Your Kung Fu Sucks!

The Art of Biting (What's Your Style?)

2012-02-06T14:27:00.002-07:00

Enter the Dragon (1973)

Enter the Dragon (Production Still)

Fury of the Dragon (1979)

Cotton Comes to Harlem (1970)

The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

The Dragon Strikes Back (1972)

Return of the Jedi (1983)

Return of the Dragon (1972)

Jim Jarmusch on originality.

2012-02-06T11:53:00.001-07:00

The RZA & Jim Jarmusch

"Nothing is original. Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. Devour old films, new films, music, books, paintings, photographs, poems, dreams, random conversations, architecture, bridges, street signs, trees, clouds, bodies of water, light and shadows. Select only things to steal from that speak directly to your soul. If you do this, your work (and theft) with be authentic. Authenticity is invaluable; originality is non-existent. And don't bother concealing your thievery–celebrate it if you feel like it. In any case, always remember what Jean-Luc Godard said: 'It's not where you take things from–it's where you take them to.'"

–Jim Jarmusch

Circa 1975 - The Fantastic Four Radio Show

2012-01-27T07:00:00.001-07:00

Before reaching adolescence, the age when I 'mutated' into something of an X-Men fanatic, I was a fierce fan of the Fantastic Four. In addition to their monthly comic book exploits, the FF had a Saturday morning cartoon that I used to like to watch–despite a really annoying half-sized robot named Herbie who served in place of The Human Torch. (Were the show's producers really concerned that some dumb kid would drench himself in lighter fluid and strike a match in imitation of Johnny Storm?)

Well, I didn't know it back then, but in addition to the print and TV adventures of the Fantastic Four, co-creator "Smiling" Stan Lee had also made a considerable effort to bring Marvel's first family to kid's radio programming. His little known 1975 production of The Fantastic Four Radio Show featured the nearly word-for-word adaptations of some of the Fantastic Four's first adventures, with narration by Lee himself,

In addition to the voice of Stan Lee, also featured in the production were the voices of Bill Murray (yup, that Bill Murray) as the Human Torch, Cynthia Adler as the Invisible Girl, Bob Maxwell as Mr. Fantastic and Jim Pappas as the Thing. A few of the heroes, and villains, who appeared in these audio adaptations were Namor the Sub-Mariner, Ant-Man, the Incredible Hulk, the Moleman and Dr. Viktor Von Doom.

Oh...and speaking of Doctor Doom. Hardcore fans of rap artist MF Doom may recognize at least one segment that was sampled from one of the episodes that bears the metal faced super-villain's name.

Apparently, less than a dozen episodes were produced before the plug on the show was pulled due to anemic ratings. Having been largely forgotten about in the interim years, the copyright protections have lapsed, and these lost bronze age productions are now in the public domain. That's right, true believers, you can own 'em for the pulse-pounding price of free-ninety-nine.

It was well over a year ago that I found the ten known episodes over at archive.org, but I didn't get around to actually playing 'em until recently. After giving 'em all a thorough listen, and because it felt like the naturally nerdy thing to do, I scanned the covers of two 1970s FF comics and banged out a retro-ish 'album cover' for a proper presentation in iTunes (or whichever digital player you use).

Submitted for your approval, The Fantastic Four Radio Show.

Click here to download.
Click here to sample.

Thanks, Zine World

2012-01-24T16:21:00.006-07:00

My previous January posting related to the most recent reviews of KFG zines in Zine World #30.5 (Nov 2011) has been deleted in favor of this revised post. The supplement edition of ZW that came out in the fall actually contains three reviews of my publications (well, four...technically), and it seemed like a good idea to go ahead and share 'em all. I'm not even certain as to why, but last time around I only shared Clint's review, even though the one written by e.war preceded it. The third review, I should point out, caught me unawares.

Since Zine World posts their critiques in alphabetical order, I'm just gonna come right out and confess that I flicked through to the page where publications starting with the letter K could be found and absorbed the reviews of KFG 4 & 5. After that, I flicked back to page one and began reading the reviews of all the other publications. A little more than midway through my reading, I got a jolt from the unexpected realization that an additional review of Octopussy #1 was also contained.

Since publishing the aforementioned, I've been curious as to whether it's as accessible to chicks as it seems to be for dudes. I say this because the majority of orders (and perspectives) have come from guys, including a few from love-starved fucks behind bars. Well, one of my ex's started blowin' up my Facebook after she got her eyes on a copy, and I did take that as a positive sign (haha). But the review of Octopussy turned in by P5! offers a feminine perspective that has snugly tucked my curiosity into bed with a smile on its face.

Thanks, Zine World

–––––

Kung Fu Grip! #4
Historical writings personal and otherwise, touching story about a dying father. A very interesting article titled "Black East" about dark-skinned or even African-looking Phillipinos. Paco discusses [human] origins frankly and with good foundations. Retro ads are splashed throughout, appealing to the kung-fu afro in you.
– e.war

Kung Fu Grip! #4 and #5
Perhaps it's unfair to hand me these, since I gave #3 such a glowing review last time. But I have them and that's that; I have no choice! Everything I said last time about the marvelous mix of pop-culture obsessions and storytelling remains true. Issue #4 includes the moving "A Year to Say Goodbye," Paco's account of his father's passing. Issue #5, twice as big, features an extensive survey of sticker art and a terrific, in-depth feature on Shiro, one of the few high-profile female graffiti artists, including lots of flicks of her work. Money and time well spent here.
– Clint

Kung Fu Grip! Special #1: Octopussy
This zine has a sexy look that immediately draws you in! An intriguing mix of hot girls, octopi, stripper haikus with great accompanying footwear photos, a smutty graffiti gallery, the (incredibly inspiring) art of Katsushika Hokusai (I love that centerfold!), pictures from India's Kama Sutra temple, and more! This zine is original and beautiful. Recommended!
– P5!

Who in blue blazes is the Golden Blaze?!?!

2012-01-07T16:02:00.011-07:00

Last summer I posted the pulse-pounding "Crisis in Electric Ladyland" editorial here on the YKFS blog. That particular piece – many of you may recall – was a playful criticism of the double-digit number of African-American super-powered characters whose names and/or powers are redundantly related to electricity. (Those of you who missed out on that electrifying read can find it here.)

Well, despite my encyclopedic knowledge and my additional research into the subject, I was recently hit with the jaw-jolting realization that there is yet another name that could have been included on that already too-long list of ten. Our shocking eleventh addition to the list comes to us from of the 2005 animated film The Golden Blaze.

While doing some last-minute shopping on Christmas Eve, I chanced upon a copy of The Golden Blaze at the local Big Lots store. Prior to that unexpected encounter, I had never heard a single whisper about the film's existence. And despite the $3 bargain price, I could NOT bring myself to add it to the handful of cheap DVDs that I was already carrying. Not even in the endless pursuit of editorial purpose.

Suffice it to say that I was probably more annoyed than curious about the until-then-unheard-of super guy garbed in the regurgitated color scheme of navy blue and gold (à la Black Lightning, Black Vulcan, Static), with an obligatory lightning bolt insignia on his chest. How in the God of Thunder's name could there be another friggin' character like this?, I wondered as I eyed the cover in a mild state of shock and awe.

Quickly adding to my dismay was an iconic movie studio logo that I spotted on the back of the DVD, revealing that Warner Brothers – of all movie studios – was the film's distributor. Hadn't the WB already cornered the friggin' market on electro-powered minorities? Could having characters such as Static Shock, Soul Power, Sparky and Juice in its big corporate toy box somehow not have been enough? I mean...really?

With my eyes rolling towards the white stucco ceiling, I put the movie back in the DVD bin and made way for the checkout counter. I was determined to learn the Golden Blaze's story not by watching the movie, but by reading about it on the interwebs later that night–or sometime after the holiday. Three nights later, I went ahead did my due diligence. What I learned online that evening sent me back to Big Lots the next day.

The Golden Blaze is a kid-friendly feature that boasts the voice acting talents of Blair Underwood (Gattaca, Deep Impact), Michael Clarke Duncan (Daredevil, Sin City), Sanaa Latham (Blade, Alien vs. Predator), and Neil Patrick Harris (Starship Troopers, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along). This G-rated flick is so friggin' kid friendly that it was awarded the Children’s Jury Award for Best Animated Feature at the 2005 Chicago International Children’s Film Festival.

And so, an hour after my aforementioned shopping excursion, I clicked off the lights, plopped down on the couch, and gave The Golden Blaze 90-minutes of my undivided attention. And – in full spite of that well-worded complaint against with the redundancy of the electricity theme and black super-powered characters – I was quickly disarmed by the film's faithful and amusing approach to caped crusader mythos and comic book culture.

Like many schoolboys his age, Jason Fletcher (voiced by Khleo Thomas) gets bullied by a kid five times his size and daydreams about having the power of his hero, Golden Blaze. In a kooky twist of fate, Jason's dad, the bumbling scientist Mr. Fletcher (Underwood), gets caught up in a scientific demonstration gone-awry and gains the abilities of the Golden Blaze. But the accident also has a similar effect on his megalomaniacal ex-boss (Duncan), transmogrifying him into Golden Blaze's arch-nemesis, Quake.

With the exception of M. Knight Shyamalan's Unbreakable, which The Golden Blaze brings to mind for me in subtle ways, I really can't think of another motion picture that so earnestly manages to pay homage to comic book concepts–and does so from both sides of the multi-paneled page; from the sloppy comic book shop owner with less-than-zero customer service skills to the Green Lantern-like mantra "Let the light of truth show the wayyyy!," this animated feature doesn't miss a beat.

Now, this isn't to say that The Golden Blaze is a flawless production, because it's not. Directed by Bryon E. Carson (by way of Flash computer animation), it's somewhat apparent that the filmmaker was ballin' on a budget. Nevertheless, a cast of recognizable actors (including Harris as the sloppy shop owner), super clean character design, and some diabolically clever story-telling make up ground for any of the visual deficits.

It's probably also worth noting that this movie was not made with the nit-picky comic-con demographic with two or more decades of fandom under their utility belts–like me! To (badly) paraphrase the ODB, Golden Blaze is for the children. As such, it's something that I would whole-heartedly recommend to the parents of the comic-con attendees of tomorrow.

St. Paco's Verdict: The Golden Blaze's kung fu does not suck.

P.S. I'm still gonna pray to the Mighty Thor and the gods of Billy Batson (Shazam!) that there isn't yet another lightning bolt bearing character out there waiting to be added to the "Crisis in Electric Ladyland" list.

You Can't Hack the Gee Wiz Tactics

2012-01-04T14:00:00.000-07:00

Gee Wiz – The Wu-Fanatic
While the beat-makers of hip-hop have made quite a distinct mark on the music listeners of the past two decades, I don't know of anyone who has inspired more actual music-making disciples than RZA of the Wu-Tang clan. And it would appear that this kid called Gee Wiz, the self-proclaimed "Wu-Fanatic," may well be the sharpest dagger in the velvet sash of RZA beat emulators. I got hipped to this radiant jewel by way of those funk monks at Word Is Bond and simply had to share it. This collection of Wu-inspired instrumentals is so dead-on musically that the "Abbot" had better be protectin' his own neck, 'cause Gee Wiz is one student who seems to not only have studied the soulful styles of the 36 Chambers, but mastered them too.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://geewiz.bandcamp.com/album/the-wu-fanatic"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;The Wu-Fanatic by Gee Wiz&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

"You can't hack the tactics..."

2011-12-28T19:27:00.005-07:00

KFG! in Narcolepsy Press Review #7

2011-12-10T16:50:00.003-07:00

Click to enlarge

Superman: First Son of Fanzines

2011-12-03T15:20:00.016-07:00

One of my favorite zines from the last few years is one that was published in the winter of 2008 called My Time Annihilator: A Brief History of 1930's Science Fiction Fanzines. As a not-so-closet history geek, it was the kind of zine that made me wish that I had been the editor responsible for its creation. In addition to its cool antiquarian vibe, My Time Annihilator was super informative. In fact, it was by way of its pages that I came to discover that a large part of the modern zine-making tradition is steeped in fanzines that were published by science fiction fanatics in the 1930s.

While doing some seemingly unrelated reading on the interwebs a year or so ago, I had another chance to discover something else that really surprised me. When they were just high school students, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the creators of Superman, were also a part of that 1930s fanzine movement. Even more surprisingly, I also learned that the foundation for the Man of Steel was laid not in a comic book, but in the pages of their 1933 fanzine Science Fiction: The Advance Guard of Future Civilization.

During that chance discovery, I also came to learn that the early Superman stuff produced by Siegel and Shuster a few years before their character's first appearance in Action Comics #1 were no longer under copyright. (Wha-wha?) This included not only the short story "The Reign of the Superman," but a series of twenty-four Superman comic strips that the writer/artist duo had spent a few unsuccessful years pitching to unreceptive newspaper editors.

As I pored over the preliminary Superman material that I had found online (in digitized pdf form), the first thing I thought was how cool it would be to see that vintage stuff on paper. That is, if only someone would take the time to clean-up and reformat it for publication. I certainly had no intention of taking up the challenge myself, but somewhere along the way (circa about a week ago), I decided to give it a shot. Superman: First Son of Fanzines is the swell-looking end result.

And so, in honor of the last son of Krypton's largely unknown underground lineage, Superman: First Son of Fanzines returns this iconic character to his humble fanzine roots. Contained within is a smaller reproduction of the "The Reign of the Superman" story which shows the famously named title character in his original incarnation––as a bald bad guy (yes, bad guy) with even stronger telepathic power than that other guy who would establish the X-Men three decades later. Also contained are the twenty-four early comic strips that would pave the way to Superman's first appearance in the June 1938 edition of Action Comics #1.

It has been a great big thrill for me to find myself archiving a mostly discarded portion of Superman's history, even if only in a small way. Yet it was from the primordial pages of a fanzine that one of America's most popular fictional characters evolved, and I considered it something of a responsibility to preserve its legacy in the pages of Superman: First Son of Fanzines.

– St. Paco

Click to enlarge

Nick Cage’s Action Comics #1 fetches $2.16M

2011-12-03T15:14:00.004-07:00

A near-mint copy of Action Comics #1 owned by actor Nicolas Cage sold at auction tonight for a record $2.16 million.

Graded at 9.0, the rare 1938 comic easily surpassed the previous record of $1.5 million set in March 2010 for the same issue, featuring the first appearance of Superman.

That copy was graded slightly lower, at 8.5. Vincent Zurzolo, chief operating officer of ComicConnect/Metropolis Collectibles, told Comic Riffs that the issue that sold this evening — bidding closed at 7:25 p.m. ET — is the best copy of Action Comics he’s ever seen.

“The buyer was extremely excited about the prospect of bidding on this,” he said. “I think he had an adrenalin rush for the last two hours.”

The comic was stolen from Cage’s Los Angeles home in 2000, and discovered in April by an unidentified man who claims to have bought the contents of an abandoned San Fernando Valley, California, storage locker. Although Zurzolo wouldn’t reveal the comic’s previous owner, he did confirm that his company played a role in its recovery.

About 100 copies of Action Comics #1 are believed to exist, but only a handful of those are in good condition.

Source: Robot 6

Peeled, Pasted & Posted, Nov 26th - Dec 20th

2011-11-19T01:37:00.007-07:00

Thirty Fingers of Death (Vinyl Killah Remix)
Digital Mash-Up Sticker on 12" Vinyl
St. Paco, 2011

If you're in San Jose (or within drivin' distance), you are cordially invited to the Peeled, Pasted & Posted sticker and street art show at the Gift 2 Gab Gallery. This is an event dedicated specifically to the adhesive arts, featuring works by more than 100 bombers, slap-taggers and street artists from across the globe. And, as you can see from the photo posted above, the mighty St. Paco will also have a piece hanging amongst the gallery's senses-shattering offerings. In addition to some fantastic art, you can bet that there will also be massive amounts of stickers on hand for trading (including some of my own), so do remember to bring along your black book...as well as your checkbook.

Peeled, Pasted & Posted
A Sticky Situations Art Show
Opening Reception – November 25th, 6PM to Midnight
Show Runs from November 26th – December 20th

Gift 2 Gab Gallery
190 Martha St. Studio D
San Jose, CA 95112

For more information, check out Gift 2 Gab wall on Facebook.

Shibuya or Bust (Attn : Library)

2011-11-09T17:13:00.010-07:00

If you're in Tokyo (or within driving distance), The Kosmos Lane Gallery cordially invites you to attened ATTN : LIBRARY, a Booklet Library exhibition at Kosmos Lane Gallery in Shibuya (Tokyo, Japan). This extremely limited event runs from November 8th to the 13th, and features 300+ art related, small-press publications and zines contributed to the Booklet Library in 2011 by 200+ artists/authors, from 16 countries. Copies of Kung Fu Grip! #3B, #4 & #5 are on hand for the show, so be sure to check 'em out! For more information on this as well as other pop-up shows and events in Tokyo, visit the Booklet Zine Library website.

ATTN: LIBRARY

Kosmos Lane Gallery
2–29-6-1F Uehara,
Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan 〒151‑0064
November 8th - 13th, 2011

Heavy D - Final Bow

2011-11-08T03:44:00.013-07:00

Through the years, I have managed to keep hold of only two two ticket stubs from my early days as a hip-hop junkie: Eric B & Rakim headlining at the Chicago Amphitheater in 1990, and Dana Dane co-headlining with Heavy D at the historic Regal Theater in 1988. As might be expected, each of these little mementos carries with them a sizable memory. Especially the latter.

Heavy D would effortlessly live up to his growing reputation as a consummate showman that night in March of '88: he powered through rhymes with style, leapt in and out of dance routines with finesse, and delivered roses like a plus-sized pimp during the Al B. Sure chorused "Don't You know." The Overweight Lover was in the house that night, showing fans what it really meant to be large and in charge.

Years before other emcee heavyweights like Fat Joe, Notorious B.I.G., Big Pun or Rick Ross would come to play the role of "big papa," there was Heavy D. He was the first rapper to throw his weight around not as a goofy gimmick (a la The Fat Boys), but to show-and-prove that bigger could also be better. He was one of the best to ever rock a mic, and his place in the pantheon of hip-hop greats is remembered.

Dwight Arrington Myers (aka Heavy D)
May 24, 1967 – November 8, 2011

Download: Mr. Cee's Heavy D Tribute Mix (Courtesy of the HOT 97 “Throwback at Noon” and Strawberryblunt.com)

Smokin' Joe Frazier - Exit the Champion

2011-11-07T08:22:00.000-07:00

Joseph William Frazier
January 12, 1944 – November 7, 2011

There's a saying that goes, "to be the best you gotta beat the best." In 1971, Smokin' Joe Frazier shocked the boxing world by handing Muhammad Ali his first loss in the ring. In the process, Frazier would become a heavyweight champion, as well as the much-heralded other half of one of boxing's most memorable rivalries. Thanks, Champ.

