South East London Zine Fest!

Sadly it's yet another fun fest we can't make thanks to work commitments (booo!) but this is set to be awesome.

I Can Do Anything Good!

Shebang in Girl Gang Zine!

Girl Gang Zine #2 has arrived! And what a fine papery read she is. I have no idea how Maren and Kristina managed to get SO many well known women involved - the contents page reads like the best party ever: Grass Widow, Brilliant Colors, Super Wild Horses, Cassie from Vivian Girls, Electrelane, Marnie Stern, Tavi Gevinson (Style Rookie/ Rookie Mag), Karin from Fever Ray/The Knife, Kate Nash, Zola Jesus & others, all openly chatting about their music, art, feminism, love, life and all the rest of it, in an incredibly candid manner. For Shebang to be featured in the same issue as these ladies is quite mindblowing & a total honour.

The zine is as lovely as you'd expect from two such talented girls - all images are illustrated, with text a mixture of hand-written intro's and typed Q&A's. A few of the women featured are new to me (The Blow, signed to K Records, in particular), so I've got plenty to look up, as well as others to revisit. With a quote from Kathleen Hanna kicking everything off, it was always set to be a winning read.

The zine is available from the Girl Gang Zine site - get yours quick!

(Text taken from Liv's blog, dress up to mess up).

Round Up - Zine Fest at The Women's Library

We appear to have dropped off the face of the (virtual) world for a while.. Ooops. To try to make up of the lack of contact recently, here's a slightly late but better-than-never write-up of the recent Zine Fair at The Women's Library in London, which was one of the most enjoyable fests yet!

Taking place on Saturday 25th June, the event was the 4th Zine Fest to be held at the 'Library. Brilliantly organised by Red Chidgey, the day has many goings-on in store for zine fans, including comic making workshops (which Rushka attended - the fruits of her labour will be popping up soon!), survivor zine discussions, a feminist media and memory panel, tours of the library's archives, art installations, cross-stitch drop-ins and mask making! With the fair only lasting for 4 hours a lot was crammed in, and although we weren't able to sneak away for much of the programmed events we heard from friends that there were a lot of interesting, fun and thought-provoking activities and conversations.

The morning began with us doing as little directions prep as possible (living in London has made us a bit too cocky), meaning we lost about 45 minutes strolling in circles around The Women's Library like two lost loons. Thankfully, our adventure wasn't all in vain as we managed to pick up a sugary breakfast from Hummingbird Bakery to keep us going-

We had out stall inbetween the wonderful Reena from Nest and lovely Anna-Marie from Pamflet zine. The space was smaller than recent fairs we've stalled at, making it easier to get around to have a chat to the other zinesters and to catch up on what everyone's been up to.






A very special part of the day was when Erica from Girl Frenzy showed up with a suitcase of back issues of her legendery zine, and was kind enough to share them out between everyone! Girl Frenzy was one of the best known riot grrrl-inspired names in the 90s, so to get a chance to chat with Erica and to flick through copies was pretty exciting for zine nerds like us! We're hoping to sort out an interview with Erica for Shebang #4, so keep 'em peeled...

I always make a beeline for the feminist and music-related zines at the fairs, so this was the perfect opportunity to pick up EVEN MORE, just in time for my holiday... (holiday reading = best excuse)

The only trouble was that I went home and read them all from front-back straight away. Oh well. Luckily I also picked up the much lusted-after Doris anthology that I'd had my eye on for a looong time, which I hid in a suitcase so I wouldn't be tempted to read before setting off. I've written up a little review of it over on the dress up to mess up blog, so feel free to have a little read if you want to find out more.


BIG thanks again to Red for organising the day! For the full list of stallholders, click here.

xx

Shebang in Time Out!

Big thanks to Katie from Fat Quarter zine for her inclusion of Shebang in her Zine Scene article in this week's Time Out magazine! We're in very good company in the pic... x

ISSUE #3 IS FOR SALE WORLDWIDE!

Crack out the party poppers and cake - Shebang issue #3 has finally arrived!

After a successful launch party (BIG BIG thanks to all those who helped out and came along to the party - photos up soon!), the issue is now officially ready for sale worldwide in our online shop, which you can visit by clicking here. Unfortunately the price has gone up a little since the pre-orders (we have also only just noticed that Paypal have been helping themselves to 10% of all sales) but we can guarantee you'll get a lot of Shebang for your buck.

