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No. 5 document
was completed March 25 1998. It first sold at Slackers' Cortland NY (Third Rail) show on April 9. Enormous brick was a long time coming and proved the little dumbass rag could travel as far away as Sweden. Nearly 10 months since the last one, and there was a huge backlog of material to plow through. That time brought largest volume and readership; like consistent postal requests for 4 months which had never happened before. The Professionals disbanded soon after this to pursue college and their final gig was a Sunday matinee that June – in many ways the weekend was over. The editor was a lonesome cowboy, though hometown ska found in an old dollar bin had been explored in the editorial Roots Roch Reggae about local reggae band Bahama Mama [Majestics members who backed Lee Scratch Perry in Victor NY in 1982 + later went on to become Big Roots, see HP8].
Another sexily juxtaposed cover, a minimalist godsend which Danielle ran across in the final week of production simply by chance. MODNESS! Planned to use Syracuse's Elliot Mattice but $75 was so expensive; that week he was in town painting the dinosaur band mural at the newest Bar B Cue location. Skavoovie's own epitone Ans wouldn't help us. Apologies to G. Kramer, another guy we didn't use – he's better suited to drawing Java's™ cups more than HP5 covers. What almost came of his recycle.
Page 6 shred here reads from an old gunky sixties typewriter mom had back in college: "Don't throw this away, it cost a lot to make. Please share the wealth."
A Boston/ ska-jazz/ ska-core/ Michigan issue represented in Q&A with Bim Skala Bim, Skavoovie & the Epitones, Dicky Barrett, Chris DeMakes (Less Than Jake), Dan Suicide Machines, The Articles' Phelps brothers and a collaborative one with Tim Hilton Schroeder 'zine and Jeff Django Baker at New England Skafest 1997. The day after that was conducted, HP talked with Minneapolis' Siren Six! at the Penny Arcade, but it was left out due to space constraints. They came back and played Clay's House (Neal's basement to you) early winter though.
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'Right on Daddy-O'
Madness has a song "the young and the old". Early spring, I walk to a routine dental appointment in my neighborhood, and decide the return address on Fritz's letter is on the way. Not wanting to cold call a stranger I want to meet him; a new issue will be done very soon (3 weeks) if he wants in. Short on time but I ring the doorbell anyway. A shocked, dark-rim bespectaled guy "old enough to be my father" appears in the window, opens the door and invites me in. He has great excesses inside, no computer and so brings a sense of proportion! Somehow this avid cable watcher claims to recognize me from Mike Lee's Professionals Tea House public access video of a year earlier. ??? What's more, he is mere blocks from Kodak Park where Dan, Pete and I grew up. A block from where Dan is about to paint custom flames on a '76 Cadillac Deville, unknown to us. Fritz underscores the existence of a ska song for every circumstance and personality via themed mix tapes. Is there a dry, unoccupied aquarium? Did you know he used to regularly support the Seidewand's fledgling basement tropical fish operation on Dewey Ave in 1980? Forty locations later known as the Pet World chain? In terms of finding obscure locals, at this point you must agree HP! is a success on some level.
Canterbury tale: UK bouncer-cum-cockney-reggae star Judge Dread suffers heart attack on stage and dies en route to hospital, Friday 13th March. He was 52. Obit
Rochester bad girl & electrical tape pioneer Wendy O. Williams (Plasmatics) leaves us in the same manner film star Mr. George Eastman did, 6 April. |
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Tech-wise, our QuarkXPress Passport was revoked due to Mac lab shortcomings on the part of a ridiculously wealthy establishment, which forced a more visually interesting almagation. Support the arts! Layout is again geared more toward immediate hand assembly – we learned last time unless halftoned accurately, screens won't photocopy especially well, if at all. What a bitch.