Kiyoshi Nakazawa - Drunken Master

2011-11-04T23:25:00.014-07:00

When I read over my interview with Dadá Mini before posting it to the web some weeks back, I winced when I got the question where Coco Muro asked for the names of some of the publications that were amongst my favorites. Though I remembered to give Giant Robot and some others a shout, I completely spaced on Kiyoshi Nakazawa's Drunken Master zine. It sucked too, because I know Kiyoshi and DM is really one of my favorite zines.

Well, to add insult to injury, Kiyoshi was interviewed last month by one of the guys at the Ain't It Cool News website. And when that intrepid interviewer asked Kiyoshi to name some of the zines that he enjoys, did Kiyoshi have the class to remember to mention Kung Fu Grip! amongst his favorites? Yep, he sure did.

As if I wasn't already beatin' myself up enough for forgetting to give Drunken Master a shout, I really started to feel bad when I considered the fact that Your Kung Fu Sucks! (the newish name of this blog) was directly inspired by Kiyoshi. I don't even know if he's aware that I bit/borrowed the slogan that he used on a t-shirt some years back. But, as the great Pablo Picasso once said, "Good artists copy, great artists steal."

Truthfully, for the first five or so minutes after re-naming the blog, I actually didn't remember that Kiyoshi had used it as a t-shirt slogan. But this is my chance to give credit where credit is due. B'sides, we all know that great minds do think alike, right?

Anyway, check out the interview, by visiting Ain't It Cool News. And if you decide that cha wanna add Drunken Master zine to your reading pile, visit Kiyoshi's Etsy shop and order copies of #11 and #12. (And check out my half-page ad in issue #12, which came out in time for the San Diego Comic Con this past July.)

I should prolly mention that after you read those two issues, you're gonna wanna order the others that are still available...whenever he remembers to update his stock, that is. And be warned, 'cuz Kiyoshi Nakazawa's kung-fu does NOT suck. In fact, the guy's a master.

Reason #457 to go to Japan...

2011-10-25T21:44:00.012-07:00

"Black lifestyle!" (See video)

One more...because Sumayyah Said So

2011-10-25T20:32:00.006-07:00

...because Sumayyah Said So
Free / digest-size/ 30pgs
PDF download available here

Like many zine enthusiasts, I treasure the tactile familiarity of printed words on hand-folded paper. Still, I was mildly intrigued when I noticed an offer to download a free pdf version of Sumayyah Talibah's zine ...because Sumayyah Said So on my last visit to the We Make Zines website. Talibah is an admirer of the sci-fi and fantasy author Octavia Butler, and she mentions her yen to follow in the author's footsteps on the title page. Now, having just reread Butler's Wildseed less than two weeks ago, I couldn’t help but see a hint of serendipity in that mentioning, and took it as a good omen of what was to come. ...because Sumayyah Said So plays host to four of Talibah's thoughtful and well-worded poems: "Why I Write," "Annoyance," "Because Poems," and "The End of Everything." The zine also features the 8-page fantasy work, "Devour." As good as her poems are–and they are very good inded–I found "Devour," a thinly veiled homage to Butler, to be such an excellent work that after reading the final paragraph, my head shook from right to left in amazement. And after fully absorbing the poeticism of the final sentence, my first thought was that I had probably never read a better piece of fantasy writing in any zine. If I had any criticism of the work, it would be in the form of a lament that ...because Sumayyah Said So wasn't actually 48 pages, which could have allowed for more of Talibah's fantasy writing–because one piece was simply not enough. Encore.

Rarely Written Zine Reviews - Episode II

2011-10-19T15:47:00.029-07:00

True confession.

The majority of the following zine reviews were actually written over the end of June and the first week of July. Somewhere between a nasty bout of writer's block and finally gettin' my mojo back, I remembered that I had forgotten to post 'em. Since nobody has been waiting' around to read what I thought of their zines, the fact that I'm posting these much later than originally planned is no great travesty. But I do still feel a smidgen of guilt that these didn't hit the web much sooner. So I ask that you please pardon my lateness, even though you didn't know that I am tardy.

– St. Paco, Your Kung Fu Sucks

___________________________

9 and a Half Left #10*
$5 / digest-size / 44pgs
Available at Microcosm Publishing

"The great thing about Charles Bukowski is that he's inspired a whole generation of bums, drunks and otherwise borderline personalities to fancy themselves as writers. I'm glad I'm not an editor reading these miscreant poems. I get enough of your shit in the hours of the early morning." This amusing quote from page 16 of Mike Rodemann's 9 and a Half Left reminds me that I've yet not yet read a single page of Bukowski. [Hears collective gasp from people who ride the man's jock like the last train to Paris.] I don't know if Rodemann is a fan of Bukowski, or even if he fancies himself as a writer. But the guy is a zine-maker, and that makes him a writer by default. In this issue of 9 and a Half Left, Rodemann offers confessions on the difficulty of tobacco addiction and a moving glimpse into the strained relationship that Mike had with his father before his passing–a man that he justifiably feared as much as loved. The zines also contains lots of other bits of real life stuff that we deal with, both good and bad.

Note: 9 and a Half Left #10 published in 2005, but reviewed because it was a recent purchase.

Blackguard #3: The Crime Issue
$5 / digest-size / 44pgs
Available direct from the publisher

Soon after the first issue of Blackguard began invading mailboxes across the globe, I saw so many gushing reviews that I was tempted to not write one of my own–perhaps out of fear of just sounding like a parrot. But :::squawk::: toss me a saltine and call me Polly, 'cause this is one cool zine. Edited by Stuart Stratu, Blackguard features twenty-something pages of comic strips by an international alliance of some of the most sick-n-twisted cartoonists you've probably never heard of––and another twenty pages of mini-comic and zine reviews. In addition to all that, this issue also features two theme specific short stories. Oh, Blackguard #3 is the "crime" issue, so sick-n-twistedness is mandatory when you're creating comix about a "nazi super-zombie monkey sleeper agent," True Crime trading card "lovers," John Dilliger, the wannabe nightclub singer and killer Kenneth Neu, Walt Disney and the Hamburglar. Yes, there's actually even more to this 44-page crime spree, and it's pretty damned good at being bad.

Blue Okoye #1: No More Flared Jeans
$1 / digest-size / 24pgs
Available at Quimby's Books

Blue Okoye is a zine that I bought mainly based on an interior illustration that was used in Narcolepsy Press Review #6. Unfortunately, though, only the covers (front & back) and two interior pages of this publication have illustrations. Thus, after reading Blue Okoye, I kinda' found myself wishin' that there had been more drawings and less text. The writing is quirky and odd with glimpses of serious humor and originality, but it didn't engage me–not like the image on the back cover of a helmet wearing brother getting his temples kicked in by a turban wearing dwarf. Who is he? Where is he from? What is his purpose? The answers to these questions only come out in an abstract sorta way near the end. But the zine only costs a buck and it is more than obvious that a respectable amount of time and effort went into producing it. And while I can't heartily recommend Blue Okoye #1, I can honestly say that I am glad to have it in my permanent zine collection. I also look forward to seeing what Mr. Okoye does with the next issue.

Booty #23 & 24
$2 / 16pgs
Available at Atomic Books

I've been semi-familiar with Anne Thalheimer from the reviews she writes for Xerography Debt, but somehow never made the connection to the Booty mini-comics she also does. I had also never read Booty, but recalled seeing several decent reviews over the years. The latest reviews for issues #23 & #24 that I read in the last issue of Zine World piqued my curiosity, so I prepared an envelope and mailed off my order. A few days later, Anne broke me off some booty. [Ahem] Booty mini-comics, that is. And I pretty much got what the reviews had set me up to expect: some really quirky, thoughtful and entertaining mini-comics. Comics that I can't easily compare to anything else, but the scratchy illustrations kinda' make me think of the old Cathy newspaper strip. Anne's warm writing offers engagingly personal perspectives on work, life goals, relationships, wintertime, pets, road trips, growing up, the joys of eating breakfast for dinner (or dessert for breakfast), and that butt-kickin' spectator sport known as roller derby. These issues also reveal that Anne has an unabashed love of comic books, which (to paraphrase one of the panels in issue #24) kind of fucking rocks.

Fish With Legs #13
$1 / digest-size / 24pgs
Available direct from the publisher

The 13th issue of Eric Lyden's Fish With Legs contains page after page of random, laugh-out-loud funny perspectives like the two that I've sampled below:

"One of my karate teachers was an older guy (I was maybe 10 years old, so he was maybe 40 at the oldest) who had a black belt so I just figured he was a bad ass. Then a few weeks later I went to the movies and this bad ass, black belt karate instructor was the guy standing outside the theater checking and tearing tickets. I was one of maybe 50 kids he dealt with and I was quiet so he didn't recognize me, but I recognized him and the notion that a guy who could be such a bad ass in one area of life while being a working stiff with a menial job in another area life was pretty depressing to me. If being able to use nunchucks properly isn't enough to guarantee respect wherever you go then what hope do the rest of us have?"

"Devout atheists are just as annoying as devout bible thumpers. When gathered in large groups the Bible thumpers will certainly cause more damage, but if I'm at a party and a Bible thumper is in one corner and a loud mouthed atheist is in another corner I'm going to find a separate third corner to avoid both of these pests. Some atheists sure seem to devote a lot of energy to something they don't believe in."

AMEN.

Grunted Warning #7
$1 / digest-size / 12pgs
Available direct from the publisher

Fortunately, I've never been the kind of monarch that requires reading material while sitting atop my castle's porcelain throne. But if I was one of those unfortunate souls whose lower intestines tend to fake the funk, Stuart Stratu's Grunted Warning would probably be my read of choice; I could be wrong, but the title even seems to smack of cheeky bathroom humor. Anyway, this 12-page rag offers an oddball assortment of creepy clippings that the editor has eviscerated from various newspapers, magazines and even toy packaging! Like a serial slasher-in-training, he even lays it out cut-n-paste style. Cree-py. This zine is also reasonably priced at a buck per copy. So, I really recommend that you write Stuart to see which back issues are still available, because I can't help but think that a stack of five or six issues of Grunted Warning is the perfect thing to have in throne rooms across the land.

Nostromo #1
$3 / digest-size / 36pgs
Available at Microcosm Publishing

Not a lot that I can say about Nostromo. The first issue of this zine offers roughly twenty pages of sci-fi and post-cyberpunk related geek speak, tapped out on an old metal typewriter located on an organic vegetable farm somewhere in rural Virginia. Subjects include a consideration of the impact of technology on human behavior as examined against the fictional backdrops of Star Trek and Star Wars, experiences with the role-playing (RPG) war games of Gamesworkshop, "reactions and reconsiderations" of Isacc Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics, and a brief explanation of the genesis of Nostromo. I enjoyed every page of this zine, and am now kinda' ticked off that there there isn't yet a second issue that I can order. 'Nuff said?

Shotgun Seamstress #1*
$3 / digest-size / 36pgs
Available at Microcosm Publishing

Shotgun Seamstress is described on its opening page as "a zine by and for black punks" and it is probably the most fitting description. That being said, this really isn't for the average zine reader. I myself have never been into punk, but I can easily relate to the issues addressed by an editor who grew up often being the sole black person in a "sea of white kids" at punk music gatherings. Again, not being into punk it was actually the chalky Jean-Michel Basquiat art remixed on the cover that attracted me to this zine, but inside I found some interesting pieces on the late Toni Young (a pioneering bassist in DC's hardcore scene in the early 1980s) and the documentary Afropunk: The Rock and Roll Nigger (whose sub-heading re-appropriates the controversial title of a Patti Smith song). Other features include interviews with punk dancer Brontez, zine-maker Adee-licious, and an excerpt from Adee's Finger on the Trigger zine.

*Shotgun Seamstress #1 was published in 2006, but reviewed because it was a recent purchase.

Refugee
$1 / digest-size / 36pgs
Available at Microcosm Publishing

I actually don't remember when I purchase this copy of Refugee by Suze B., but it was probably well more than a year ago. It was misplaced somehow, and when I found it again recently I realized that the zine still needed to be read. Because I decided to write some zine reviews, it worked out perfectly. Refugee documents the author's 2004 trip to Burma, where she spent four months working with the women involved with Burma's pro-democracy movement. This zine is dense with information, pictures and varying typefaces, including handwritten text, which keeps it all visually stimulating and interesting. It's so dense that I actually haven't even finished reading it, but still felt compelled write this review now because Refugee represents one of the things that I like most about zines. Information like that found in this zine so often gets lost in 400+ page scholarly tomes that only students will read. But with only 36 pages, a zine like Refugee provides an accessible and affordable snapshot of the culture, politics and social and economic challenges faced by a people in another part of the world–and the things they do to survive.

Slice Harvester #1*
$3 / digest-size / 36pgs
Available at the Slice Harvester website

This food oriented zine was baked up by a self-described pizza expert named Colin. His goal is to write reviews of pizza slices eaten at "every single pizzeria above 110th street in Manhattan– barring the Marble Hill section," which Colin sez' he thought was part of the Bronx. Inside there are a good twenty mouth-watering reviews, many of which are brutal and hi-lar-i-ous. One of my favorites was written about a joint called Ernesto Pizza. Here, Colin details even the minutes before he and his 'dinner date' entered the place, and how "the pizzamen were standing in the doorway staring us down with the worst stink eye, trying to draw us into their pizzeria with their tractor beams of loathing and superiority." Slice Harvester is funny, well-worded, heavily opinionated and deeply passionate about its subject. And with me having grown up in the great pizza city of Chicago, the pie is something that I also take seriously. So, I wanna to take a second to say to the editor that I would put Chi-town pizza up against New York pizza any dia de la semana. Our Sicilian slices are so cheesy, so meaty, and so saucy that 'cha need a fork & knife to get through 'em, capice? Anyway, what I really wanna say is that I know good zines like I know good pizza and–no disrespect to our sacred Sinatra song–but Slice Harvester is my kinda' zine.

*After this review was written a copy of Slice Harvester #4 arrived in my mailbox. This clearly suggests that Colin is still eating his way across Manhattan.

Video Tonfa/Feedback #7 (Split)
$5 / digest-size / 44pgs
Available at Quimby's

Due to the enthusiastic stamp of approval received in Zine World #30, I felt the Video Tonfa/Feedback #7 split was a sure bet. So, I added it to the list of zines in the last order I placed with Microcosm and – not surprisingly – that sure bet paid off handsomely. John Issacson's Feedback #7 comprises the first half of this zine and features some fun reviews from what seem to be concerts in and around the Portland area. The cool thing about the reviews is that they're formatted as four-panel comic strips, and Isaacson does not draw the "Marvel way." His illustrations are scratchy, but dynamic and pleasing to the eye. Adding to the overall aesthetic, the facing pages of many of the strips show the concert promo flyers, which gives a cool sense of context. Video Tonfa anchors the back half of this split, and features, um... 'written while under the influence' movie reviews, accompanied by rough illustrations of the DVD and VHS covers. My favorite review is of the 1979 blaxploitation film Petey Wheatstraw. I actually consider that flick to be the least enjoyable of all of Rudy Ray Moore's (aka Dolemite) movies, but I do like knowing that somebody in the world enjoys this flick so much that he "could have, and will again watch this movie twice in a row." Other films reviewed include the John Belushi & Dan Ackroyd film Neighbors, Dead Zone, District 9, Phantasm II, The Convent, Buckaroo Bonzai and Critters 4. By the way, I also learned some cool Buckaroo Bonzai related trivia and that Angela Bassett co-starred in Critters 4. Normally, you'd have to pay me or roofie me to sit through a flick like Critters, but I would suffer through nearly any indignity for Angela. So I foresee some personal suffering thanks to the Video Tonfa/Feedback #7 split. A very cool zine.

Ain't No Half Steppin'

2011-10-10T23:18:00.003-07:00

Syndicated Zine Reviews: KFG5

2011-10-10T22:24:00.003-07:00

Kung Fu Grip! #5

KFG is a beautifully put together zine. It’s the kind of zine that, after having read it, I keep thumbing through it to admire just how fucking cool it looks. With the aesthetic of a 1970’s era comic book/martial arts magazine, Kung Fu Grip #5 explores a wide variety of subjects ranging from graffiti artists (Shiro), Jamaican recording artist and comic book enthusiast Lee Perry, and the link between giant Buddha statues, Shinto deities, and popular Japanese television superhero shows like Ultraman. Paco D. Taylor appears to be a true aficionado of 70’s pop culture, art and style, and he brings that passion to life in the modern world with this zine. The subject matter is interesting and engaged, never feeling pretentious or out of place, and the layout is flawless.

– Randy Spaghetti, Syndicated Zine Reviews

Lost in Translation

2011-10-07T16:33:00.007-07:00

Just so'z you know, I did my best to properly translate the introduction to the Dadá Mini interview which follows this post. But it probably won't sound as poetic or fluent as it would in its native tongue. Anybody who knows even a little about the Spanish language knows how it can take drastic changes from one country to another. For example, a word like "pendejo" (which was used in the intro) is an extreme vulgarity in Puerto Rico, a mild insult in Mexico, and a largely innocuous term in Argentina, where its used to suggest childhood, or a brat. This was the challenge I faced while translating the introduction, written in Spanish as it is spoken in Argentina. The actual interview, however, was much easier–since it was originally done in English. Jajaja ("Hahaha" in Spanish)

My Dadá Mini Interview

2011-10-07T16:30:00.006-07:00

Paco D. Taylor

The street fighter that stalks the photocopiers
Section D / Text by Nica & Coco Muro
Dadá Mini Magazine

Paco D. Taylor would much rather talk about art, music or movies, than himself; the things he wants you to know about him are reflected in his work.

The creator and editor of Kung Fu Grip! zine was born in 1969 and raised in Chicago. From childhood he was deeply involved in hip hop culture, writing rhymes and experimenting with graffiti. At 26 he moved to Arizona to study graphic design and immediately after graduating got a job as a designer for a magazine. After two or three years of that, he soon realized that working as an artist in a corporate environment was not for him, and has since worked primarily in call centers, earning enough money to pay the bills and to buy cigars, comic books and Chinese food. While the day job has nothing to do with his passions, it does allow him unlimited access to photocopiers, as well as free time to write articles and browse the Internet.

His zines are small, independently produced publications in the photocopied format. Throughout its 56 black and white pages, Kung Fu Grip! zine is a resume of his work in the form of a fanzine, full of graphic design, collage and illustrations–and all of which emanates from Paco's creative universe.

The terms "street fight" and "exquisite randomness" could be used to describe the work; something like an out-and-out street fight with exquisitely random improvisation.

The D. between Paco and Taylor remains a mystery.

What were your projects or dreams as a boy, who did you admire the most?