The issue includes:

Mixtape rec's from Brilliant Colors, Finally Punk, Comet Gain, Sharon Van Etten, Male Bonding, Micachu, La La Vasquez, Lovvers, Dent May & more, interviews with Quasi, Jeffrey Lewis, Eithne Farry, The Thermals, Hope Roth & Twingrrl Records, artist profiles on Tuesday Bassen and Audrey Malo, travel guides to Barcelona, Melbourne, Edinburgh & Breakfast In America, reviews of Dance Magic Dance, Preston Is My Paris Zine, Got A Girl Crush blog and Ponytail Zine, features about The Great Cake Escape and Charlot Webster's Mixtape Exchange, Lucian Freud Retrospective, Why I Love... Adam & Joe

You can have a peek at what's inside by visiting the Facebook page and browsing the photos.

Last week was busier than expected, so all orders and contributor copies are beginning to be sent out in batches from lunchtime today. Issue #1 is also nearly all gone, so if you want a copy, snap it up fast!

As always, thankyou thankyou thankyou so much for reading the zine and showing your support, we can't believe we've made it to our third issue, and have big plans for the future.

Lots of love,

Liv & Lynsey
xx

ONLINE SHOP

London Zine Symposium 2011

As well as Record Store Day taking place on Saturday, this weekend holds another celebration of all things independent, as this Sunday (17th April) sees zinesters flocking to The Rag Factory in Brick Lane for the annual London Zine Symposium.

The day brings together zines, small press, comics and radical writers to celebrate DIY and zine culture. There will be over 60 stalls plus workshops, talks and a radical history walk of the surrounding area, and a lot of cake.

We've had stalls at past events and have always had fun, and this year lots of our zine friends will be selling their wares, including Art Is Proof, Dear Soeurs, Fanzine Ynfytyn, Fat Quarter, Last Hours, Marching Stars Distro, Nest, Storm In A Teacup, Vampire Sushi, Zineswap & many more. We'll also be taking out Shebang issue #3 for the first time (and will be selling all issues at a discounted price) so please stop by and say hello!

The event opens at 11am and goes on 'til 6pm, and the Rag Factory is located just off Brick Lane (in the opposite direction to all of the vintage shops), at 16-18 Heneage Street. There's also an individual zine table for those who weren't able to get a stall (or only have one issue of their zine), contact edd(at)rnzine.co.uk for more details.

For more on the event, just CLICK.

LGVL Photography Exhibition

Our pal, photographer Lydia Garnett is exhibiting her work at The Wayward Gallery on May 19th, as part of a joint-show with fellow female photographer Vic Lentaigne.

The pair are Brighton Uni graduates-turned London locals, and work under the platform 'LGVL'. Both photographers focus on documenting youth culture and fashion, with an ongoing interest exploring the themes of transition, sexuality and identity. The exhibition follows their move from Brighton to London and explores their current relationship as a photographic duo.

For more on the show and Lydia's work, visit her BLOG

Dazed Live - Zine Installation/Exhibition

This weekend Shebang will be on display as part of Jotta's Self-Publishing exhibition and interactive installation at the Dazed Live event, taking place on Saturday 9th in London.

They say that the event "will celebrate and explore the past, present and future of the city [of London], delving into the world of self-publishing and Londoners cultural aspirations for their city."

The interactive installation centres on a 'self-publishing interactive map', which is created via Twitter, Tumblr and Facebook submissions (see HERE for links to the sources). The response will ultimately form a new zine about London, providing a snapshot of the views and aspirations of culturally engaged Londoners.

"From the 60s underground magazine OZ and the punk fanzines of the 1970s, including Jon Savage’s The Secret Public’ and Paul Morley’s ‘Girl Trouble’, to the London and New York mail art dialogue from VILE magazine and Ray Johnson, and zines that have evolved into publications such as ‘Sup and Art Rocker – the exhibition will celebrate, in particular, the best London zines of past and present, alongside a selection of iconic international titles. It will also feature very early issues of Dazed & Confused, which began life in ‘zine format, and still retains its DIY, independent ethos today."

For more on the event and the Dazed Live festival, just CLICK.

SHEBANG ISSUE 3 LAUNCH PARTY!

After almost two years in the making we're proud to announce that SHEBANG ISSUE #3 IS READY TO GO! As long as all goes smoothly with the courier tomorrow morning, we'll have issue #3 in our hands by midday!

As an extra special suprise, we'll be launching the issue at Eagle Legs' FIRST London party tomorrow evening (Wed 30th March) at the Macbeth pub in Hoxton, where you can be the first to pick up a copy and to meet the whole team in person (we haven't all been together in the same room for three years, so it'll be quite an event!). A lot of our contributors and folk featured in the issue will be there (including Charlot Webster with her mixtape exchange (bring a cassette!) and Nikki from The Great Cake Escape covering the venue with cakes), so please come along to say hi and have a drink to celebrate with us.

