The Shebang Blog

South East London Zine Fest!

2011-11-05T04:39:00.000-07:00

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!

2011-10-19T14:49:00.002-07:00

Shebang in Girl Gang Zine!

2011-10-08T11:07:00.000-07:00

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

2011-07-17T01:47:00.000-07:00

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.

Shebang in Time Out!

2011-04-16T09:48:00.000-07:00

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!

2011-04-15T05:47:00.000-07:00

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

2011-04-13T06:01:00.000-07:00

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

2011-04-13T05:35:00.000-07:00

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

2011-04-07T05:37:00.000-07:00

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!

2011-03-29T02:42:00.000-07:00

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

2011-03-22T03:34:00.000-07:00

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

2011-03-16T05:49:00.000-07:00

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, B rain 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

2011-03-15T04:29:00.000-07:00

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

2011-03-10T02:53:00.000-08:00

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

2011-02-28T11:22:00.001-08:00

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!

2011-02-17T05:27:00.000-08:00

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:

2011-02-02T06:02:00.000-08:00

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

2011-01-20T12:37:00.000-08:00

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!

2011-01-02T04:14:00.001-08:00

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

LADYFEST TEN IS NEARLY HERE!

2010-11-04T09:07:00.000-07:00

After tirelessly fundraising and planning an extravaganza, Ladyfest Ten is nearly upon us!

From Friday 12th til Sunday 14th November, London will play host to Ladyfest's 10 year anniversary, celebrating an entire decade of feminist arts and diy activism.

We will literally be spoilt for choice with a programme fit to burst with exciting events, live music, workshops, comedy, performance and theatre and a hell of a lot more! For full listings (still being added to), click HERE.

If Ladyfest is a new concept to you, READ UP! Many of our all-time favourite bands and artists started out with involvement in Ladyfest's (inc. Sleater-Kinney, Bangs & the Gossip), and the 'fest's continue inspire and unite feminists everywhere.

The Ladyfest Ten Manifesto:

"With Ladyfest Ten, we want to celebrate ten years of international diversity, support and discourse amongst feminist communities, comprised of artists, musicians, creatives and activists. In hosting this festival, we aim to:

10. Provide an original platform for iconic, established and emerging artists, comedians, musicians, filmmakers, thinkers, performers, crafters, writers, poets, dancers and more.

9. Highlight the continuing social, political and artistic impact and influence of DIY culture.

8. Continue to identify and engage with global feminisms.

7. Establish and strengthen connectivity across international Ladyfest movements.

6. Acknowledge our roots in diverse and inclusive counter-cultures.

5. Be a resource and point of inspiration, advocating the need for alternative role models.

4. Promote and develop participation and voluntary action as tools to empower individuals and communities.

3. Challenge established ideals, perceptions and boundaries through championing transgressive activism.

2. Encourage and support future evolutions/revolutions by building a positive legacy.

1. Celebrate the tenth birthday of Ladyfest in style: “If I can’t dance, it’s not my revolution”.

For tickets and more, visit the Ladyfest Ten SITE

Save The Arts!

2010-09-15T10:27:00.000-07:00

I'd urge anyone who values creativity in Britain to sign the petition & to support this campaign to stop cuts in arts funding.

MORE INFO

SIGN PETITION

They Is Us Exhibition

2010-09-10T06:12:00.000-07:00

One of Shebang's contributors, Reena Makwana, is taking part in a new exhibition which deals with a female response to the themes brought up by the science fiction genre. The London-based, female-friendly Nest Gallery has been working with the Sisters Burn to put together 'They Is Us' at the Sassoon Gallery, which will host eight artists' work, each centered around dealing with visions of the future and prophecies of the past.

Reena is joined by Chloe Bonfield, Millie Easton, Bronagh Fegan, Annabel Innes, Anna Lincoln, Lucy Porter and Mary Vettise.

For more information & dates, visit the NEST BLOG

Poster submissions wanted...

2010-08-28T03:31:00.000-07:00

We've just heard that Print Club London's annual BLISTERS poster show will take place on the 3rd December, and they're after submissions!

What they say:

"The show will feature 40 illustrators. 40 editioned and hand signed prints. 40 pounds each. We are bringing together a mixture of established and emerging illustrators for BLISTERS BLACKOUT, a winter feast of hand pulled, screen printed posters and submission is open to everyone.