When I was a kid I sketched a lot and imagined that when I grew up I would be a professional artist with paintings hanging in various galleries. I also imagined myself as an animator and a comic book illustrator. Back then, two of the people who I admired most were Muhammad Ali and Bruce Lee. I can also remember a time when looked up to Charles Schultz, the creator of Snoopy and Charlie Brown.

What are Mr Paco´s favourite activities nowadays?

A lot of my time is spent doing research on the Internet for various projects, some of which have been made and others that are still very much in the planning stages. I collect photographs from old history books and anthropology books, listen to music almost endlessly, study Tai Chi, watch movies, collect old comic books, practice my writing and make zines.

Why produce something you`re not sure for whom it is or how it will be received? What for?

Honestly, the things that I produce are made for myself. They are creative and tangible expressions of who I am, what has influenced me, and what inspires me. It is only after satisfying the innate need for creative expression that I then find myself hoping that someone else will also see something that they can appreciate in the work, and that it will inform, inspire or entertain.

Why do you prefer the street as a communication channel instead of Internet?

The street has the advantage of being an immediate channel for creative communication, but it is often very impersonal. I have tremendous respect for the Internet, because it allows me to reach a broader audience beyond the shores of America. Because of the Internet, I am able to send my work to people in Argentina, Mexico, Hong Kong, Japan, Spain, Portugal, Israel, the UK, Australia, and other places.

Please describe in ten words what a fanzine is. Why not a magazine…?

Zines are cheaply made publications usually produced on a photocopier. I make zines because standard magazines are fairly expensive to make in America, and usually require advertisers to support them–as well as shelf space in stores from which to sell them. All that it takes to make zines is the passion to produce content, and access to a photocopier.

Considering both your zines and designs which do you think is Mr Paco`s trademark?

Black & white imagery has clearly become one of my trademarks, followed by the use of text, no matter what language the text communicates: English, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Ethiopian or Hebrew. It is all visually interesting to me. Found, borrowed and stolen images is another common theme in my works.

Why do you choose only one color and a disposable format to talk about the city and its codes?

In the beginning, designing with black and white was done for practical reasons, the first of which being that it was inexpensive to reproduce. But I immediately made it a goal of mine to make the best designs that I could produce in such a cheaply made manner. Among various groups in the United States, zines can be viewed negatively because they are not made on a real printing press, so it has always been important to me to make things that are not only visually interesting, but intellectually stimulating.

Which is your favourite magazine? Would you edit it and have the courage to say what we editors can't? What do you read and watch?

My favorite magazine is Giant Robot, an Asian arts and pop culture magazine based in Los Angeles, California. If I was the editor of Giant Robot, though, I don’t know that I would have the courage to say some of the things that I do in my zines. Zines are often deeply personal in nature, and when you have a large audience, and advertisers who purchase page space, there are many more considerations that have to be made.

Some of my favorite zines are Samurai Dreams, which is a movie review zine, Xerography Debt and Zine World, which both provide reviews of many of the zines being made today. I’m also a fan of the street art zine, Very Nearly Almost, which comes out of the UK.

Kung-Fu is a Chinese expression for "a well done job", what is all this street fight about?

To quote a line from a Gordon Liu movie: “It’s a secret! Never teach the Wu-Tang!”

Would it be the same for you to be a freestyle wrestler, Hugh Hefner or a ball boy at Wimbledon? If you could choose who you want to be, would you accept to be yourself or someone different?

I think that I could handle being an African-American Sumo wrestler in Japan who wears a lucha mask, like the image in a sticker that I designed. By day I would wrestle to protect my champion belt, but by night I would write haiku poetry like Basho and love poems like Pablo Neruda. I would be so popular in Asia and South America that I would have as many women as Hugh Hefner.

Other than that, I would just like to be myself–but with a lot more money, and publishing contract.

Your work proposes a random journey through the streets of a hidden city, a crazy trip. Where did this idea come from? What message do you want to convey with your collages and all the information you gather and share?

One of the great things about collage is that it allows you to communicate multiple layers of meaning. The thing that drew me into the study of graphic design when I was in school is that it is a multi-layered form of communication that often involves the integration of words and pictures–which is something that I had been experimenting with through collage. As random as collage can be, though, I have always sought a unifying theme, which is often color.

Taking those principles even further, zine making allows me to communicate so much more, on a variety of subjects. At the same time, I still challenge myself to tie it all together with unifying themes. The zine Octopussy is my most recent example of that.

How do you get along with independent magazines? What can you tell us about other producers like you? Who are they?

I have been making zines for more than ten years now, but I have only interacted with a few zine makers. Those who I have met in person have been friendly and supportive. Like me, they are passionate about what they produce, which immediately makes us comrades in the creative struggle, so to speak.

Which are your dearest projects, which of them excites you the most?

Kung Fu Grip! zine is my first love, but I feel that two of the best things that I’ve ever made are In His Image zine, and an article that I wrote on the negritos of Southeast Asia that was published in Giant Robot magazine earlier this year.

Tell us one amusing anecdote related with one work of yours.

Making zines is a good way to pick up women. But I can’t give any more details than that.

What happens when you run out of paper? What do you do?

Sometimes I buy more paper. Sometimes I steal more paper.

For designers and publishers time is an issue. It never seems to be enough, what do you think about that?

Fortunately, none of my publications follow anything resembling a real schedule. I produce as the inspiration comes. Still, I never seem to have enough time to make all of the things that I have in my head.

Who do you look up to?

I look up to children, and those adults who remember their inner child.

As you lived in the streets, is there a story you want to tell that has not yet been written?

There is one graffiti related story that is on an old SyQuest computer disc from back when I was in design school. I would love to publish that, but I haven’t found a way to get the story off the disc it's on. Nobody has SyQuest drives anymore.

Name three objects indispensable for you.

Computer, printer and paper.

Name three websites worth mentioning.

www.wemakezines.com
www.giantrobot.com
www.fecalface.com

Shaolin Break Dancing

2011-09-21T04:12:00.032-07:00

Rock Steady Crew members Mr. Wiggles and Ken Swift have often pointed out that the spinning moves of breaking were inspired by movements gleaned from martial arts flicks. Jackie Chan is one screen fighter who has been specifically cited by Wiggles, and I have seen at least two Jackie flicks that seem to insinuate the foundation of the move known as the "continuous" backspin.

Rock Steady Crew

Crazy Legs, an early member of Rock Steady, is often documented as the 3rd major contributor to the development of the floor move that we know today as the backspin. But the first b-boys that history records as employing the move were Jojo (who founded Rock Steady in 1977), followed by another guy named Mongo.

Crazy Legs, who joined Jojo's crew a year later, took the backspin further by extending it into the continuous spin, which is much more popularly known today as the "windmill."

Interestingly, Jackie Chan's Drunken Master was released to theaters in 1978, the same year that Legs joined Rock Steady. This has made me think that it might be plausible that the move that led to the continuous was adapted from Jackie's star-turning final battle in Drunken Master. Or maybe it was his final fight from Snake in Eagle's Claw (1978)...or Fearless Hyena (1979).

The Eight Immortals

As an aside, I think it's also worth noting that the film's "8 Drunken Gods" fighting styles were based on the Eight Immortals of Buddhism-infused Taoism. But I point this out only because a buddy of mine rags on religion endlessly, and I can't help but be amused at the irony: The footprint of religion can be found on nearly everything he loves, including martial arts and ostensibly even breaking–by less than six degrees of separation.

Anyway, as a Martial Arts Movie-Watching Grand Master™, I've studied well over one hundred martial arts flicks. This rambling post has now actually got me thinkin' that if I put my highly disciplined mind to it, I could probably come up with five or six kung-fu movies that show the fighting moves upon which several b-boy floor moves are based. But this thought could also be a sign that I'm severely sleep deprived.

Still, one film that quickly comes to mind is Holy Robe of Shaolin. I readily acknowledge that this film was released in 1985, when the spinning floor moves of breaking were already firmly established. But it still offers an exceptional example of what I like to think of as the "Shaolin backspin." (See below)

Holy Robe of Shaolin

Unfortunately, the YouTube poster has embedding disabled, hence only a sad screen capture. But the full clip (which you can see here) is just over a minute long, and features several quick displays of the famous fighting styles for which the Buddhist monks of the Shaolin Temple are known.

"Buddha's name be praised." – Shaolin and Wu Tang (1981)

KFG4 Reviewed by Broken Pencil

2011-09-11T00:01:00.003-07:00

Kung Fu Grip!
Perzine, issue #4: Things In Life, St. Paco, 7730 East Broadway #925, Tucson, Arizona, 85710, USA, kungfugripzine.com, $2

With a title like Kung Fu Grip! and plenty of cheesy vintage comic book ads, I was expecting to find a zine mocking '70s culture. Instead I got a tremendously thoughtful, introspective, intelligent, well-written zine. This zine made my day.

In the intro, Paco discusses the time lapse between issues three and four, how he lost his job and has struggled to get published in other mediums and the passing of his father. The latter is just mentioned briefly but, as you read on, you can feel its influence ripple through the pages.

Included in this issue is an article Paco wrote about the historical treatment and presentation of Negritos (Asia's "little blacks") that originally appeared in Giant Robot and an extended piece in which he writes about his final months with his father and the influence his parent had on his life. "I told myself that I wasn't going to eulogize my father," he writes, but once he realizes he is doing just that, he doesn't shy away. What he ends up creating is a beautiful tribute. " I have experienced nothing as rewarding as having the chance to help my father as best I could during the time when he needed me most. If I never accomplish anything else worth writing about, I know that I accomplished that," he says. Ironically it is something worth writing about and provides a moment all too rare when we're reminded of the power words can have and the perfect simplicity of the medium of zines to convey those messages.

– Harley R. Pageot
Broken Pencil Magazine (Canada)

Densha Otoko (Train Man)

2011-09-07T04:41:00.021-07:00

Thumbing through an old copy of The Source (August 1993), a photo at the top of the "Graf Flix" page leaped out at me. The picture shows a train that was painted by my San Diego buddy, Sake. When the flick was published I didn't know Sake, but had seen his work in The Source and a few other mags, including Phase 2’s I.G. Times, I believe.

Click to enlarge

Anyway, 13 or so years later I ended up meeting Sake and doing an art show in San Diego with him and our mutual homies Mikey and my Joey, who were both part of the crew that introduced us. I didn't know what to expect of the show and really didn't put my best foot forward with the paintings that I did. But Sake, Mikey and Joey picked up my artistic slack.

Now, what really gets me at the moment is that it didn't occur to me until now that I had actually come to know Sake's work from this photo when it was published all those years ago. Pretty amazing.

Another noteworthy item on the magazine page itself is the photo of the blue & pink "Hyero" piece. It was painted by the now legendary Mike Giant. I first encountered Giant's work when he and his crew came through Chicago in '92, and left some beastly graff in our version of the Hall of Fame (see previous post). If memory serves, some guys I knew from the Ice Pack Crew showed him where it was, and he gives them a shout out on this page, too.

Click to enlarge

Looking at Sake's photo once again, I notice that he dedicated the freight piece to his then-girlfriend-and-now-wife Chyna. But he also gave a shout out to Giant in the short list on the right side of his piece. I don't know if it's actually Mike or another Giant, so I'll have to check with him. (Or Sake could just read this post and drop me a note in Google Reader, since we see each other's online shares.)

Giant circa 1992, Chicago

2011-09-07T04:18:00.009-07:00

18th Street Hall of Fame, Chicago

Archive #7: Battalia

2011-09-02T01:50:00.019-07:00

When I wasn't even looking for it, I found a hard copy version of a logo I designed back in '95 for a comic book character that I was roughing out then named Battalia (bat-al-ee-yah). I can't remember the last time I actually looked at it. I was fairly certain that the image was saved to a floppy disk stored on a shelf, but who has a floppy drive anymore?

After rediscovering the logo, I was promptly saddled with the grand idea of finally collecting the synopsis and a short story that I wrote back then with the half-dozen Battalia sketches that were made into a little booklet known in the comic book industry an ashcan.

Click image to enlarge

Unfortunately, though, reality quickly set in and I found myself mentally wrestling against putting so much effort into a 15-year-old idea that I had no real plans to use. Battalia was a product of another time, and a phase that I was going through at that time.

When Battalia was created, I was a student trying to find my creative path. Her creation didn't even have anything to do with the instruction I was receiving at that time, but grew out of the interactions that I was having with other artist friends, both in and around that environment.

She represented a possible way for me to synthesize where I was creatively–a chance to fuse my appreciation for science fiction, animation, comics, art deco, art nouveau and the new design world that was opening up to me as a student. Batallia was a really good idea, but maybe she was nothing more than that.

Click image to enlarge

Had I much more skill (and patience) as an illustrator, it's possible that the project would have gone a lot further. Despite my limitations, I find that I am still quite happy with the images that I managed to get down onto paper. And for the ideas that she gave me the opportunity to channel, the beautiful Battalia still means a great deal to me. Maybe she and I will meet again before the year I set her adventures in: 2039.

Click image to enlarge

Graphic Design 102: "It's Like That"

2011-08-20T12:37:00.029-07:00

My homeboy DJ Darrell D (of the previously mentioned Jamille Records) recently asked me to do some design work for his label. The first job was a fold-out cover for the special edition version of Two-Tone's "Time to Rhyme/Jazz It Up" 7-inch vinyl record; the full piece folds out to a 22" x 14.5" poster. And the second job was for a Jamille Records promo sticker.

As you can see, the record cover (above) features a vintage photograph of the Two-Tone crew taken with one of those cheap, portable camera's that most of us had back in the day. The duo never really had a logo, so I roughed out a few designs and went with the one that I thought best reflected a crew named "Two-Tone."

The fold-out poster concept was based on something that Darrell sent me which was originally used by a UK pop duo–who shall not be named. All I will say is that it was not Wham. Since I was basically working off of a previous work, I was able to take some shortcuts on the front, hence the clip art-style images in two frames.

The dollar sign in the bottom frame was inspired by the large gold charm dangling from the chain of D.E. Fresh. Continuing with the gold theme, I added gold lightning bolts to the radio antenna. The name of the crew was also added to the cassette, but I decided that a blank tape worked best.

The front side has six sections that measure out to 7.25" x 7.25" squares, and it was a bit of a challenge initially to get the layout balanced for the actual folding. When I printed a miniature proof version, though, it came out perfectly–and that's mainly because I am a genius on the DL.

With the exception of the front and back covers, the secondary point of a production like this is the poster itself. As you can see below, another vintage Two-Tone photograph was used here, but the final version has the name of the crew in gold near the bottom right corner.

With the much bigger job out of the way, I moved on to the sticker designs. I actually wound up designing five of 'em, but I'm only posting the two primary stickers here.

As is the case with many DJs, Run-D.M.C.'s Jam Master Jay means a lot to Darrell D. Because my client is also a friend, I know that Fat Albert is his all-time favorite cartoon character. So, I went with an idea that incorporates those elements, remixed with the Def Jam Records logo. (The black bar at the bottom hints at the Run-D.M.C. logo.)

Who wudda' thunk that Fat Albert would look so fresh in a fedora? ME, that's who.

Taking the previous sticker design one step backward, it was only natural to try something using the actual Run-D.M.C. logo. Yes, I know that there have been countless permutations of this "remix" over the years, but I wasn't going to let that stop me from doing one to see how it would look.

When the layout was done, I thought that the "Jam Rec" abbreviation worked out perfectly and went ahead with it as my secondary design. D actually loved it when he saw it, and I was glad that I didn't let the fact that it's already been done deter me from what I thought spoke to Darrell D as a hardcore fan of Jam Master Jay and the Hollis Crew.

Tairrie B - "Murder She Wrote" (1990)

2011-08-07T05:54:00.011-07:00

First Nick Fury, and now...

2011-08-06T04:58:00.022-07:00

...Miles Morales, Marvel Comics' amazing new Spider-Man.

When the story first broke on Wednesday of this week, I didn't know what to think about the surprising introduction of a young, Tiger Woods-looking wall crawler to Marvel's parallel comic book universe (known as the Ultimate Comics line). After reading an interview with editor Joe Quesada @ Comic Book Resources, I've since made up my mind and look forward to seeing just what fan-favorite writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Sara Pichelli will do with this 21st century web-slinger.

If you're already getting a steady four-color fix, I don't have to tell you how to 'score'. But if you don't know the whereabouts of your local comics dealer, just toss your preferred zip code into the handy dandy Comic Shop Locator and...SHAZAM! You're on your way to unlocking the mystery of all that has been missing from your life.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #1 will be in stores on Wednesday, September 7th. Mark your calendar and make sure to swing by your friendly neighborhood comic shop.

Jamille Records rocks the radio!

2011-08-02T22:57:00.009-07:00

Jamille Records is a small independent label that specializes in limited edition 7" vinyl. The label was founded by my homeboy Darrell D to pay homage to the hip-hop music that was coming out of his beloved hometown of Milwaukee in the '80s and '90s. Two weeks ago, the Jamille label was given a 30-minute dedication set on Minnesota Public Radio's Redefinition Hour. Listeners of the show got a nice audio Polaroid of the fresh music that was being made in the beer capital of the world back in the day. The show starts off with a classic track by the Ill Chief Rockers ("I Got A Rock And I'm Gonna Hit You With It"), and continues with a great set of not only music, but really interesting Milwaukee hip-hop history. If you want to get a serious taste of some old school Midwestern flavor, just lick your chops and head over to Redefinition Radio by clicking here.

The Deadly Art of Black Dynamite

2011-08-01T08:09:00.010-07:00

On August 8th (next Monday), the pilot for Cartoon Network's Black Dynamite will air during the network's Adult Swim. To mark this righteous occasion, I've whipped together a lil' gallery of some of the super bad BD-related imagery that I've seen during my various trips down the rough-and-tumble back streets and alleyways of the internet.

Submitted for your perusal, the deadly art of...

Click any image to enlarge

David Choe

Dustin D'Arnault

Dan Barrett (WonderDookie)

"Black Dynamite vs. Sugar Hill" by Armando Zanker

Jeremy Wheeler

Jun Lofamia

"Black Dynamite Machete" by Elvin Hernandez

Unfortunately, the actual show doesn't begin airing until Spring of 2012. Based on what can be gleaned from the teaser trailer, though (uh...you have seen the teaser trailer, right?), Cartoon Network will be rewarding Black Dynamite fans handsomely for their patience.

A Shanghai Surprise!

2011-07-30T21:27:00.025-07:00

It seems that I blogged a little too prematurely. The magazine that came in the mail today hadn't even been opened when the previous piece was quickly tapped out. Lurkin' within those innocent-lookin' pages was a skillfully orchestrated Shanghai surprise. Check out the rest!