Eagle Legs is Shebang's sister clubnight run by Liv and Ru, and to mark our London launch we'll be joined by guest DJs Colours, Dance Magic Dance, Off Modern and Wanda Whiskey, playing Riot Grrrl, Motown, soul and our favourite indie hits. We'll also have a zine table, so please bring along your zines/distros!

More on the event can be found HERE, and QUICK - there's only one day left of our preorder offer, so take advantage before the price goes up! Just CLICK for our online shop (overseas readers, please get in touch to sort out prices).

A HUGE thanks to all involved with the new issue, as always we couldn't do it without all of our talented writers and illustrators, and hope you enjoy reading it!

Lots of love,

Liv & Lynsey xx

Fundraising Art Fair for Japan

On the 3rd April, the folks behind the London Zine Symposium will be holding EGAKU (meaning "draw" and "imagine" in Japanese); a zine/print/art fair at Jaguarshoes in Shoreditch to raise money for the thousands affected by the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan. The organisers are trying to get as many donations as possible to help raise money, and are asking for zinesters/creatives to get in touch if interested in donating towards the cause. So far the list fo people involved includes NoBrow, Okido, Laura Carlin, Jean Jullien, Anorak Magazine and us!

The event starts at midday and goes on 'til 8pm, and if you can't make it down but want to help, then you can donate via this link. More on EGAKU here.

International Girl Gang Underground Zine

We recently got an email from Brooklyn/San Francisco-based International Girl Gang Underground, telling us that their in-the-works zine was ready for reading, and want to share the news!

The International Girl Gang Underground (IGGU) zine is a collection of stories, artwork and critical work on the subject of what effect the riot grrrl legacy has had on DIY feminist cultural production, twenty years on. Put together by Kate Wadkins (of For the Birds Collective, Brain Waves) and Stacy Konkiel (of Soul Ponies), the zine is available both online (with additional content) and in printed form.

Contributions come from writers, activists, musicians, and artists from ten US states and five countries; with original cover art by Philadelphia-based artist Sonrisa Rodriguez-Harrison. The online resource also has a directory of feminist cultural projects, and is still being added to. IGGU also want to encourage submissions of music reviews and zine-related content that will be released on their website.

The print zine is now available for purchase through the IGGU website. For futher info, see GIRLGANGUNDERGROUND.ORG or contact the editors at GIRLGANGUNDERGROUND(at)GMAIL.COM

Women of the World Festival

Liv and Rushka have just spent the weekend at the The Southbank Centre in London, taking part in the Women of the World Festival! It was a total honour to be asked to get involved - we were helping out with the Zines event, run by London-based female arts collective Storm In A Teacup (check out their blog to see what they get up to!).

The whole event was really well organised; our area had a live music stage curated by Emmy The Great, tables strewn with paper, scissors, a typewriter, a badge-making machine (!) and other materials for those wandering in to make up their own zines (run by creative collective Soupa), and a long shelf with everyone's zine collections on display for visitors to have a browse.

(Photo by Reena from Nest)
A few of us also gave talks about the zine-related projects we run, which was both terrifying and also a lot of fun. We spoke about Shebang and talked about how we came to get into zine culture and all that it has to offer. Our Powerpoint that we'd prepped the day before wasn't compatible with the laptop being used so we kind of had to wing it, but luckily made it through without forgetting too much! There were also really insightful talks from Reena and Anna from Nest, and Ellie and Bex from VV Collective who all do great things to help promote female artists.

(Photo by Clare from Soupa)

We also had a good chat with Katie from Fat Quarter zine, a female-friendly mag bursting with interviews, reviews and features to inspire and entertain. Definitely a new favourite!

As with all zine events, it's great to meet other collectives and zinesters face-to-face to chat about what everyone gets up to and to share tips and encouragement. We also met tons of cool girls with an interest in zines but who weren't sure how to get more involved with the zine scene or how to get started, so hopefully even more new reads will start springing up as a result! The weekend was a huge success and I'm sure the Teacups will return next year to spread some more ziney joy.

Oxford Zine Fair - Saturday 9th April

Unfortunately we're not able to make it, but there's a very special zine fair coming up in Oxford on the 9th April which celebrates all things DIY in the music community. The event is part of the city's 'Editions of You' festival, focused on giving musicians and music fans a chance to show off their handmade releases and zines.

They say: "Editions of You celebrates and showcases self-publishing and self-releasing musicians and the handmade editions and releases they create. Taking the form of an exhibition, zine fair, live music events, talks and happenings, Editions of You at the O3 Gallery and Oxford Castle seeks to unearth the underground culture of DIY artistry that combines music with artwork."