Tedious review section (55 music + 44 print), but more help from our friends – Kress submits another yucky ka ka comic and a neat editorial/ review of 16 Oct 97 re: the intimate connection between his musical career, Primus and ska. Mearns also unearthed the long lost Bim Buff State session of 22 Nov 96 and a new poj esso. Wrapped in a cool cover, it went quite well and ushered in a new era. Fritz submitted a radio review of the local piss-poor WITR ska DJ at the time, and the ensuing controversy/ stunt won us much publicity on airwaves that May. Footage is a riot and alleged rival R.I.T. ska kids hated the 'zine – we got it all on tape 5/9/98. Meanwhile back at AQ Video, Kevin Edd made his own broadcast about ska and its effect on him for a class, Fantastic Records' management passed it around and we end up with it a week later.
Hand deliver #5 to Chris & LTJ at Ska Against Racism Tour on or about April 27 w/Kemuri. Mustard Plug came too and were interviewed, yet the unplanned no quality shotgun transcript scrawled on an Evian box never made it out of the building, much less to print. Embarassing.
On this date we also met Darrel aka Monster, and newsstands said Hepcat time!
NewMusic May 98 'Ska-lastic Aptitude: a cheat sheet to ska's core curriculum'
Fire in mi wire? Spring again, intentionally miss the last big anticipated event at SUNY Brockport to prioritize welds on a 5'x5'x3' insect armature for final May 3. That sculpture studio office had a Yellowman cassette though.
Musical servant 1927-1998: Skatalite/ Supersonic/ Aggrovator / Jamaican sax great Tommy McCook O.M., passes May 5.
"You're a delightful audience ladies and gentlemen I thank you. And I hope this doesn't come as a severe shock but I am through." Chairman of the Board/ Danny Ocean/ the Man with the Golden Arm/ ol' blue eyes himself, Frank Sinatra dies of heart attack May 15.
Cool Blue Lady
The previous October, I read an accurate article on the reformed Selecter in the local weekly, wrote kudos and sent its editor HP#4. They'd got the story right. Prof Netsky (doubles as their art critic) recommended me for periodic freelance writing when bands came to town. It happened easily. A circulation of 40,000 almost by accident, and a check! The first article was for Bim Skala Bim/ Sacrelicious show March 1999, found later online.
Issue #5 had widest reach so far, available locally at Fantastic and Ultrasonic Sound and began taking the trip overseas. It gained some national feedback; a review in the final Ska-tastrophe magazine! Got to balance text and explore more visuals with an antique Pentax 35mm; at 15 ounces this is the very same make/ model camera advertised in Time Magazine April 1980 near The Specials article. Additional "layout assistance" came from the 2Tone terror, el pussycat newly on board. Five has been the all-around personal favorite for quite a while now. |
"I find 90% of the people that are saying those things don't know their ass from a hole in the ground basically."
– Suicide Machines'
Dan Lukacinsky
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NUMBERS 14 leaves = 56 pages long, initial run about 53 copies. $2 price stayed up and broke Johnny had more printing hassle. Wednesday 'crazy carport rage' Hargraves shook his fist, photo contributor Davie Bechle helped get the first batch. Second run was dropped off/ picked up on a 4 mile trek one way (via Huffy's Mojave Gulch, Erie Canal path and a faux-leather belt bought at the old Woolworth W. Green St. Ithaca NY some weeks prior – this bike stolen 7/25/05). Talk about indie culture while being eco conscious of emissions. Murphy's Law does exist in bookmaking where every adversity possible can, will and does happen so if you plan on doing one, take warning. |
orphan barncat got in the way during assembly
Area bands innit:
Short Round (SYR)
The Guts (?)
Slush Fund (BUF)
Douglas Leader Orchestra (SYR)
Mexican Cession (BUF)
The Creepers (BUF)
The Suburbanites (Getzville)
The Swanky Modes (Wellsville)
Me Lo Agradezco (AQ jazz)
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Loren S. from Brighton skapunks The Verge assisted with his rotted out floorboard Mercedes to finally pick up the first 250 screw ups (for a low bargain basement $50). Sadly, once again we learn that most copy places don't know how to run big jobs unless you stand over them with an iron rod, or do it yourself without the quality efficiency of a high-speed, high-volume duplicator. Me particular perfectionist.