Page 9

Page 11

Page 13

Page 15

Page 17

Page 19

Art sheet by the Grand Imperial DJ Mane One stuck between pages 26 & 27

Art sheet by Storm (pencils) & Drah (inks) stuck between pages 36 & 37

Art sheet by Drah stuck between pages 44 & 45

Page 52

Stuck between pages 76 & 77

Artists' tags on page 80

Oh...my...Godzilla. I was laughin' my @s$ off at every new surprise. My only wish is that I had been having a really bad day when I pulled this monster outta the mailbox, because it would have lifted me out of the dumps. Crazy shout outs to my homeboys Stormko, Mane One and Drah! You ninjas got me good. Many thanks, muchas gracias & domo arigato!!!!!!!!

A Personal Touch

2011-07-30T20:01:00.012-07:00

Anime Insider ("Used & Abused" variant cover)

Only because I made it to the Phoenix-con this past May am I not crushed that – like hundreds of others – I didn't get a pass to attend the con in San Diego. One of my homeboys somehow scored a pass, and I considered asking him if he could send me one of the complimentary souvenir books. I didn't feel like being a bother, though, and let him go in peace.

Opening up the mailbox today, I was surprised to find an over-sized envelope from San Diego inside. Even without my asking, my homeboy still sent me a copy of the souvenir book. Best of all, he also included a mildly beat up copy of Anime Insider from 2009, which featured a cover story on Afro Samurai: Resurrection.

Written on the cover in white, gold and black paint marker is "Used & Abused #1." Admittedly, I chuckle every time I look at it. But I also find it amazing how a personal touch like that can turn a beat up magazine into something I'll treasure for days and maybe even years to come.

Thank you, Arashi.

DJ Mane One's 30 Minute Mix #97

2011-07-27T00:41:00.007-07:00

Well, the countdown to #100 is on. That golden number represents the end (but hopefully just an extended hiatus) of DJ Mane One's weekly 30 Minute Mix. Number 97 hit the web earlier tonight, and Mane has issued me the directive to "protect ya neck" while head noddin' to this mix. I told him that I'm prolly just gonna do a few warm-up exercises to Kanye's "Work-Out Tape" before pressin' play on iTunes. What can I say? It's just the price you pay for graduating to the old school.

Shout outs to Mane One for the music, and to Zone of Wild Style Technicians for flexin' the mucho ill graffiti skills!

The 30 Minute Mix #97

1. Joint Right Here - Grand Puba
2. Emcees Smoke Crack Remix - Edan
3. Cause and Effect - Sojourn
4. Do You Wanna Hear It - Nubian Crackers/Artifacts
5. Jayou Remix -Jurassic 5
6. Here's a Smirk - Charizma & Peanut Butter Wolf
7. Come Get Me - Nas
8. Doe or Die - AZ/Raekwon
9. 1nce Again - O.C.
10. Watch How It Go Down - Termanology
11. Welcome Intro - Sojourn
12. Win Or Lose - Mobb Deep
13. Here I Go Again - Jean Plum

To listen online or to download, click here.

A Friendly Reminder

2011-07-24T16:47:00.004-07:00

This message comes to you courtesy of NonStopNerds.

Howard, the Mighty Duck

2011-07-21T16:21:00.006-07:00

It was mentioned some weeks back that I scored a nice low-grade copy of Howard the Duck #1 at Phoenix-con for a dollar. Now, I wasn't even a fan of this comic when I was shortie. It was actually during adulthood that I acquired an appreciation for the adventures of the angst-filled fowl who was cursed by being "trapped in a world he never made!"

It's also been mentioned that I'm a big fan of the late artist Gene Colan. The majority of the books published under this title were illustrated by him, and it was mainly because of Colan that I ended up giving Howard the Duck a second 'gander'. In so doing, I came to understand how the book achieved cult-favorite status with older comic book readers in the 1970s.

Not only did Howard the Duck contain page after page of great illustration by artists like Val Mayerik, Frank Brunner and Gene Colan, the book also offered surprisingly intelligent story-telling by writer Steve Gerber, who co-created the character with Mayerik.

While flipping through the worn out copies of Subway Art and Spraycan Art in my studio, I was recently reminded of the impact that Howard the Duck comics also made on the first generation of graffiti artists. As illustrated here, a whole-car by Seen & PJay (1980) and a wall mural by Lee (1981) once served as spray-painted testaments to this cigar-puffing duck's popularity back in the day.

Click to enlarge

P.S. If you're wonderin' why the George Lucas produced Howard the Duck movie wasn't referenced here, it's because that movie sucked moo-goo-guy-ass™.

[MP3] Invisible Enigma - Supreme Shogun

2011-07-21T11:46:00.015-07:00

"Now if any of you sons of @#&$% got anything else to say..."

Hardeep, my ninja over at Word is Bond, sent me a new track that he got in the mail from Invisible Enigma, a young MC outta Nigeria. Quite on the money, 'Deep assumed that it would be the kinda track that I would dig and I am indeed diggin' it. As a matter of fact, "Supreme Shogun" makes me wanna grab my katana off the wall, slip on my gold and black Onitsuka Tiger sneakers and kick in the door of a rival crime family. So, um... while I go get busy right quick, check out the free debut single from Enigma's upcoming mixtape, Desultory.

So sayeth...

St. Paco

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://str8buttah.bandcamp.com/album/supreme-shogun-single"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Supreme Shogun Single by The Invisible Enigma&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Rock Steady Break Beats Mixtapes

2011-07-18T20:11:00.011-07:00

One thing that collecting can often give you is bragging rights. Whether it's comic books, baseball cards or vinyl records, the best way to show how 'down' you are is by showing off cool items in your collection that serve as tangible expressions of your passion or interest in a subject.

I consider myself an early adopter of hip-hop culture and have lots of stuff that shows just how long I've been down. The best examples are my records, but they're all back in Chicago. Well, I do have all my old school graffiti photos, but that's another story...

Well, when I got my hands on a series of four Rock Steady Break Beats mixtapes produced by Mr. Wiggles of the Rock Steady Crew, they reminded me of the kinds of cool stuff that I have back in Chi-town. And it wasn't so much the music that did it, but the graffiti-flavored imagery on the cassette inserts and on the cassettes themselves.

These mixtapes were put out by Wiggles in the mid-1990s, which is when I bought 'em at the previously mentioned Style Rock Shop. I listened to 'em quite a bit, too, but it's probably been more than a decade now since I've felt the need. I have my old boom box in the closet, but whenever I pull it out it's usually to listen to even older cassettes of radio broadcasts from Chicago.

In the process of digitizing the inserts illustrated by Wiggles for this blog post, I decide that my Rock Steady Break Beats mixtapes would go the way of Ebay. I've got my memories and now some really good scans that I can use to document some of the cool items that I once had in my collection.

With or without 'em, I'll always be 'down by law.'

Rock Steady Break Beats Vol. 1

Rock Steady Break Beats Vol. 2

Rock Steady Break Beats Vol. 3: Shaolin Break Beats

Rock Steady Break Beats Vol. 4

Rock Steady Break Beats (Blog Remix)

2011-07-18T20:02:00.010-07:00

I wrote the preceding post a few weeks ago, and actually did put the Rock Steady Break Beats cassettes up on Ebay. For, perhaps, pretty obvious reasons, Vol. 3 (Shaolin Break Beats) was my favorite of the tapes, and the one that I least wanted to part with.

It was actually the first one that I bought, too.

Well, I put all four of 'em up and only three of 'em sold. The one I liked most is the one that is still in my possession. I'll take it as a sign that I should keep it. Haha.

Best of all, though, the first tape ended up in the hands of a new homeboy in Germany. This guy had been looking for Rock Steady Break Beats Vol. 1 for 15 years! And it was indeed 15 years ago (1996) when I bought my copy. Anyway, here's a note from Sahin and a photo:

Hello Paco...

You cannot imagine how I am delighted with this mixtape !!! For me this tape means very much, because it was the beginning of my breakdancing time. After 15 years, I finally have it and I'm very happy about it. Thank you.

– Sahin

Sahin and his hip-hop Holy Grail

Perhaps even better than bragging rights, I think that the other cool thing about collecting is getting the chance to pass somethin' along to someone who values it even more than you do.

Rock. Steady.

And on that note...

2011-07-18T20:01:00.002-07:00

Lord. Have. Mercy.

[Video] Ryu Black: Metsu Ansatsuken

2011-07-17T02:04:00.005-07:00

Ryu Black (aka Ravage the MeccaGodzilla) has released a music video for "Metsu Ansatsuken," that slow-moving beast of a track from the Street Fighter inspired album Perfect 天. Also boastin' the killer body moves of Ruby Red, a dancehallin' diva from Taiwan, this vid was shot 'secret wars' style on the back streets and rooftops of Japan.

Get 'cha head nods on.

Metsu = destroying
Ansatsuken = assassin's fist

George Lucas on the need for peers.

2011-07-17T01:47:00.003-07:00

Francis Ford Coppola & George Lucas

"There's no way of getting through any kind of endeavor without help from friends. And trying to be the number one person, ultimately, is a losing proposition. You need peers, you need people who are at the same level you are. You never know in life when you're going to need help, and you never know who you're going to need it from."

– George Lucas

Crisis in Electric Ladyland

2011-07-11T07:11:00.004-07:00

COMMITTEE FOR THE EQUAL
DISTRIBUTION OF SUPER POWERS
1976 S. Isabella W. Cockrum Avenue, Suite 500
Washington, DC 20002

"CRISIS IN ELECTRIC LADYLAND"

July 11, 2011

To all whom this matter may concern:

It has come to the attention of the Committee for the Equal Distribution of Super Powers (CEDSP) that there are at present as many as ten (10) black characters in comic books and cartoons whose names, powers, or visible manifestations of power are related to electricity. Included in an initial report filed with the CEDSP in 2009 were the names of the following four (4) characters:

STORM

BLACK LIGHTNING

STATIC SHOCK

JAKEEM THUNDER

As an organization whose primary concern is the equal distribution of super powers, the CEDSP has drafted this 6-part notice to inform publishers that the quota for black characters with names and powers directly or superficially related to electricity has been grossly exceeded. Please be advised that no additional characters beyond those presently in existence will be permitted.

––––––

PART II.
EXHIBITS A-D

EXHIBIT A: STORM

EXHIBIT B: BLACK LIGHTNING

EXHIBIT C: STATIC SHOCK

EXHIBIT D: JAKEEM THUNDER

––––––

PART III.
CLARIFICATIONS

In the interest of reaching a full and complete understanding with all concerned parties, we say again that the Committee for the Equal Distribution of Super Powers henceforth prohibits the creation of any new superheroes of African ancestry whose names, powers or visible manifestations of power have any relation (either loosely or literally) to the following:

e•lec•tri•ci•ty n 1. a fundamental form of kinetic potential energy created by the free or controlled movement of charged particles such as electrons, positrons and ions

juice n (slang) electric power

light•ning n flashes of light seen in the sky where there is a discharge of atmospheric electricity usually occurring during a thunderstorm.

shock n a sudden painful physical reaction consisting of nerve stimulation and muscle contraction caused by an electric current flowing through the body

stat•ic n a stationary electric charge that builds up on an insulated object, for example, on a capacitor or a thundercloud

storm n 1. a disturbance in the air above the earth with strong winds and usually with also rain, snow, sleet, or hail and sometimes lightning and thunder

thun•der n 1. a loud rumbling noise caused by the rapid expansion of air suddenly heated by lightning

––––––

PART IV.
ASSESSMENTS

It will hereby be observed that in our initial report it was noted that from 1975 (when the Marvel Comics superhero known as Storm was created) until the present time Marvel has consistently and ethically maintained a quota of one (1) black character with powers directly or superficially related to electricity. The members of the CEDSP applaud Marvel Comics for this achievement.

Conversely, however, DC Comics has grossly exceeded the quota and ignored ethical guidelines by having five (5) such characters in its comics. Even more... shocking, four (4) more characters of this type were created by affiliates of DC Comics for use in animated TV shows. Included in a secondary report filed with the CEDSP in 2010 were the names of these additional characters:

THUNDER

LIGHTNING

BLACK VULCAN

SOUL POWER

SPARKY

JUICE

Because the CEDSP believes it should shoulder at least some of the responsibility for failing to prevent the disproportionate distribution of names and super-powers directly or superficially related to electricity to as many as ten (10) different black characters in comics and cartoons, no penalties for the infractions cited above will be assessed.

Be advised, however, that harsh penalties will be levied henceforth and forthwith against any and all parties who knowingly and willingly or unknowingly and unwillingly conspire to create yet another superhero of African ancestry whose name or power is either directly or superficially related to electricity. After 35 years, this insidious practice must come to an end.

––––––

PART V.
EXHIBITS E-G

EXHIBIT E: BLACK VULCAN, LIGHTNING, THUNDER

EXHIBIT F: SPARKY, SOUL POWER, JUICE

EXHIBIT G: JAKEEM THUNDER & THE GENIE "THUNDERBOLT"

––––––

PART VI.
CONCLUSION

Because the CEDSP also believes in working as an agent of positive change, members of the committee have determined that quotas for black characters with abilities derived from every other known power grouping have NOT yet been exceeded. These include: fire, ice, speed, intelligence, radioactivity, magic, martial arts, robotics, genetic mutation, mythology, alien ancestry, wealth and childhood trauma.

Please note, however, that though the quota for the speed grouping has not yet been exceeded, it should be avoided. Track & field statistics dating to as far back as 1936 have rendered powers from this grouping extremely unimaginative and cliché. Furthermore, the speed grouping can be superficially linked to electricity, as in: That Usain Bolt guy is as fast as lightning.

For private inquiries related to this extremely sensitive issue, please e-mail questions to the Committee for the Equal Distribution of Super Powers. For any concerned parties who are at the present time prepared to make public statements regarding this matter, please feel free to post a comment in the area designated below.

Thank you.

St. Paco
CEDSP Chairman

To download a pdf file of this document, please click here.

"Crisis in Electric Ladyland" © Paco D. Taylor 2011 • Storm ™ & © Marvel Characters, Inc. • All DC Comics characters and the distinctive likeness(es) thereof are Trademarks & Copyright © DC Characters, Inc.

In memory of Dwayne McDuffie & Gene Colan

Jimi Hendrix - Have You Ever Been...

2011-07-10T23:01:00.000-07:00

Buddha's Palm (Shaw Brothers, 1982)

2011-07-09T01:18:00.008-07:00

There are hundreds of martial arts flicks, but almost nothing like the 1982 Shaw Brother's film Buddha's Palm. It's 85% martial arts, 10% special effects and 5% animation, which measures out to 100% of an arse kickin' good time. This movie is also high atop the list of martial arts movies that I love, but don't yet own. And as far as I can tell, it has never been released domestically– which is exactly why I don't yet own it. I'd be happy to have a bootleg, but I haven't seen any of those for sale anywhere either. If the trailer piques your interest, look for a streaming version of it online. That's how I got the chance to watch it sometime last year.

The Camera Club of NY Zine & Book Fair

2011-07-08T23:49:00.011-07:00

Over the upcoming weekend of July 16th & 17th, the Camera Club of New York will be hosting its 2nd Annual Zine and Self-Published Photo Book Fair. I will have copies of Page After Page and Octopussy #1 on hand for both perusal and purchase. If you happen to be in the Manhattan area, feel free stop by and browse the racks. There's gonna be a great selection of zines and other self-published works there to satisfy even the most discriminating of tastes. For more information, please visit the CCNY website by clicking here.

The 2nd Annual Zine and Self-Published Photo Book Fair
Saturday, July 16 & Sunday, July 17, 2011, 12-6pm
The Camera Club of New York
336 West 37th Street, Suite 206
New York, NY 10018-4212

Finding Fast Willie Jackson

2011-07-02T16:53:00.017-07:00

Finding Fast Willie Jackson
By St. Paco

The "Say No to Racism" sign in the window of R-Galaxy, a comic book shop located a few blocks away from the University of Arizona, should have been the first tip-off that something good was waiting inside for me among the store's numerous back issue boxes. But it would take some time for me to realize what was really 'in store' for me there.

The sign, by the way, is one of two at the shop which makes plain the proprietor's view on SB1070, the apartheid-like law that targets Arizona's Latino population. Knowing first-hand how often Arizonans say "yes" to racism (there're still lots of backwards idiots here who yell racial slurs from passing cars), the signs are a bold step for any business owner, and I applaud them.

When I first moved to Tucson back in January of 2000, R-Galaxy was located two miles west of where I lived on Broadway. At that time, I would visit the store at least twice a month. But after they moved, two other comic book shops opened on my side of town and I saw no need to travel to central Tucson to visit the store's present location.

Well, a few days ago I was on that side of town taking care of some business. R-Galaxy is only half a block away from where I was handling my affairs, so when things were finished, I stopped in to check out the store. And – for more than just political reasons – I'm really glad that I did.

I'm not sure of exactly how many back issue boxes are inside R-Galaxy, but if there's one hundred, then I went through all one hundred. I mean, nothing sucks like walking out of a comic book store empty-handed because you were simply too lazy to "let your fingers do the walking." So, I always make sure that my digits get the full back-issue-box-work-out.

Side note: My record collectin' homies tend to consider themselves masters of the exquisite art of "digging," but I tend to think that it was comic book collector's who first studied and perfected this ancient shopping discipline. As for me, I have mastered the Iron Fist, the Snake in Eagle's Claw and the Dim Mak (death touch) digging techniques.

Fast Willie Jackson #1, Oct. 1976

For some months I had been waiting for a copy of Fast Willie Jackson #1 to pop up on Ebay that fit my buying criteria, in terms of both condition and price. I had seen some low-grade copies going for surprisingly high prices, and high-grade copies going for as much as $50 bucks– which is much more than I wanted to spend on a high-grade copy.

Well, it was near the end of my search through the last of the back issue boxes when my fingers flexed and flicked up a copy of Fast Willie Jackson #1– in surprisingly good condition, too! Almost near mint, but not quite due to some wrinkling at the cover's top right corner. But it was better than most of the copies I've seen posted on Ebay and priced to sell at $11.95!

Page 1

Now, you'll just have to forgive me for the forthcoming allusion to the 1960s civil rights struggles (I mean, R-Galaxy has two "Say No to Racism" signs), but I still had to chuckle at the seeming irony of it all when I found the book and then thought to myself in the most sarcastic tone: I would find a book like this at the very back of one of the last back issue boxes.

Moving back the same way I came, I strolled in reverse through the isles to make sure that I didn't miss out on any other old school coolness. But I couldn't find anything else like what I'd come up with. When I walked up to the counter to pay for my find, even the cashier (and part-owner?) had to make an expression of surprise when she saw the book's badness for herself.

Page 8

Published in 1976 by Fitzgerald publications (in the virtually line-for-line art style of Archie Comics), Fast Willie Jackson only ran for seven issues. As such, I didn't know anything about the title's existence until about a year ago, and had been periodically on the hunt for the first issue ever since. Now the hunt – for this one particular book, at least – is over.