More details can be found here, and if you have a zine and want to get involved, you can contact Ellis at ellisjones(at)gmail.com.

Shebang zine talk at Women of the World Festival

Hi fans and followers,

We're pleased to announce that we've been asked by the wonderful Storm In A Teacup collective to give a talk on zines at the Southbank Centre on the 12th and 13th March, as part of the Women of the World Festival.



Taking place in the Royal Festival Hall from midday 'til 4pm, Storm In A Teacup will have their own area for zine workshops and talks (from us and Fat Quarter Magazine), as well as practical zine making to contribute towards the first Women of the World zine. If you would like to submit a contribution like an illustration or piece of writing to the WOW zine please email : storminateacupzine@gmail.com. We'll be giving a brief overview on the history of the photocopied word, as well as tips on how to get your own zine started & examples of zines that have inspired us.

The festival will also feature performances from Annie Lennox, Imogen Heap, Annie Nightingale, Sandi Toksvig and more, and will have speakers from across five continents. It brings together amazing stories of triumph, action, challenge and enterprise from girls of 14 to women of 80. Musicians, lawyers, scientists, members of the clergy, journalists, politicians, community activists, gardeners, school girls and coco growers share ideas for change in a weekend that climaxes with the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day. Women's organisations of every persuasion are represented in a great weekend of fierce debate and fantastic fun. Plus market activities, speed mentoring and networking opportunities.

Speakers include Shami Chakrabarti, Marin Alsop, Helena Kennedy QC, Kay Mellor, Caroline Lucas MP, Kate Mosse, Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, Kat Banyard, Juliet Stevenson, Bianca Jagger, Barb Jungr, Kate Mosse, Rosie Boycott, Joanna Trollope, and Dr Precious Lunga.

Facebook EVENT / Ticket LINK

New Music Blog!

This is totally shameless to plug here, but here goes!



I've decided to bring my old music blog back to life, so if you'd like to read more about the kinds of bands we feature in Shebang then please follow dress up to mess up.

In Shebang news, the content is now in! Lynsey is working her magic this afternoon and over the next few weeks and if all goes to plan with the printers, the issue will be out on the 30th March. Thanks again to all of you who have pre-ordered - you can still order the issue for the tiny price of £3 here (drop me a line if you're not based in the UK and we can cut you a deal, Del Boy style).

Liv xo

Issue #3 Update:

So things are finally on the move with Issue #3 - most of the content and illustrations are now in, and Lynsey is sorting out all of the layouts as I type. We're really hoping it'll be finished in time for the Eagle Legs' London launch party on the 30th March (more details on that soon!).

Here's Zoe Austin's awesome collage for the Mixtape Exchange feature:



We've also set up a preorder option on the SHEBANG SHOP so you can be the first to get the new issue for a mere £3 (applies to UK only - overseas readers please email us at mail@shebang-mag.co.uk to sort out a deal). Just click HERE

XO

Brighton Zine Fest - 19th to 20th February 2011

Can you believe it's been almost a year since the last Brighton Zine Fest? The event saw zinesters from all over the place coming together for a weekend of music, workshops, and - of course - the somewhat legendary zine fayre!



Last years's fayre

Judging by the events and funtimes planned for this year's event, the BZF continues to be an important date on any zinesters calendar, thanks to the fantastic organisers who put every effort into making the weekend as interesting and varied as possible.

We've decided to let someone else take our table space this year, as Issue 3 won't be back from the printers in time and we feel a bit guilty turning up with the same two issue's we've had the last two years. But we'll definitely be jumping on the train and heading back to our homeland for the weekend to have a peek at what other ziney folk have been up to over the past year.

DIY Day takes place on Saturday at the Cowley Club, and is a great opportunity to meet others to trade, eat cake, take part in workshops and listen to talks, finishing with a benefit gig at the same venue in the evening.

Sunday is fayre day, as the Hanover Community Centre is set upon by paper & scissors lovers, ready to show off their wares and grab some papery goodness to take home.

We really can't recommend Brighton Zine Fest enough - we've met some great zine buddies there and always have an awesome time.

For more info, visit the BRIGHTON ZINEFEST HOMEPAGE or join the FACEBOOK PAGE

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Hi everyone,

Hope 2011 has been treating you well so far. We've spent most of it in PJs watching Mad Men, so it looks as though things are off to a good start! Just to let you all know that the content for issue #3 is now completed, and Lynsey is currently working hard on the layouts. We are launching the issue at our new Eagle Legs club night at the Macbeth on the 30th MARCH (was originally on the 16th Feb but they double booked). More on that later, but for now we'll be cutting out London EL teeth at this beauty on Saturday night-



Lots of love to you all!

Shebang xo