Pee Wee Herman and giant red ants.

I look back on these issues and remember lugging the heavy-ass SE30 back to and from work, creating and waiting for logo art to render in Typestyler, and staring at the imagesetter as it crunched away at the files, eventually producing shiney white pages to go to Kinkos. Though computer designed (Pagemaker 3.0 anyone?), the SOTT had a 1990's distinctive cut-and-paste feel.

With little to no paid ads, the money was always tight and Kinkos wanted to get paid. After a disastrous fundraiser (RAVE ON! featuring Crucial Vibes) at the VFW post on Franklin-- where the take at the door was minimal and the guy at the post wouldn't let us leave until I went to the Quickbank on Elmwood and withdrew money to pay them-- the bell had tolled for the end of SOTT. The SOTT has truly burned fast & bright!

The publishing bug bit me again two years later in 1993 with the launch of Slack magazine, and again in the late nineties with the BuffaloPOST, Buffalos first online magazine (pre-blog) which I ran with writer Dave Staba. More to come on those two at a later date- stay tuned.

View the Sign O' The Times graphic scrapbook by clicking this link and get a real blast from my past.