Sock it to me, mami.

Archive #6: The Sure Shot Flyer Rockers

2011-07-02T15:36:00.008-07:00

When I moved to AZ in the mid-1990s, I met and became fast friends with the crew behind Tempe's now gone, but legendary Style Rock Hip Hop Shop. From Kangol brims, vintage Adidas Run-DMC jerseys and suede Puma Clydes, to b-boy breaking videos, spray tips, fat laces and graffiti mags, the Style Rock Shop had it all– and had it in spades.

To promote the shop, a weekly series of handbills were made by Style Rock staffers Storm (aka Weapon X) and RobGoblen. The dynamic duo rocked these flyers under the collective moniker of Sure Shot Flyer Rockers, a name that – for folks like myself – recalled the freshness of New York's "sure shot" flyer rocking king Phase 2.

Some time back, Storm gave me a rough idea of how many of these flyers had been made over the span of a few years, but I can't recall that number now. I only collected nine of 'em, which isn't at all being said as a lament; until today I didn't recall having any at all. And even a small collection of these flyers gives a nice snapshot of a very cool time in Phoenix-metro area hip-hop.

Submitted for your perusal: the Style Rock Shop flyers.

Bruce Lee on human potential.

2011-07-01T14:12:00.001-07:00

"Ever since I was a child I have had this instinctive urge for expansion and growth. To me, the function and duty of a quality human being is the sincere and honest development of one's potential."

– Bruce Lee

Goin' Postal...er, "Digital"

2011-06-25T13:43:00.002-07:00

I've mentioned in my zine and maybe even here in the blog that when I was a design student, I would save cool-lookin' pages from magazines that I was about to toss. Quite frequently, a lot of those sheets met the business end of an X-Acto™ knife, and the images they held were layered into collage pieces that I was rockin' at that time. Other pages were stored away in binders to be mined later for inspiration or design ideas.

Well, it has been in my head to do this for some time now, but I have finally begun to digitize a lot of the stuff that was collected then. Those old pages don't appear to have much influence on my current work, but I still can't bring myself to just trash 'em. Digitizing and uploading them to share on the web seems like a much better way to go. There's lots of blog-able material there.

I've decided that some of the pages will be tagged or watermarked and some won't. It just really depends on how I feel at the time. This isn't being done to assume some undeserved credit for the actual imagery, but because it's my ass that has kept these items safely archived for 15+ years, and also my ass that is doing the job of digitizing them for posterity. (I say this for the pricks out there who complain about watermarks on images–like me!)

There are other things that I have collected over the years that will also be scanned for posting, like comics, graphic novels and even mixtapes. And there's a good reason for all of this.

Unexpectedly, when I changed the name of this blog a few weeks back it caused a sizable focus shift. I'm feeling free to take a real 'anything goes' approach to blogging. So, from now on I'll be hittin' cyberspace with anything and everything that I can get my hands on. If it ain't nailed down, I'm coming with it.

Gene Colan (Sept 1, 1926 – June 23, 2011)

2011-06-23T13:06:00.000-07:00

Giant Size Chillers Featuring Dracula #1, June 1974

Just yesterday I was just reading one of the books that I bought at Phoenix Con that the legendary Gene Colan penciled. A lot of the comic books in my 1970s stash are there specifically because his art graced the pages: Daredevil #137, Doctor Strange #17, Howard the Duck #26 and Tomb of Dracula #45, especially.

Even when I was eleven years old, when I didn't exactly recognize Jack Kirby's art on sight, I recognized Gene Colan's art. And of all the old school masters, he's the one that I most wish I had the chance to meet.

Archive #5: Versace + Madonna

2011-06-23T08:51:00.003-07:00

Versace Presents Madonna

Exactly which mag it was that the item pictured above was removed from from I cannot say (Harper's Bazar?), but it's a fold-out folio that features five black & white photographs by photographer Steven Meisel. When it's completely unfolded, the other side reveals a full-color poster (21" x 21") featuring a really sexy shot of the material girl in a shimmery, violet-colored dress.

At the time that I was trashing the mag that this insert was in, I thought it was just too cool to discard, so it got saved to the image archive. But while I've always had an appreciation for her as an artist, I've never been a collector of Madonna-related ephemera. So this one is gonna get listed on Ebay the next time I post items. With all hope, I'll find a home for it with a big Madonna fan.

Archive #4: Fall into the Gap

2011-06-23T08:26:00.007-07:00

Miles Davis wore khakis.

Even when I think back to my teens, I don't remember ever purchasing anything from the Gap. Nonetheless, I was impressed with their 1990s ad series which featured monotone images of various pop culture figures all wearing khakis. I don't know how many of these were produced, but 15 of 'em were saved to the archive. Submitted for your perusal: the GAP Khaki ads.

Legendary

Muhammad Ali

Chet Baker

Salvador Dali

Sammy Davis Jr.

James Dean

Jack Kerouac

Elia Kazan

Carol Lombard

Steve McQueen

Arthur Miller

Andy Warhol

John Wayne

Zsa Zsa Gabor

Archive #3: Paramount Parodies

2011-06-23T08:21:00.006-07:00

Paramount Pictures clearly knew a good thing when they saw it. So, when it came time to promote their 1992 Coneheads movie, the marketing department produced this fairly clever parody of the Gap Khaki ads. It was running in magazines at the same time the Gap khaki ads were, and made a very amusing impression. Probably a better one than the movie itself.

Archive #2: Georges Marciano's Guess Girl

2011-06-16T05:02:00.011-07:00

In Remembrance of Anna Nicole Smith, 1967 - 2007
By St. Paco

It could be said that I was something of an Anna Nicole Smith fan. I liked her. I did. But, in my defense (since I now feel the need to adequately arm myself for making such a statement), I will say that my appreciation of Anna Nicole was formed long before she became the running tabloid joke that she was often seen as up until the day of her sad, drug-induced demise in February of 2007.

My appreciation of Anna Nicole started as her career began back in 1992. In May of that year, she appeared in Playboy magazine as its Playmate of the Month. I didn’t actually see her in Playboy–believe it or not. But Georges Marciano, the founder of Guess Jeans, saw her pictorial and quickly offered Smith a modeling contract. Within months, she would be seen in a classy series of black & white ads that graced the pages of countless magazines. That is when I first saw her.

At the time of Smith’s turn as Guess girl, I was a graphic design geek, tearing out all the cool-looking ads I found in the magazines that I read then like The Source, Details and GQ. Each tear sheet was then filed away to serve later as design reference or creative inspiration. To this day, tucked in a black binder in a closet in my apartment are eight or nine of Anna Nicole’s Guess ads.

When she appeared on the scene back in ‘92, Smith offered a curvaceous contrast to all the emaciated waif-types who were very much the new vogue then. Model Kate Moss, for example, revered throughout the industry for her pretty face and boyishly slim physique, worked for rival jeans maker Calvin Klein. In a model class all her own, the full-figured Smith (weighing in at 140 lbs at the time of her Playboy pictorial) was the antithesis of all super model anorexics.

While I’m more than aware of the trashy, tabloid-sized life she would ultimately lead, my first impression of Anna Nicole will always be rooted in those Guess ads. A time when she was just some nameless blond with an angelic face and a voluptuous bod. A silent beauty, figuratively speaking, who re-embodied those white bread Hollywood bombshells and pin-up girls of an age gone by like few women before her, and none since.

At her best, Anna Nicole Smith was the pretty, pudgy girl from Texas who gave the skinny bitches of the modeling world a run for their money. In spite of the worst that might be said about her, I’ll remember her for that.

Published in Kung Fu Grip! No. 3, Summer/Fall 1997

MP3: "Exception" by Mane One

2011-06-16T04:57:00.007-07:00

She likes to dance to a big band
Reciting all the lyrics to a Cool J jam
My 'around the way,' you got me goin' berserk
You can tell me why Picard is cooler than Captain Kirk
– Mane One

I wouldn't call my homie DJ Mane One's new song "Exception" nerd core, but it's straddlin' a pretty thin line. I mean, the tune is far from gangsta rap and not exactly backpack rap, but could qualify as a close cousin of the latter. And then again, like the name of the song itself, maybe this track is just an 'exception' to the usual rules of hip-hop cool. Thus, over a chopped-n-screwed Sam Cooke sample, Mane One waxes poetic over his idea of the perfect woman: an 'around the way girl' who can rap along to LL Cool J tunes, speed read Harry Potter novels and kick the ballistics on what makes Jean-Luc Picard the captain of all Enterprise captains. She disses Twilight, 'hearts' kung-fu flicks, sports Pro-Keds and can boogie with the best of the b-girls. Okay, homeboy's standards are so friggin' high that they could be considered hella unrealistic. But isn't that the stuff that every dream lover is made of?

Verdict: Mane One's kung fu does NOT suck.

Check out "Exception" by clicking here.

Archive #1: Another 'Great Day in Harlem'

2011-06-16T04:53:00.010-07:00

The original image is called "A Great Day in Harlem," and it's probably the single-most famous image associated the with the jazz music culture. Taken in 1958, within the image's borders stand 57 jazz musicians all assembled on the sidewalk and on the stairs of a Harlem brownstone. Artists like Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Coleman Hawkins, Mary Lou Williams and 51 other jazz greats.

In 1998, XXL magazine paid homage to "A Great Day in Harlem" by remixing the image with 144 contemporary hip-hop artists, and a smattering of actual hip-hop legends. Photographed by the even more legendary Gordon Parks, the fold-out cover graced the magazine's November issue. Submitted for your perusal: another 'great day in Harlem'

The Notorious B.M.P.

2011-06-16T04:46:00.004-07:00

Last year, when I thanked my ex for the small batch of movies that she sent me in the mail, I withheld the fact that I hadn't watched one of them. In fact, I purposely avoided seeing this one particular movie when it came out, and was a little put off by the fact that–because of her–I now had a copy of it on my shelves.

Well, fast forward to late last night: I wanted to watch a movie, but didn't feel like leaving the apartment to hit up the nearby Redbox. There also wasn't anything I owned that I felt like re-watching. So, I went ahead and popped in the flick that–for well more than a year–I had been avoiding like the monthly notices of a credit card company.

Back when The Notorious Bettie Page came out, I recall reading a decent review of the film. But the critic didn't make me feel as if it was something I wanted to see. Even more, despite the fact that it was basically a good review, somethin' seemed amiss in how the film impacted the critic. I saw that as a reflection on the writer/director Mary Harron.

Having Bettie Mae Page's story virtually committed to memory, there was no way I was gonna sit though some filmmaker's heavy-handed hack job that got dolled up as an "artistic vision." I had a pretty film idea of what went down in my head, and that made me extremely reluctant to give audience to someone else's version of the facts.

Because I had published a zine dedicated to Page a few years ago, I was also a tad bit concerned that I might have gotten something wrong. I'm pretty thorough when I research the subjects that I write about and try hard to avoid mistakes. And though I still find myself regularly making peace with typos and misspellings, I'm pretty hardcore when it comes to matters of fact.

Adding to my reluctance was another very real concern: that maybe some actress was given the role of Bettie Page because she was the casting directors' 4th cousin on her father's side. I didn't know who Gretchen Mol was, but based on what I saw in the trailer, and even on the DVD cover, she didn't come across like a "Bettie Page."

Well, after finally facing down my long list of concerns, I can say that something about that review I read was seriously amiss. But it wasn't because of the writer/director. It was the movie reviewer.

Like I said, the writer actually turned in a favorable a critique, but something wasn't connecting. I find myself now thinking that it was some young critic-in-training who didn't completely get it. I mean, sure, they recognized that it was a good movie (and it really, really was), but maybe it also came across like a history lesson, and history just wasn't their strong suit.

Or maybe they weren't so young at all, but still couldn't completely submit to the work because it didn't exactly conform to the sanctioned view of life in the 1950s.

I have older friends who like to pretend that life in America was so great in the '50s, and only got bad in the 60s and 70s. The brutal reality is that this country's dirty laundry was just finally getting aired, and the inconvenient truth was that our shit smelled just as bad as everybody else's. Maybe even more so, because people had lied to themselves and said it smelled like laundry detergent.

During the 1950s, intentional efforts were often made by publishers, editors and others to present a world through radio, magazines and movies that was largely falsified. And people (like the ones I know) clearly drank the Kool-Aid. But the times were not simple, and life was not like the then-weekly radio broadcasts of Father's Knows Best.

In the real world, children could get molested by their father's, women could get raped by "nice guys," and the careers of countless wannabe starlets could go from a screen test to a cum-stained casting couch, and no further. Exploitation in all its heartbreaking forms would be as rampant as in any other era, but people were too frightened into submission to talk about it.

As tastefully as such subjects could have been handled, it were those darker realities of life in the 1950s that were put on display in The Notorious Bettie Page. I can't say that the look was an unflinching one, but it was one of the boldest attempts that I've yet seen. And as disturbing as it could be sometimes be, it was also still refreshing to see that such issues were addressed.

With regard to actress Gretchen Mohl, I think that she did an excellent job. Much better than I ever would have expected, having known nothing about her before hand. I could tell that she studied her ass off for the role of Bettie Page, managing to even nail some of the famous pin-ups most subtle poses and facial expressions.

With the exception of the always likable Lily Taylor, I enjoyed the fact that there were no overly recognizable faces in this film. Well, there was one other guy whose face I recognized (playing a French photographer), but he was really good in the part, and looked a lot scruffier than when I saw him as a very clean-cut character in Chinese Box several years ago.

Well, David Strathairn (Good Night, Good Luck) was also in it, but he's such an understated actor that you almost forget who he is. And he didn't play a central part either, which really helped to keep me immersed in the illusions of the film

As far as the production, I thought it was very effective that the telling of the story was done mostly in black and white, with some splashes of color. From the trailer, and even the stills on the back of the DVD, it wasn't marketed that way. That was probably a smart move. There are two things that the average movie-watcher in the U.S. avoids: the first is subtitles, and the second is black and white movies.

Had I known in advance, though, that the film had been shot that way, I might have taken a chance on it sooner. I think it shows that the filmmaker really has balls. Yes, it was written and directed by a woman. I was being ironical.

Then again, had I known that a woman was behind the film, it might have influenced me to see it sooner. Male perspectives on stuff like this can be a little...well, redundant.

If one of the usual suspects had made this film, it's likely that the significance of pin-up maker Irving Klaw's sister and the photographer Bunny Yeager would have been underplayed. Maybe even the fact that the guy who got Page into modeling was black. Things like that get glossed over all the time. It was only after seeing the director's name in the credits that it made sense.

For me, it also helped to explain an early scene in the movie, when Bettie started her pin-up career by posing for amateur shutterbugs. One of the the photographers was a very masculine woman. (The term trans-gender didn't exist then, so I ain't retroactively applying it now.) I actually had to rewind that part to see if I'd actually seen it correctly. It was stroke of genius.

On a personal note, it felt pretty validating to see that the filmmaker took the same approach to this story that I did when writing a brief text piece for my Page After Page zine. Like Harron, I used the 1955 Kefauver Hearings on the Senate Sub-committee on Juvenile Delinquency as a framing device. It seemed like a great way of explaining why this country's most popular pin-up suddenly faded from public life.

The only real difference in our approaches is that I highlighted the significance that comic books played on the formation of that committee. Men's magazines and pornography were secondary considerations. Anyway, as I watched it all unfold, at times it felt as if my zine was a little companion piece to a much larger work, like movie keepsake booklets from back in the day.

Though I've already thanked her, I have to again thank my ex for sending me The Notorious Bettie Page. Good art will often inspire good conversation, and this one-sided convo was provoked by a cinematic work of art that I really enjoyed. A work that I'm now pretty pleased to have featured among the movies on the shelves.

Black Dynamite, you shot me in the NECK!

2011-06-15T23:55:00.005-07:00

First of all, I should be shot in the neck for even buying another comic book. I haven't yet read all of the stuff that I brought back from the Phoenix Comicon. But I knew that a copy of Black Dynamite: Slave Island was being held for me, and I didn't want Charlie (of Charlie's Comics) to think that I forgot. While out running my errands today, I made my way over to his shop to pick it up.

It was a good thing, too. Upon my arrival, Charlie said that the book was a retail sell-out and now going for 3 or 4 times the cover price on Ebay. When I was last in his shop (about 5 weeks ago), he told me that the Black Dynamite comic was coming, and that 2 of the 3 copies he'd ordered were already reserved. I called dibs on the last one, and he offered to hold it until my next irregular visit.

Well, as bad as it is that I bought another book (six actually), the good news is that I've already read Black Dynamite: Slave Island. The friggin' temperature in Tucson was 103° today, though, so I don't have the energy to write a review. If you've seen the movie, then you already kinda' know what to expect–and this book continues the story of Black Dynamite in a righteous way. I had an absolute ball with it.

Hopefully, the book will go back to press for a 2nd printing–so that I can unload my 1st edition copy on Ebay and use that extra cash to buy more books! Nah, I really do hope that Ape Entertainment will print another run so that more fans can get in on some serious fun.

As to why this book was under-ordered, there's surely enough blame to go around, but I think that most of it rests on the shoulders of readers like me. I knew that the book was coming and I knew that I wanted a copy, but I forgot to place an order for it in advance. Luckily, thanks to Charlie's Comics, I still got a shot at buying (and reading!) Black Dynamite: Slave Island.

And speaking of shots...

The Best Things in Life...Cost $1 Buck

2011-06-15T23:33:00.003-07:00

I mentioned in my previous post that attended the Phoenix Comicon last month. The San Diego Comic-Con, which takes place each summer, is usually an annual pilgrimage for me. But, due to a fan base that has expanded exponentially, I and everyone I know who tried were shut out of getting passes. That being the case, I was glad to have the Phoenix Con as a consolation prize, and the books I got there are probably better than anything that I ever got my hands on in San Diego: lots of vintage Bronze Age books, all selling for $1 buck each. Everything I got my hands on was a steal–and I got more than what's posted here. This is kinda' like a "Top 10" list.

I’ve Zine the Darkness...

2011-06-09T01:56:00.004-07:00

If for any reason you happen to be in Germany, check out the I've Zine the Darkness zine exhibition at the Dieschönestadt Gallery of Halle. Copies of the 'special edition' version of Kung Fu Grip! No. 5 and Octopussy No. 1 are featured in the show.

The exhibit runs from June 3rd (yeah, yeah, I'm really behind on my posts) until June 11th–so you've got two more days to check it out! After the show the zines will be added to the collection of the Library of Burg at the Giebichenstein University of Arts and Design in Halle (Saale).

For more information, click over to the Dieschönestadt Gallery website...but brush up on your German before you do!