Jamaica old-school historic Justin Hinds visits Milestones 18 June for a Club Caribbean dinner benefit. Anti-racist skins in Las Vegas – Lin 'Spit' Newborn, Dan Shersty – are murdered by rival gangs 3 July.
Summer work is groundskeeping with N. Herko – play the Secret Cajun Band tune Yard Work for detail on what exactly it was like. In July Agfa acquired Monotype and became known as Agfa Monotype. 727 landed on a Monday, so the WRUR birthday dedication was Johnnie O's Water Pumping. It was 28th July, 1979 when The Specials first appeared on the UK singles chart. The record was Gangsters, it spent 12 weeks on the charts eventually reaching No 6. The scene was set – over the next 12 months, 2Tone and British ska exploded. It was 28th July, 1998 when HP interviews Neville in Buffalo NY.
Fritz & Darryl began brainstorming ideas of producing a weekly cable access TV program primarily comprised of live ska footage from everywhere possible. Pilot aired first week of August. With no experience but some guidance from an old slotkar pal / R.I.T. alumni A. Wasserman, resident MTV employee and native New Yorker, we're set to give city livingrooms ska music on a regular basis. Lookout!
| Another trip to NYC, but this time on board UA flight 1677 with the newbie video crew. See M. Foggo's "Bumpy Airlines" for detail. Visited the second Moon store location (now moved into that very basement of 99X), and just plain Chris Murray at the Wetlands again. During which we bumped into SU alum Jeff Contray, ex-Douglas Leader Orchestra sax who had contributed writing to issues 3 and 5, now living on Long Island and listening to a ton of Billy Joel. We talk about the ill state of the Scofflaws.
Return flight UA 825 was delayed so we didn't get back in time to see Mustard Plug #619, Planet Smashers and Verge play the brand new Milestones location August 17. Heard it was packed out and a real good $5 time. DPK sat planted at the edge of the stage yelling "MR. SMILEY!" atop his lungs in between every song. Escalation. |
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Jamaican guitar hero Ernie Ranglin gets on NPR's weekend edition, the anniversary of Elvis Presley's death, Yasgur's farm and Miggedys Irving Plaza NYC.
The revival of classic Italian scooters is speeding up, and Rochester's along for the ride! Negative Image Scooter Club gets founded August '98 too – fka the Rochester SC – with all age groups, skills and bikes allowed. [Heck's Angels by Steve Fennessy, D&C 7/26/00]
Five featured a trivia contest & prize giveaway and Lucy of Cortland NY won it. Somehow this is newsworthy because the Nashville band Hoi Polloi has a song – track 6 on their CD Happy Ever After – actually titled 'Lucy'. By this time next year Skavoovie & the Epitones will too.
Google® was incorporated September 4 in a garage. In November, a large article 'Too Much Too Soon: the 2 Tone Ska Story' by Chris Nickson ran in Alternative Press #124.
1931-1998: Skatalite/ Soul Brother sax Rolando Alphonso O.D., passes Friday Nov 20.
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Dear Mr. Editor, wontcha please print my story in your magazine?
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"On the New York State tip, Rochester's Hoi Polloi! is another nice, compact zine for those still romantic about zines. I still like well put together photocopied zines like this – there's something uncommercial and exciting about a publication that's obviously made strictly out of love and with the express purpose of helping a scene or voicing one's own opinions. Jav does all that in Hoi Polloi! and has put together a nice little package of a zine. Content wise, there are bit pieces on Dicky Barrett of the Bosstones, Jeff Django Baker, Less Than Jake, Skavoovie, The Articles and Bim Skala Bim. Tons of reviews, collage art and more. It just feels right, the vibe is on and it's a fun read" (J. Bogner)
– SKATASTROPHE #8, Fall '98
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SPEAK OF WESTERN COWBOYS SEÑOR VAQUERO,
WATCH DJANGO PROCLAIM OPEN SEASON. 006 >
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