I’ve Zine the Darkness
June 4th-11th, 2011

Hours:
Monday to Wednesday, Friday & Saturday from 2 to 6 pm
Thursday from 6 to 10 pm

dieschönestadt gallery
Am Steintor 19
06112 Halle (Saale)

A Newsstand in 1975

2011-06-04T03:24:00.013-07:00

"A Newsstand in 1975"

I fell in love with this photograph when I saw it posted in the Robot 6 section of the Comic Book Resources website two or so years ago. Included with the photo was the caption: "A newsstand in 1975."

In 1975, I was all of six years old, and I can still easily remember the sight of comic books jammed together in the racks at corner newsstands across the city of Chicago. Because of that still present memory, the black and white picture made me really nostalgic for days gone by. I even printed out a copy of it to hang on a wall in my studio.

When I first saw it, the photo also made me curious as to whether it was actually taken in 1975. Based on the covers, I knew that it was easy to determine not only the year, but maybe even the month that the photo was taken. So last week, a few nights before the Phoenix Comic-Con, I satisfied my curiosity by looking up the publication dates of a few of the issues in the photo.

Now, because I'm a geek, it just wasn't enough to look up the publication dates of a few issues. No, it had to become my quest to detail every comic book that I could discern in the lower portion of photograph; I wasn't so much interested in the comic magazines across the top.

Based on the list of books that I've assembled from the image, I've narrowed down the time frame that this photo was taken to between March and April of 1975. The comic books that I could make out in the picture are as follows:

Giant-Size Defenders #4, April 1975
Giant-Size Dracula #4, March 1975
Giant-Size Chillers #2, May 1975
Giant-Size Marvel Triple Action #1, May 1975
The Spirit #6, February 1975
G.I. Combat #177, April 1975
The Losers #154, April 1975
Iron Jaw #2, March 1975
Wulf The Barbarian #2, April 1975
Morlock #1, February 1975
Planet of Vampires #1, February 1975
Destructor #2, April, 1975
Phoenix #2, March 1975
Adventure Into Fear #26, February 1975
Supernatural Thrillers #12, April 1975
The Frankenstein Monster #16, May 1975
Werewolf By Night #29, May 1975
Tomb of Dracula #32, May 1975
Police Action #2, April 1975
The Scorpion #1, February 1975
Grim Ghost #2, March 1975
Tiger-Man #1, April 1975
The Amazing Spider-Man #143, April 1975
Doctor Strange #7, April 1975
Conan The Barbarian #49, April 1975
The Defenders #22, April 1975
Marvel Team-Up #32, April 1975
Marvel Two-In-One #8, March 1975
Strange Tales #179, April 1975
Kazar #8, March 1975
Marvel Jungle Action #14, March 1975
Marvel Double Feature #9, April 1975
Where Monsters Dwell #35, May 1975
Astonishing Tales (Featuring Guadians of the Galaxy) #29, April 1975
Marvel Premiere #21, March 1975
Master of Kung-Fu #27, April 1975
Amazing Adventures (Featuring Killraven) #29, March 1975
Man-Thing #16, April 1975

Yeah, yeah, I know... I could have posted all the covers. Get a life.

Mic Check: Ryu Black - Perfect 天

2011-05-19T00:01:00.006-07:00

I've been a hardcore hip-hop head for decades, so I ain't gonna front about the Ryu Black album Perfect 天 (the kanji symbol has a dual meaning of Ten and Heaven). I know off the top that this album will not be for er'ybody. This is a concept-heavy production that contains a crazy amount of Japanese pop culture references, video game geek-speak, digital sound bites, knuckle-cracking action skits, and lots of other stuff that special peeps like myself can go, well... pretty much BAPE shit over. You see, I've been a hip-hop head for decades, but I've been a connoisseur of J-Pop culture even longer; Godzilla flicks, Robotech 'toons, Gundam models, Capcom arcade games. Yeah, you name it and I've probably geeked out over it. So it can almost go without saying that Perfect 天 is kinda' like the 'perfect' soundtrack for peeps who love hip-hop as much as that other stuff.

Featuring ill mic skills as well as production by Ryu Black (aka MeccaGodzilla), Perfect 天 showcases the Long Island emcees bi-lingual love affair with hip-hop and the land with the largest number of giant monster footprints. And it's not all J-pop and video games, either. Following ancient hip-hop traditions, Ryu also speaks on heavier subjects, including teen suicide, bullying, stereotypes, divinity, the afterlife, and the blurring of cultural boundaries. Assisting him in this gigantic endeavor are guest artists Masia One, MegaRan, Majesty, Divine Life, Dashah and several others. As a killer finishing move, Ryu also enlisted comic book artist and homeboy Ronald Wimberley (aka D-pi) to provide the album's beautiful 64-bit visuals. Yeah, Perfect 天 is an album for folks who belong to the subculture within a subculture: the hip-hop heads who are also booty shakin' video game junkies, subtitle decipherers, manga fanatics and proto-culture addicts. People just like us. "Yatta!" (Recommended listens: Go-en, Chun-Li, Yama)

– St. Paco, kungfugripzine.com

Wall of Inspiration and Ideas

2011-05-18T23:40:00.001-07:00

Sneak Peeks

2011-05-14T04:29:00.002-07:00

The newest issue of Kung Fu Grip! has a lot of cool-looking content, including three beautiful full-color pages. But the traditional 'PLAY' section was still printed in black & white. I really liked the original color images that inspired the writing in this section, though, and decided to share online a sneak peek at four of the six products that were blurbed over these two pages. In addition to that, I also decided that I would share something else from KFG5 entitled "Geiger vs. Dali." A few buddies of mine and I have often (even very recently) discussed and debated the concept of originality. "Geiger vs. Dali" defines my position on that long-running discussion.

PLAY (Excerpts)*

2011-05-14T04:17:00.015-07:00

Toon Tumblers
Remember those hot summer days of yesteryear when you walked into 7-Eleven with a handful of brow sweat and walked out gripping an icy beverage contained in a glass decorated with an image of your favorite comic book character? And remember how fun it was to go back every week to see which new hero glass had been introduced? Well, those days are here again, thanks to the ‘Toon Tumblers beverage glass series by PopFun. These high-quality 12 oz. collectible glasses feature colorful images of your favorite animated, comic book and comic strip characters– including some that weren't even available back in the day (like Power Man). Best of all, instead of that Slurpee, you're old enough to walk around now with a tumbler filled to the brim with a frigid mudslide or a frosty margarita! So show yourself and all of your drinking buddies a good time with these great glasses from toontumblers.com.

DC Comics Superhero ‘Cami Panty’ Sets
Ladies, you're never too old for Underoos. Well, you actually are. But you’re never too old to have fun! And this DC Comics licensed underwear set can be a fun alternative to the ‘blah’ white bra and granny panties that the love of your life has begrudgingly become accustomed to. This strikingly colorful camisole and panty set features an “enhanced” version of DC Comics’ Wonder Woman outfit. The red cami top (with adjustable straps) features a bold yellow ‘W’ bust shield, and the baby blue hot pants-style panties show off the classic star-spangled pattern. And for you Smallville fans, there’s an equally adorable Supergirl costume design. These 5% spandex / 95% cotton undie sets also come in a wide range of sizes, from small to a super-sized 3x large. To get outfitted for some fun times, fly on over to webundies.com.

Iron Man 2 4 GB USB Jump Drive
Back when you were a young crumb snatcher, you could always trust ol’ “shell head” to save you from boredom. Now you can trust him to save all your important digital data, including movies, music and photographs! This 3" Iron Man 2 movie inspired USB drive by Funko is a funky flash memory storage device that holds up to 4 GB of files. It also shows off your iron-clad sense of style when others see it hanging from a neck lanyard, keychain, or the messenger bag that holds your laptop. To get your own Iron Man 2 4 GB USB Jump Drive, point your metal detectors to Amazon.com, or to the web site of your preferred high-tech toy dealer.

PEZ Candy Dispensers
Mild depression got you thinkin’ about poppin’ pills? How about poppin’ PEZ instead? PEZ candy is a cheap and non-addictive alternative to drug prescriptions (and the even more costly drug habit). So when you’re sitting around worrying about things you have absolutely no control over, knock back the head of your PEZ dispenser, open your mouth, shake, and let that sugary goodness give your nervous system a jolt. By the time you’re done chewing, you may feel as right as rain again. And though nothing at all has actually changed in your life, sometimes we need a shift in perspective. And sometimes, we need good tasting things to remind us of the good stuff in life. PEZ candy can serve as a quaint reminder of the good ol’ days when we had virtually nothing to worry about.

Frankly, these cool little joy dispensers also serve as good figurative symbols of all of the people whose caps we would just love to peel back for making our lives a living hell: the boss, the ex, the idiot who cut us off in traffic. Just flick back the cap of your PEZ dispenser, close your eyes and imagine yourself crunching down on the sweet bones of your oppressors. Go ahead. It’ll make you feeeeel gooood. Find PEZ in the candy isle at your local grocery store!

*Originally published in Kung Fu Grip! No. 5

Giger vs. Dali (Alien Autopsy Remix)*

2011-05-14T04:12:00.006-07:00

It’s impossible to recollect what book I was thumbing through when I ran across this sketch by the Spanish surrealist Salvador Dali. I do recall that I discovered it sometime during my first semester of graphic design school. That would probably date the photocopy that I made of it to sometime in 1994 or ‘95.

Come to think of it, there was this Grateful Dead tie-dye t-shirt wearin’ ex-hippy classmate named Orin who was a fan of Dali. And I do remember that he came to class this one morning with a hairy armful of art books, the majority of which were devoted to the work of Dali. So he must be the source to whom I will credit my discovery of the sketch.

I was never a fan of Dali. As an artist, he has always been responsible for a staggering body of work that generally didn’t appeal to me. And, unlike Orin, I was an infant during the classic summers of Woodstock, have never taken hits of LSD, and did not subconsciously look to surrealist art to remind my brain of any previously experienced “altered states.” What I was at the time was a fan of the Swiss surrealist H.R. Giger.

When originally introduced to Giger’s work I was not a fan. Frankly, his art scared the popcorn eating shit out of me as it stalked across the screen in Ridley Scott’s 1977 film Alien. I was 8 years old and – like everyone else in the theater – had never imagined anything as horrifying as a 7-foot creature with an insect-like exo-skeleton, a fleshless skull of a face, retractable inner jaws, razor sharp teeth, and a deformed embryo of a head.

Yeah, for me Giger’s creature was like a fever-induced nightmare. And any thought I had about being an astronaut ‘when I grow up’ was completely second-guessed once that bad boy hit the screen. After watching Alien, it was hard to imagine walking into a bedroom while the lights were off, let alone exploring the dark outer reaches of space.

Over the years, and especially after the film’s 1985 sequel, I became a fan of Giger’s work. It was primarily because I had never seen anything like it. And that remained true until that day in the mid-1990s when I ran across a sketch of a deformed humanoid figure by Salvador Dali.

The loose brushwork illustration isn’t dated, and I don’t remember now if there were any details about it on the facing page. But as I walked over to the photocopier to make a duplicate, something about it made me feel sure that the image actually pre-dated the Alien design of H.R. Giger.

Or maybe it just seemed too unlikely that two artists could separately conceive of such a uniquely grotesque being. It was possible, but seemed highly unlikely. Especially when taking into consideration that Dali was already a world-renowned artist by the time that H.R. Giger began carving a name for himself in the nightmares of others.

Finding the photocopy again today, I still do think that Dali’s sketch was the inspiration for Giger’s creature– right down to its jaw line and Stegosaurus plated spine. And it doesn’t make me think any less of his creative genius either, but really illustrates to me that nothing comes from some dark, empty vacuum of space where ‘no one can hear you scream.’ Inspiration, in fact, comes from everything around us. And each generation gets much of theirs from the drawing boards of the past.

– St. Paco

*Originally published in Kung Fu Grip! No. 5

KFG5 Mix Tape: Thirty Fingers of Death

2011-05-05T00:11:00.004-07:00

This soundtrack was a mini-collaboration between myself and DJ Mane One for his long-running 30 Minute Mix blog. I supplied the cover and concept, and Mane provided a killer mix that he describes as "kung fu music put to funk." I call it thirty minutes of ass-kicking wax-ploitation, complete with outta' sight Jim Kelly sound bites. Yeah, this mix is so funky that at one point the needle actually skips due to a serious case of funk overload... or a dirty record. Take your pick, 'cause either way it's the result of some f-u-n-k.

Thanx to: Grand Imperial DJ Mane One for a super bad mix that makes me wanna jump back and kiss myself, and to Stormko (for his valued 2¢).

Get down.

St. Paco

• • • •

01. Theme to Blackbelt Jones - Dennis Coffey
02. Aragon - Roy Ayers
03. Enter The Dragon Theme - Lalo Schifrin
04. Si Me Ves Volar - Los Tios Queridos
05. Causeway - De Wolfe Music Librarie
06. Mystery Track
07. Mystery Track
08. Cookies - Brother Soul
09. Shaft In Africa - Johnny Pate
10. You Can't Even Walk To The Park - Johnny Pate
11. Brother On The Run - Johnny Pate
12. Alive and Well - Barry White
13. Jadoo - Passport
14. Mountain Mocha - Yellow Soul Force
15. God Put A Smile On Your Face - Mark Ronson
16. Funky Fanfare - Keith Mansfield

Click here to download

www.kungfugripzine.com

2011-05-04T03:35:00.004-07:00

It'd been a few years since my website was updated. I've finally gotten around to doing something about that. I haven't done a whole lot, but also see no need to. Especially when the site now functions mainly as a centralized hub, linking to one of my shops, the flickr page and the KFG blog. In support of that, the number of links at the bottom of the index page has been reduced to four. And the 'blog' link is now connected to my much more frequently updated page on Blogger. There's also an 18-page preview for KFG5. Check it out.

May I Have Your Attention, Please?

2011-05-01T23:34:00.004-07:00

Though it was originally planned for release in March, for a lot of different reasons it seemed like a good idea to post-pone the official release of KFG5 until May. The most significant of those reasons being that KFG4 had just come out in late February and – due to the response it was still getting – I thought it was appropriate to give that issue a little more time to shine.

For as long as I can remember the number 5 has been my favorite number. I don't usually get caught up in any particular kind of symbolism, but I do have a sentimental appreciation for symbols and their meanings. Once the newest issue of KFG was finished, and I started lookin' at May for a release date, I then started looking for something in the way of meaning.

May 5th is Cinco de Mayo, the day upon which Mexico won its independence from European dominance. (KFG5 and 5/5 -- get it?!) Tucson is only about 60 miles north of the Mexican border and has a sizable population of folks with Mexican roots. As such, the 5th of May is widely celebrated here by Latinos and gringos alike. (Mas tacos pescado y mas tequila, si. Por favor!) So, I've chosen May 5th to be the official release day for Kung Fu Grip! No. 5.

I'll be in Phoenix on May 6th. My homeboy Darrell D is spinning at an after party that night which follows the Next Movement show at Scottsdale's 5 And 6 Gallery. (Wait, is that a five in that name?!) The actual show will feature collaborative works by Sol Exposure, the photographer for the rap group The Roots, and painter/graffiti artist Dumperfoo.

May 7th marks the 10th annual Free Comic Book Day. Since I'm gonna hangout in PHX for the weekend, I plan to drop off some zines on the freebie table at Atomic Comics. This store was one of my first haunts when I moved to Arizona. If you've seen the movie Kick Ass, the comic book shop in that flick was based on this popular Phoenix-metro chain.

Let's see...what else is going on this month?

Oh, Mother's Day is celebrated on May 8th. My mother – like most people's mothers – has always been a big supporter of her offspring's creations, so I'm lookin' forward to mailing copies of the new zine off with this year's cards.

My younger sister's birthday falls on the 18th of this month, so she'll be getting copies with her cards and gift about a week later. Also on May 18th, my fourth cover production for DJ Mane One's long-running 30 Minute Mix blog hits the web. (And keep your eyes peeled for another Mane One mix related post here later this week!)

On the 3rd of June, the Anno Domini gallery of San Jose opens its newest Art of Zines exhibit. Submissions for the show are due on May 21st. Copies of KFG 1-3 were shown in last year's exhibit, so I'm glad to have issues 4 and 5 to send off for this year's show.

As you can clearly see, May seems like a great time for KFG5. It's a month filled with lots of meaning for me, for people I know and even strangers with whom I share overlapping cultures and interests. It also seems like a good survey point to look at what I've done so far, while plotting out some goals for the second half of the year.

Seldom have I ever been one to pass on the chance to make a bad pun, so before closing this post I'm gonna say that the 5th issue of Kung Fu Grip! may very well be the best zine that I've ever produced. After you've gotten your hands on a copy, you may end up feeling the same. (Sorry.)

Now, I'm gonna end this with a hot lil' ditty from M.I.A's last album. I was thinking of goin' with "Tekila" (in honor of Cinco de Mayo), but XXXO is a much better track, especially the remix version with Jay-Z. By the way, should I also mention that the name of the album these songs are on is... MAYA?

[Nods head]

Yup. I could do this all day.

Syndicated Zine Reviews: KFG4

2011-04-30T16:09:00.005-07:00

Kung Fu Grip! #4
Paco Taylor
7730 East Broadway #925
Tucson, AZ 85710
$1ppd, or two stamps

Kung Fu Grip is a time machine, or time ma-zine. Reading it brought me back to my 70’s era living room sitting in front of the furniture-sized-fake-wood-framed television watching ‘Enter the Dragon’ on Betamax while eating American cheese and miracle whip on white bread sandwiches. Of course, I never had a Betamax player, but that’s beside the point, the point is that this is a great zine that captures a past cultural aesthetic in an effective and very satisfying way. Contained within are stories about the Onge, Satun, and Pahang people of Asia, a tribute to his father, and some history of the zine. It’s well written and informative. My only complaint is that it’s too short, but, as the author explains, this is a special ‘free’ issue of KFG that is designed more for trades and is significantly shorter than past issues. Those past issues are now on my search radar of ‘zines to get’. Dig it.

– Randy Spaghetti, Syndicated Zine Reviews

Fresh to Death

2011-04-29T01:25:00.024-07:00

"Can I please say my peace / If y'all fresh to death, then I'm deceased" – Kanye West

Kinda-sorta-maybe I should be embarrassed to admit this, but I really enjoy the hell out of the things that I write.

Take One Hundred Fingers of Death for example. It was originally a piece planned for KFG5, but I decided against using it, wanting that issue to be broader in scope with its subject matter. This particular piece was a really good one, though, and I thought that I should try to come up with another use for it. Maybe as a really long blog post.

For years, I've had it in my head that I wanted to make a really cheap zine that I could just give away. KFG4 was/is indeed a freebie issue, but (at 28 pages) isn't really as 'cheap' as desired. The difficulty has always been distilling my ideas down into somethin' simple enough to pack into 16 – or fewer – pages. It was challenge enough breaking down KFG4 as far as I did.

From the very first issue of KFG, I aimed for the ballpark's back wall. I saw the back wall as 56 pages, mainly due to the number of ideas that I had in my head at the time of inception. And with each issue since the first, I've continued to have enough ideas to fill every page. With KFG5, I actually had more material than vacant pages. But it still worked out after all.

Today, I finally accomplished my goal of a really cheap give away. "The One Hundred Fingers of Death" text was turned into a cool 8-pager. It's kind of a promo for Kung Fu Grip!, but also stands on its own as a singular work. In fact, its only on the back that I connect it to the KFG universe by placing an actual ad for the zine there.

Five Fingers of Death and Ten Fingers of Death are two classic kung fu movies. A few months ago I did a digital collage that I called "Thirty Fingers of Death." I wanted to expand that idea even further, and eventually came up with something that I would soon describe as the "One-Hundred Fingers of Death Martial Arts Movie-Watching Master List."

One-Hundred Fingers of Death explains how that list came about, and then provides the titles of one-hundred martial arts movies that I've actually watched. (I didn't wanna give that bit away here, but everything can't be a surprise.) Anyway, one the best things about this baby is that it's something I can stick in an envelope and mail off with a single stamp.

Truth be told, this piece is gonna ruffle some feathers, but it's also going to entertain. I mean, I wrote it and I still laugh out loud while I'm reading it, as if it's all completely new to me. I don't know if that's a sign of a good writer, a simple mind, or someone who's just too very taken with himself. But whatever it means, I'll take it. Life is too short (or too long) to go through it not loving what you do.

Merit Badge: Revenge

2011-04-25T16:30:00.010-07:00

The Revenge of Print

In early January I learned that Baltimore's Atomic Books and Quimby's Books in Chicago had sent out a sort of call-to-arms to anyone who has ever produced a self-published zine, mini-comic, or full-sized comic book. The stores were encouraging bookmakers to turn out at least one new publication in 2011. Quimby's Liz Mason was quoted in the most recent issue of Zine World as saying: "We're tired of all the end of paper, the end of publishing as we know it stories. We've been hearing it ever since we've been open, which is going on almost 20 years now."

The morning that I learned about the project's launch, I signed up to follow the group that had been set up for it on Facebook. I wasn't alone. By the end of the month, more than 800 people had also joined up, and more than 200 of those responders pledged to produce at least one new publication in 2011. I had already been planning on doing two issues of Kung Fu Grip! this year, so the Revenge of Print announcement just added a half gallon of over-priced petrol to the fire.

Since joining up, I've managed to produce both the free 28-page issue of Kung Fu Grip! that I wanted (KFG4), and also the 56-page standard issue (KFG5). In addition, when the latter was finished I went a ahead and scanned the Revenge of Print badge that somebody had created, and placed it on the cover. I don't know if the badge's maker planned for it to be used in this manner, but it seemed like a good way to show solidarity with the other small press publishers that are actively participating in this campaign.

The Revenge of Print badge that I'm using was reduced from its original size to three-quarters of an inch, which is the smallest I could make it without loosing image integrity. I have uploaded that photoshop file (150 dpi) and also added two additional sizes for others who might also want to feature the badge on their comics and zines. A zip file with everything can be downloaded here. To get more information about The Revenge of Print, click here to go to the Facebook page.

– St. Paco, Kung Fu Grip!

To Japan: Hitotsu (One Love, One Hope)

2011-04-22T00:25:00.010-07:00

In the wee hours of one day last week I downloaded the song "Hitotsu," a collaborative hip-hop production made in the wake of the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan. The link to the song came by way of a mailing list that I'm on that gives me updates on the current projects of my man Ravage The MeccaGodZilla (a.k.a. Ryu Black), an underground MC from Long Island, NY.

Ravage and I met online about three years ago via Myspace. It was sometime after I'd written a review of another collaborative track that he was involved in at the time; a musical love letter of sorts, dedicated to the Capcom video game character Chun-Li. Featured with Ravage on that intensely catchy tune were rappers MegaRan and Masia One, and Sarasa, a DJ from Japan.

I know that Ravage has friends in Japan and that he spent two months touring there last year. Taking into consideration both his artistic and human connections there, it shouldn't have come as a surprise that he would also be involved in a music project inspired by the events of last month. But it did come as a surprise, and a very pleasant one at that.

The song "Hitotsu" is a touching recorded message of love and hope sent out over hip-hop beats to the people of Japan, and all others affected by the recent tragedy. Produced by Da Otak, the song features the rhymes of six rappers, all thoughtfully rendered in English and Japanese. Featured on the track with Ravage are Root One, Orukusaki, Sum-In-1, RDO, and producer Da Otak.

Recorded by artists whose names most people have never heard, "Hitotsu" is also a deeply inspired production that skillfully blends traditional Asian chords with American hip-hop beats and heartfelt rhymes that reflect the tongues of two nations. The effort behind it shows, and anyone with ears and a heart should be moved by the passion that went into making it.

For the free download, as well as online listens, visit MeccaGodzilla's blog by clicking here here .

– St. Paco, Kung Fu Grip!

Big in Argentina

2011-04-10T04:30:00.010-07:00

I mentioned some weeks back that I was interviewed by Dadá Mini, a visual arts magazine based in Argentina. When I agreed to the interview, I was under the impression that it was a web-zine. I realized shortly after, though, that it's actually a full-on print mag. The picture of the kid reading a previous issue is one that I found on Flickr. (He might even be the kid from the cover.)

The interview seemed to go really well, but I wasn't completely sure that they were gonna use it; this due more to cautious optimism on my end than anything gleaned from theirs. But a few minutes ago it occurred to me to pop over to web site to see what I could see. My interview is actually the first feature, appearing in the Lado D — Diseño (Side D – Design) section.

The sub-heading is: "A street fighter stalks the photocopiers." I could be a little off on the translation, but that feels about right.

Obviously, I'm now kinda' anxious to see the printed piece. I'll give it a few more weeks, though, before I start bugging Cocó Muro, who conducted the interview. I was under the impression from reading her last e-mail that I would get a copy of the mag at some point. I'm not gonna start gettin' all impacienté now that I know that the piece was printed.

DJ Mane One – The Thirty Minute Mix #79

2011-03-25T16:53:00.009-07:00

I don't know where my head has been. Somehow I've failed to blog about a series of mixes that my homeboy Mane One has been posting to his blog for the past...79 weeks? I mean, there's 52 weeks in a year, so that tells you how long this has been going down, and how remiss I've been.

Mane is a pretty well-known DJ out of San Diego who hosts an internet radio show, but also teaches, macks fly honeys and occasionally makes beats, raps and rocks graffiti. What pimp. And each of the mixes he makes each week showcases his vast audio catalog and deep love of music.

Whenever I download Mane's newest mix, I never even bother to look at the playlist to see what it will contain. This guy is the kind of DJ that you can just trust behind the wheels of steel, so I just sit back, let the music take over and enjoy the ride.

The cover that you see above represents my most recent artistic contribution to the expanding world of The 30 Minute Mix. A bunch of Manny's friends are really dope artists, so somewhere around #59 we started taking turns making covers. I did my first one back in December, and signed up to make two more in February and March.

Dope as it was, it didn't even occur to me to blog about the first cover I did for what became a RUN-D.M.C. tribute mix. But the second cover will get blogged about when my next zine comes out. A good buddy of ours suggested that it be used to promote the release of KFG5 and Mane promptly gave his blessing. It's gonna be super bad, just chu wait and see.

Anyway, if you like (mostly) hip-hop and old school R&B, with periodic play lists offering samplings of everything from jazz, big band and swing, to funk, rock and electronica, please subscribe to Mane's blog feed. You will not be disappointed. He only keeps the mixes up for about a week at a time, though, so don't sleep.

And now, without any further ado, I bring you The Thirty Minute Mix #79, which is dedicated to the queens of hip hop, because – just like the flyer sez' – ladies love Mane One.

So sayeth...

St. Paco

Octopussy Reviewed in Xerography Debt

2011-03-18T03:07:00.005-07:00

Octopussy #1
Subtitled "Ooh, Baby I Like It Raw," this guy is horny. Paco also publishes Kung Fu Grip!, but in his own words: "This zine was just WAY too sexy to be limited to a regular issue of KFG!, so it got its very own title." Contained within are 18 haiku poems to strippers in Arizona and Mexico, some "nasty" graffiti, and features on the Belgian art collective known as Cum, the 18th century master Katsushika Hokusai and India's 'Kama Sutra Temple.' 54 captivating pages with lots of sexy artwork and images throughout. – Kris Mininger

Octopussy #1
From the fellow who brings you the wonderful Kung Fu Grip comes this special issue! While Octopussy is more sexual in its focus, it's similar to its parent publication: a combination of Paco's personal stories and observations with a lot of pictures and text devoted to his love of art.

One of the qualities that makes KFG so interesting is that Paco frequently juxtaposes deep interest in what outside observers might describe as both "high" and "low" art, and he makes no cultural or stylistic distinctions between them. If a work of art inspires him, Paco celebrates it, whether its found in a museum or on a viaduct. Octopussy is no different in that respect; a series of haiku, written by Paco and all about strippers, is followed by a gallery of street art photographs, then an essay about Cum (a highly sexual street art collective), then a celebration of the works of the 18th century Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai.

The stories in Octopussy differ from Kung Fu Grip in that they're concerned with sex and octopi, but this zine is more of the same high-quality stuff. Personal stories and varied street art are highlighted by some surprising artistic interests, and it all makes for a fine reading experience. – Matt Fagan

Xerox Debt & Payin' Dues

2011-03-18T02:49:00.007-07:00

As anyone with even a sliver of ethics would feel, I want to state right up front that I feel a tad bit awkward about writing a review of the most recent issue of Xerography Debt. This because the latest issue contains two reviews of my Octopussy zine. Nonetheless, I'm gonna jot down some thoughts inspired by XD28, because I think that it is an exceptional issue.

To tell the truth, every issue if XD is something of an exceptional issue, and that is mainly because the folks behind it consistently offer up their mostly thankless services to the zine making and zine reading community. But I think that the most current issue is just a cut above the rest, and maybe it's because the editor and one of the contributors took the fuckin' kid gloves off.

Xerography Debt is described by the editor as the "review zine with perzine tendencies," and XD28 really got a little more person-able. Before getting into that, though, lemme first judge this book by it's cover.

Right out of the envelope, there's a cool wraparound cover that features an illustration by Hai Anxieti, who turned in great work for the last cover (XD27), too. But this one is really bananas. I have to admit that I'm also extremely biased towards Fritz Lang's Metropolis, and Anxieti took Lang's lovely robot Maria in a clever direction with a Gulliver's Travels mash-up. Me likey.

Behind that nice cover are 60-plus pages of zine-lovin' goodness. And I stress zine lovin' goodness, because the reviewers behind XD don't waste any keystrokes writing bad reviews. Constructive criticism is the name of the game, but an intentional focus is placed on zines they believe have a fairly firm foundation upon which to stand. But I'll say more about this later.

On page 4, the first pair of kid gloves come off when editor Davida Gypsy Breier drops a typewriter on the head of some unnamed noob who wrote somewhere that Joe Biel, the man behind Microcosm Publishing, was also "the man" behind XD. Davida sets the record straight and explains–quite bluntly–the partnership that was formed two years ago between two strong zine supporting entities; I think that the four issues that have come out since then stand as a firm testament to the intelligence of that partnership, and I hope it results in many, many more.

Pages 5 through 7 of this issue continues the "Where Are They Now?" feature that was introduced in XD27. The newest installment continues to provide readers with updates on the lives of other largely missing in action zine makers.

On page 8, that other pair of kid gloves come off. These had been previously worn by Dread Sockett, Davida's co-editor from Rigor Mortis zine. I haven't read Sockett anywhere before (I don't think), so this was a nice, no-nonsense introduction for me.

Sockett doesn't name any names, and the list would be quite long if he did, so he pretty much drops a roll of 1976 bi-centennial quarters in one of the gloves he took off and pimp slaps a lot of people at the same time. I could easily imagine this guy saying in an indignant tone, "I demand satisfaction!" But even at one against a multitude, it would still be a lop-sided duel.

Writing with regard to XD's "positive review" policy, over the span of about three good pages Sockett manages to give a quick 'Zines for Dummies' level overview of the last two decades of zine history and culture. Included in that is an accurate summation of the associated aches and pains that once went hand-in-hand with trying to publicize zines in the Internet-less days of yesteryear.

Sockett also shows careful consideration of the pros and cons of the XD review policy, including the seemingly common complaint that many of the same 'ol zines are continuously reviewed. And I guess this is indeed true, when the writers behind them continue making new issue after new issue. Meanwhile, a lot of the people who bitch and whine are here today and then gone in 60 seconds.

Honestly, though, I do see the validity in that particular criticism. I too would like to see a larger variety of different zines being reviewed in each issue of XD. But I kinda understand the reality. And the reality–as I see it–is that there would need to be a bunch more quality zines being produced to justify kickin' some of the multiple issue all-stars to the curb for a while. Unfortunately, though, many a paper ream gets sacrificed for the sake of the bullshit that people decide to commit to paper. And when it comes down to it, I would actually rather just read good reviews of the usual suspects than bad reviews of works made by folks who, like those poor fools in the American Idol auditions, think that they're infinitely more capable than they actually are.

[Watches tumbleweeds blown across an unpaved road by the wind]

To anybody reading this who falls into the category of zine makers whose work has never been reviewed by XD or any other review source, step your game up. Seriously. Each zine that I've sent in has been reviewed. Some that I didn't even bother to send were bought at Quimby's or Atomic Books and still got reviewed. And let me tell you, there's no higher compliment than that.

I bring this up to say that I'm not part of some imagined "zine clique." I'm just a guy who works hard to produce good publications. To that end, I put every bit of who I am and every bit of what I think I know into what I make. Counting on my fingers how long it's been since my first zine, I've been making 'em for 14 years, and I'm as proud of that first one as I am my last. If you too put all of what you are into what you make, you will earn the validation that you think you deserve. But don't just expect to get it because you put some ink on paper. Even as great as I think my zines are, I don't just expect a review. And when I get one (well, two in XD28), I really appreciate the fact that someone took the time to read and write a considered opinion of my work. An opinion that serves as a recommendation to others.   

That said, the people who write reviews like these put their opinions and their creative reputations on the line, so give 'em something that they can feel good about recommending. Do this by learning what you can from zines that reviewers have been impressed by. Or maybe you can just write reviews yourself, so that you can be a part of the change you wish to see in the (zine) world.  

Back to XD28: On page 11, the ever reliable Jeff Somers writes more about himself [yawns], and then on page 13, Gianni Simone provides another informative column on the field of postal art in which he's so enthusiastically involved. If I ever manage to get to Japan, me and that guy are gonna hit up the strip clubs... er, the bookstores.  

Pages 14 through 66 contain the zine reviews that we buy publications like Xerography Debt and Zine World for, and they do not disappoint. I've now highlighted a bunch of zines that I think I should check out, including Booty #23 & #24, Burn Collector #14, Fish With Legs #13 and Octopussy #1. Oh, wait. I already have that last one.  

Australia's own Stuart Stratu, who's old to writing great reviews but new to writing 'em for XD (page 62), mentioned recently on his blog that this issue is so jam packed that you probably won't read it all in one sitting. I thought the same thing, too, but got so engaged that I laid on the couch with a yellow highlighter and read it from cover to cover. The unexpected adrenaline rush of seeing reviews of my zine might have had something to do with that.   

'Spect due

I want to also mention that I bought my copy of Xerography Debt #28 from the Microcosm website. I also bought copies of the zines 9 and Half Left #10, Shotgun Seamstress #1 and Nostromo #1, which I also hope to post reviews for either here, or at one of the review sites that invited me to contribute my–very rarely written–zine reviews.  

In light of the previously observed XD connection, I'm gonna say that I am aware of the Degrassi level gossip that's out there, and purposely ignore most of it. I mean, there's business shit and then there's personal shit, and most of that shit seems like some really personal shit. From my first order, placed nearly 10 years ago, to the one placed a week ago, Microcosm has proven to be a reliable zine resource, and a radical advocate of the self-publishing culture that I love.

  So sayeth...  

St. Paco
Kung Fu Grip! Zine

  

Don't Call it a Comeback

2011-01-31T01:36:00.006-07:00

Don't Call it a Comeback

I have not been away from the zine scene by any means. In fact, it was only a few months ago that Octopussy #1 was completed. But it has been some time–nearly four years–since the last issue of Kung Fu Grip! was made. So I am happy to say that KFG!4 has been printed, proofed and prepped for the photocopier.

As mentioned in a previous post, this issue of Kung Fu Grip! is a 28-page freebie. It contains both new and some old material, but nothin' that appeared previously in zine form.

For years I've wanted to make an issue of KFG! that had fewer pages than the 56-page beasts that I usually commit myself to producing. Just something that I could offer in trade to other zine makers, and give away to people who are simply zine readers–as well as to people who may have no idea about the existence of this photocopied art form.

So my ultimate goal was to make a free issue that could serve as an introduction to my zines for the average zine reader and an introduction to zine culture for everyone else. The fourth issue of KFG! is my attempt to accomplish that, and I honestly think it's right on the button–like an Ali punch.

Also mentioned in the previous blog post was the fact that KFG!5 was being worked on in tandem with issue 4. There's still a lot of writing that needs to be done for the fifth issue, but I have more than enough time to get it done by the anticipated March release date. And when it's done, it's gonna knock you out.

Four Minutes to Five

2011-01-16T16:42:00.004-07:00

At long last, KFG! issues 4 and 5 are in the works.

About two years ago I envisioned doing these two issues simultaneously, and then I tried to force the process. But it wasn't ready. I wasn't ready. So instead, I took some of the ideas that I had for issue 5 and made the KFG! Special Edition: Octopussy.

But now, quite unexpectedly, it's all happening just the way that I envisioned. The time is obviously right and I'm pretty charged, to say the least.

Also coming to fruition the way I originally envisioned it -- KFG!4 is gonna be a 28-page freebie and KFG!5 will be a 56-page standard issue.

In the meantime, I have to get my buddy Damon's permission use a couple of his fabulous photographs for KFG!5 (including the one seen above). But I don't expect that to be a problem.

Issue 4 is slated to launch in February and Issue 5 will follow in March. If you can't tell already, I am really, really excited about the creation of these two zines.

More Stickin' ... More Movin'

2011-01-03T15:42:00.010-07:00

KFG!3B: Stick & Move Special - "Pinky"

Stick & Move (Extra) Special

In the fall of 2007 when KFG!3 was released with both a regular cover and a special edition "sticker mash-up" cover, I decided to limit the number of the special edition version to an ambitious 125 copies.

As cool as it sounded on paper, I don't think I believed then that I would actually have to end up making that many copies of the B-version. But right out of the gate, the editors of PEEL magazine placed an order for 40 copies for their online store.

Though 50 copies of the B-version had already been made before going public with that issue, in an instant most of them were gone. So for the next few nights after the PEEL order came in I was busy rebuilding a safe buffer zone.

While cleaning up the folders on the Mac a few nights ago, I ran across some scans that were made of some of those covers. Some really good mash-ups came from the stickers received in trade over the years. In fact, some of the covers make me wish that I had never parted with 'em.

Admittedly, by the time the edition number for the special was met I was tired of lookin' at stickers. 125 cover mash-ups proved to be something of a bitch to make, so when the last copy of KFG!3B was sold I was glad to not have to make any more.

Once they were all gone, though, something dawned on me: I probably should have saved a few more copies for myself than just the couple I had put aside for posterity.

From a graphic design perspective I love the regular cover, and was glad to be finally filling orders with that easier-to-make version. To compensate for the difference, I would usually just toss in a small batch of stickers to orders for the third issue.

A few times, though, thinking that some folks who placed orders for KFG!3 would probably like to have the mash-up version, I pulled out the sticker collection and just made up half a dozen more. (Which means there's actually more than 150 copies of the B-version out there!)

Last year some cool stickers came in from Sinned-NYC, Biafra, Julius, SKAM and other guys, so I decided last week to make up a dozen more mash-up covers. A few were also made just to keep in my personal collection; they could end up being part of an exhibit someday.

KFG!3B: Stick & Move Special - "Brownie"

KFG!3B: Stick & Move Special - "Goldie"

All I Want(ed) for Christmas

2010-12-28T01:13:00.010-07:00

All I Want(ed) for Christmas

It had been some time, maybe a year or two, since I last looked at "The Secret Santa," an essay that I wrote in the fall of 2006. This week, just a few days before Christmas, I pulled it out and read it again.

Not having seen the work in such a long time, it was great to read it again with fresh eyes and fresh perspective. I honestly think that it's one of the finest pieces that I've ever written.

Considering the subject matter, too, it's also one of the most important things that I've ever written.

There are a number of reasons why I hadn't looked at the essay in a long while. By the time it was done, the essay had come to symbolize many things, not the least of which was a significant sense of creative accomplishment ... and a mind-numbing sense of frustration.

I actually went through a depression when I finished the work.

For about two months, most of my nights and weekends -- basically the time that wasn't spent at my soul sucking day job -- had been devoted to the text. Lots of web searches, lots of reading, and lots of translating text from Spanish, Italian, even Russian websites.

And I loved it.

Before long, though, it felt as if I was splitting myself in two, constantly moving between the mental highs of a creative state at night time, and the mental lows of robotic repetition performed while at the day job.

And each night, while walking home from work I would find myself muttering variations of: "This is no fucking way to live," and "I can't keep living like this," and "Why do I have to live this way?"

I wanted to end it all, that ceaseless pattern of repetition; the peeling myself out of the desk chair in the wee hours of the morning, the going to bed and waking up just a few hours later, the getting in the shower, the getting dressed, the figuring out what to take to eat for lunch, the walking into work, the sitting at the desk, the logging into the computer and phone, and the answering calls with the scripted line:

"Thank you for calling ______. This is ______. How can I help you?"

I won't go into any of the dark details. But suffice it to say that due to the kinds of thoughts that I started having each night while walking home, I made an appointment to see a psychiatrist. I knew that it wasn't healthy to be thinking the way I was ... as often as I was.

It only took a one hour session, though, for me to realize that psychotherapy was going to be a waste of my time, and the insurance company's money. Talking to a shrink wasn't going to help me with what I was feeling every night -- not as quickly as I needed anyway.

What I really needed was a reality check. And so -- just as I have done for so many other people -- I gave myself one.

Sure, I thought. I had written something special, something extraordinary. Something groundbreaking. But I also had to acknowledge that the work created in my private time represented only a portion of my existence.

The other significant portion consisted of the work done sitting in a pod at a computer in a call center. That too was my reality -- a significant part of my reality. As mundane as it was, that's what was keeping the rent paid, the lights on, and food in the refrigerator.

Sure, my fortunes could all change one day. But those were the cards I was holding at the time. The cards that I'm still holding.

Anyway, after coming to grips with my ever more humbling situation, I decided that I needed to distance myself from "The Secret Santa," and anything else I was working on that caused me to think so far outside the box, and set me up with expectations that didn't come to fruition.

I should probably mention now that after sending out a few inquiry letters to magazines and a few websites, the essay was fairly close to being printed in a magazine called Trumpet, a nationally distributed religious publication out of Chicago, my hometown.

Coincidentally, it was a magazine that was published by the church that my mother, father, sister and an aunt back in Chicago all attended. At the time, then Senator Barack Obama and his wife Michelle were also members.

Yes, that church.

Unfortunately, though, like several magazines since, the Trumpet fell on financial hard times and suspended publication. Since then I haven't sent out any more inquiry letters regarding the essay.

Each year, though, around the month of September, I find myself thinking about sending out a few more inquiry letters. But then I don't.

Maybe the work is still just a little ahead of it's time. Maybe I'm still waiting for the rest of the world to catch up. Or maybe it's just not as groundbreaking as I think. (Yeah, right.)

Whatever the case, I'm proud of the work that went into crafting this essay. Of all the things I've produced, it's still the one that I would most like to see presented to a larger audience. I still think that it will happen one day.

In the meantime, I have formatted the text into a nice 20-page zine. One with a color cover and three pages of color illustrations inside.

Unlike my other zines, though, I don't think that I'm going to be making The Secret Santa available for purchase. Instead, maybe next year I'll just mail 'em out to family and friends as a 20-page Christmas card.

Octopussy Review in NPR #6

2010-12-27T14:00:00.001-07:00

Kung Fu Grip! Special #1: Octopussy

When I wrote up a really cool zine called KUNG FU GRIP! back in issue #4, St. Paco, the creator of it, was going on zine hiatus and he did. When I recently heard from him I got the impression that he was going to publish again. Then before I know it I get this awesome OCTOPUSSY zine. It has the same look and style as KFG! And some similarities: amazing graffiti art, perzine style, the front cover parody of a Marvel comic. It's got that 70s vibe with old school ad pages for the Josie and the Pussycats Hostess Fruit Pie ad and an actual Sea Monkeys ad. A profile of 18th century wood block artist Katsushika Hokusai reprints some of his art including the color centerfold of an octopus performing cunnilingus on a Japanese maiden. That in fact is the motif of this zine: sexy women and octopi. The octopus woman on the cover, woman with octopus on the back cover, the girl in the "stripper haiku" pages with the octopus tattoo. What an insanely original and creative idea. This zine seems to have been made with such care and skill, it was meant to be a high quality work of art.

– Randy, Narcolepsy Press Review #6

Octopussy Review by Stuart Stratu

2010-12-21T02:20:00.021-07:00

Octopussy #1

56 pages, $3.50 from Paco D. Taylor, 7730 East Broadway #925, Tucson AZ 85710, USA + stpaco(at)gmail.com

A quick flip through this zine and I knew it was a good one.

First up, Paco's confession that after a shitty break-up he distracted himself from the pain with booze and strip clubs. He wrote 18 stripper haikus which follow. Here's one of 'em:

HELP ME TO FORGET
TEQUILA IN THE SHOT GLASS
DANCER AT MY CHEST

Then four pages of graffiti art - really cool and wild stuff. [The] art collective Cum* from Ghent, Belgium covered that town's streets with their porno graffiti then got so renowned on the internet that their work became in-demand at real actual art galleries. This stuff is more explicit than the street stuff.

There's a section on Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) - it has been estimated that around 35,000 paintings, drawings, prints, and illustrated books were made by Hokusai during his lifetime. And it's pretty cool that he ranged so widely with his subject matter that Paco could select four of his works featuring octopi to fit the zine title. (There's an awesome colour centrefold of Hokusai's 'Octopi and Shelldiver'.)

There's a great piece about a cool girl, Erika, that Paco met through MySpace and formed a unique, long-distance friendship with. He sent her his zine, which revealed personal stuff about him, and in turn she sent him photos of herself and her bare ass, and other saucy type snaps. But! She had a boyfriend! I'm not gonna reveal what happened when she invited Paco to stay with them, so now you'll definitely need to order the zine! Heh heh.

Anyway, next up is a photo series of India's 'Kama Sutra Temple' (Kandariya Mahadeva) "adorned both inside and out with a mind-blowing assortment of eroticized sandstone figures."

Cool zine. I'll be looking forward to Paco's second issue.

– Stuart Stratu, Blackguard

Scott Pilgrim vs. the audience...er "World"

2010-12-13T17:05:00.012-07:00

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

So...I finally saw "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World" last night. I really shouldn't say 'finally' though, since it really wasn't at all on my list of movies to see. The pickings, however, were pretty slim at Redbox last night.

Amusingly, the tagline for the film is "An epic of epic epicness." After seeing the film, I found it really ironic. Because, in terms of its audience appeal, this film was an epic FAIL of epic epicness.

Now, I didn't see the 2000 film "Alexander," which -- with a $155 million dollar budget -- was supposed to have been pretty friggin' epic. Like "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World", though, "Alexander" was an epic box office fail.

Not having seen "Alexander", I'm not quite sure why it bombed. But I've seen Pilgrim and I know why this $60 million dollar movie failed.

It appeals to no one.

Okay, of course it appeals to someone. But it's a very limited pool ... or a very limited gene pool, if you will.

First of all, I'm sure that it appeals to the people who read the comic. The book has a justifiably devoted following; I've read one issue of Scott Pilgrim that I got on Free Comic Book Day a few years back, and it was kinda' cool to see some of that issue reflected in the movie.

Secondly, it may appeal to the people of Canada, the home-base of Bryan Lee O'Malley, the creator of the Scott Pilgrim comic book. There are lots of references to that mythical land of the North.

Thirdly, it must appeal to those people who liked movies like "Shaun of the Dead" and "Hot Fuzz." At the bottom of one of the promotional posters it reads: "From the director of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz."

And lastly, but most importantly, it appeals to Generation-X, Generation-Y and Generation-Z white males, Jewish guys (Caucasian ones), Gay guys (Caucasian ones) and Asians (non-Caucasian ones). I say this because those are the only human groups I saw on screen for the entire 108-minutes of this incestuous Hollywood fantasy-action-comedy.

Oh, and speaking of Hollywood incest, there are Seinfeld TV show references in the movie. Whatever the fuck the Seinfeld TV show has to do with the world of Scott Pilgrim, I cannot say. But I'm sure that fans of the show got dill pickle-sized hard-ons when they heard the oh-so-familiar music cues and the canned laugh tracks from the once mystifyingly-popular NBC show.

Even more mystifying (but not really) was the Hollywood decision to cast Michael Cera as the comic book's leading ladies' man. I mean, come ... the ... fuck ... on. Not even in a testosterone-drenched comic book fantasy would this scrawny, alto-voiced actor have hotties like those seen in this flick throwing pussy at him.

I mean, there's nothing even subtly Freudian about the intentions of this film. Seeing women -- one of whom is Asian, I might add -- fighting over a guy like Cera is like watching a twenty-somethings version of one of Woodly Allen's middle-aged wet dreams.

Saints alive, I could go on and on ripping this movie a new asshole, but I want to say that most of my beef with the film is over what it could have been. It was shot well, and directed fairly well. It had good (although redundant) special effects. It could have been better (meaning actually good) if the producers and director weren't so damned busy pleasuring themselves at the expense of an audience.

You know, come to think of it, "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World" really is an apt title for this inbred fantasy world where the guys are white, the chicks are Asian, and the only music that anyone listens to is rock & roll.

If Canada itself is anything like this, please remind me to never go there. Because -- like the intended audience of this small-minded film -- I will probably cease to exist.

Grade: D+

Revisiting Alfons Mucha

2010-12-11T01:35:00.009-07:00

The Paper Dragon Press Edition of Mucha's Historical Paintings of the Slavic Nations was finished earlier this week. I just have to say that it looks even better printed than I thought it would.

That said, I also want to say that I love technology and I love computers. And you can say whatever you will about the impending death of print, and the joy of reading e-books and pdf files on your iPad, Kindle, or whatever-the-fuck newfangled doodad you use.

When it comes down to it, nothing beats the beautiful intimacy of words and pictures on paper. And reprinting this little booklet just drives that point home even further for me.

Reprinting Alfons Mucha

2010-12-05T16:44:00.028-07:00

When I was a student of graphic design several years ago, one of the artists whose work made a significant impact on my ideas as a designer was Alfons-Marie Mucha (1860-1939), the Czech-born master of the art nouveau style. This was a guy who could seemingly design a wall mural as easily as he could illustrate a cigarette ad.

And for a student who was interested in graffiti art murals as much as typography and page layout, Mucha seemed to me like the designer's designer.

It isn't obvious in any way, but some of what I learned from studying Mucha all those years ago shows up in my work even today. In fact, the sticker art gallery in KFG!3 is a nod to an infamous design portfolio that Mucha produced in 1902 called the "Art Nouveu Style Book."

Two or so year ago, while combing through archives of out of print books, I came across a digitized copy of a rare booklet produced in 1921 called "The Historical Paintings of the Slavic Nations." It was made in conjunction with an exhibition of Mucha's paintings under that same title which were shown that year at the Art Institute of Chicago and the Brooklyn Museum.

According to the book's indicia, only five-thousand copies were printed. Heaven only knows how many copies have survived to the present day, but if I had to guess, I would say only a few. As far as I can tell, the book has never been reprinted.

Well, that is until now.

Factoring in my deep appreciation of Mucha's work, the small production size, and also its connection to the Art Institute of Chicago (a place I came to know intimately even before deciding to major in graphic design) a reprint of this booklet seemed like a perfect fit for my one-man production house.

And so, having found myself between projects, I started work on a reprint version of the book last night. Before crashing out a little after 5AM, the first the first half of the book was done. The other half will get tackled later tonight.

Some necessary design alterations had to be made for the cover, which featured only an illustration by Mucha, and was printed on brown card stock (below). Some of the beautiful art nouveau text from page five of the book was altered and formatted to provide a fitting new cover (top).

In addition to Count Dante's "World's Deadliest Fighting Secrets," which I reprinted in 2007, Mucha's "Historical Paintings of the Slavic Nations" is another book that I felt compelled to resurrect from obscurity. And like the former, it's something that I'm proud to see in an expanding list of KFG/Paper Dragon Press publications.

So sayeth:

St. Paco

The Mighty Paco in...

2010-11-22T16:26:00.011-07:00

Haven't posted anything new in a long while, but I haven't really had anything going on worth posting. Well, I was interviewed a week or so ago by an arts publication out of Argentina. I was initially under the impression that it was an online magazine, but realized when they asked me for hi-resolution images from my portfolio that it is actually a print mag. Needless to say, I'll post more it once I know more.

One cool by-product of the interview is that it caused me to look at my entire portfolio of works produced over the past 6 or 7 years. And doing so inspired me to spend some more time workin' on stand alone pieces like the image above; an image that was partially completed a few years ago. I wasn't sure of what direction to take the piece, but after finishing the interview -- and looking at some of my most recent zine covers -- it was a very natural progression.

The piece could easily be used as a cover for a zine, but it's still just a paste-up design. Still, I like it so much that it may indeed wind on the back cover of something at a later date. You just never know sometimes.

Looking back at 2010, I realize that I did a lot of zine related work. I also got one of my articles published in my favorite magazine. Though I really don't see myself slacking at all on the writing and zine publishing front next year, 2011 will also see me producing more graphic art and graphic design.

And probably doing more interviews too.

So sayeth...

St. Paco

Click image to enlarge

Creative Control (Snapshots)

2010-11-01T16:05:00.004-07:00

Thanks to: Jim Lucio

"I got cha 'fro right here, baby."

2010-10-18T17:17:00.007-07:00

Oh, yeah...

I forgot to mention in my previous post that I also received -- in addition to the Afrodisiac book and posters -- a DVD with a promotional video for the project that is downright out of sight. Go over and check out the super classy "Afro-Strut" video here.

You will dig it. I guarantee it

Good Hair Day

2010-10-14T03:51:00.005-07:00

Monday was a good mail day -- No, a great mail day. I haven't had one of those in a while, and I really needed it too. I hadn't really recognized how down I've been as of late ... until I felt the upward surging mood-shift.

I received two packages on that day. The first was from Jim Lupio, who'd invited me to show my zines in the Baltimore Book Festival's "Creative Control" exhibit. The over-sized white envelope with the Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts logo contained a nice assortment of self-published art books from other exhibition participants. Nice.

The second package was a BIG, 17" x 22" flat mailer with "Do Not Bend" written large across the bottom. Looking at the return address as I pulled the parcel from one of the postal boxes used for over-sized deliveries, I saw the Texas zip code and realized it was somethin' from my buddy Damon.

Somethin' afro-licious, no doubt.

Back inside my apartment, I actually opened the package from Baltimore first, knowing that the shipment from Austin would probably keep me busy for a while. I spent about 15 minutes flipping through the five publications made by people in different parts of the world and then eagerly reached for the other delivery.

First out the flat mailer were two beautiful 12" x 18" posters from Damon's recent "Afrodisiac" photo and book exhibition. The first had a rich chocolate background, and the other a white background.

I've really been diggin' the color red for some time now. Near my desk I have my red and gray signed Afro Samurai poster, and I've been looking for other things to complement it. The Ace/Afro of Hearts-style poster with white background, chocolate colored line art and red accents will make a fitting addition to my wall.

Reaching down to the bottom of the mailer, I got my hands on a copy of the Afrodisiac book that was also sent. My immediate impression was that it was a little smaller than I'd anticipated, about 6.5 inches x 6.5 inches. Opening the book, I quickly remembered the adage that big things come in small packages.

It would be no exaggeration to say that the book was in my hands for at least two to three hours after I pulled it from its cardboard shipper. And it's not in anyway text-heavy either. But the images are so numerous and so wonderfully produced that my eyes had to pore over them again and again.

Reading the forward that I wrote for the book on the first go thru, and seeing how it worked with the black and white image on the preceding page gave me a good feeling. In so many ways the image and text balance one another beautifully; Damon said when I first sent him the text that it worked out better than he could have imagined. I see what he meant by that now.

While I could go on and on (and on and on) about the beauty of Afrodisiac, I'm really not going to. A picture paints a thousand words, right? So instead of talking about it, I'll share a few of my favorite spreads from this sweet, 148-page softcover confection of afro-liciousness in a consecutive post.

I'm really glad to have had a tiny part in the making of this book, and I look fro'ward to buying copies for my mother, sister, and lady friends. Of course, when the books are ready for purchase, a link will be posted here.

Book Report

2010-10-14T03:33:00.007-07:00