This year we are asking everyone to add a ‘glow in the dark’ element to their poster design. We will be ‘Blacking Out’ the venue at points during the opening night so your posters can really GLOW!

There's more info about us, the show, and the previous shows on the website."

MORE INFO HERE

Have Yr Cake & Eat It : Ladyfest Fundraiser

2010-08-04T11:20:00.001-07:00

Shebang's resident DJs, Eagle Legs, have been asked to DJ at an upcoming Ladyfest fundraiser in London! Taking place on Saturday 21st at the George Tavern, we'll be spinning our riot grrrl & soul favourites, while live music will come courtesy of Betty & The Werewolves, The Lovebirds & The Voyeurist.

There'll be private view of the art exhibition from 6pm, and then the party will kick off at 8pm 'til 2.30am!

Please also visit the organisers' sites for information on all of the fun & interesting projects that they get up to, as well as more info on the night...

DIY WOMP

STORM IN A TEACUP

HAVE YOUR CAKE FACEBOOK EVENT

YOU can also join in with the exhibition, but be quick, entries must be sent on the 14th August! Call for submissions here

Birmingham Zine Fest Announced!

2010-07-11T12:37:00.001-07:00

BIRMINGHAM ZINE FEST SITE

2010-06-02T13:13:00.000-07:00

Shebang updates coming soon, but for now...

COME TO THIS! SUNDAY IN BRIGHTON:

inc. zine table!

Shebang at the Art Is Proof Press Pop-Up Shop!

2010-03-11T16:26:00.000-08:00

We're very excited to have been asked by the London-based Art Is Proof Press collective to have Shebang issues sold at their pop-up shop at Superette in London! The name might sound familiar - Superette was previously the home of the lovely Lady Luck Rules OK studio - but as the jewellery whizzes have moved on to pastures new, Superette will now act as an exhibition space, and the Art Is Proof Press gang have the pleasure of being the first to get in on the action.

From the 18th – 28th March, 'All My Best Friends Are…' will exhibit and sell affordable art, screen prints, books, zines and more from a selection of AIPP's favourite independent illustrators, designers and makers. Featuring work by Mark Pavey, William Exley, Leah Stewart, Charlie Duck, Hannah Waldron, Andy Forshaw, It’s Nice That, Owen Richards, Jiggery Pokery, Jess Bonham, DIY Couture, Fever Zine, Francesca Williams, We Are The Friction, Sally Hancox, Chloe Bell, Verity Keniger, Sarah King, and us!

Now I'll just be lazy and do some pasting from their event info page, as there's a lot going on over the fortnight...

"As well as exhibiting and selling an eclectic mix of fantastic work from our best pals, we’re going to be getting busy with some special events including cranking up the tunes and putting our meshes where our mouths are for a punk-rock print workshop and finishing off our residency at Superette with a Sunday Sale featuring Wonderleague’s amazing mix of deadstock, trading cards, accessories and zines, brought to you for one day only from the South Coast straight to London’s East End."

For full details of events, click HERE

Find Superette at:

66a Sclater Street
Off Brick Lane
London E1 6HR

xo

Interview with Girls

2010-03-10T12:49:00.000-08:00

My oh so trusty dictaphone has finally bitten the dust... and taken with it an interview with the band Girls that I'd only gotten around to writing up half of. Ahhh technology! So I thought I'd post up the half of the interview that was rescued, just incase anyone wants to see it. To be totally honest, you won't be missing out on much; they weren't really the chattiest of guys & even if the recording had survived, it was pretty much just two guys munching radishes and mumbling short answers. Fun!

Girls are from San Francisco, and released their debut album last year, full of dreamy, sun-drenched love songs. For a while before they released anything I'd been listening to their song 'Lust For Life' pretty much every day; it might actually be one of my favourite pop songs from recent years (find it here), but the album was a little less bright. The band doesn't contain any females (despite their publicity shots showing them surrounded by women - it gets confusing as to who's who) - and consists of JR & Christopher Owens (& it looks as though some more members have joined since the interview).

This is also the half with the particularly standard, textbook questions.. I'm sure there was talk of Comet Gain & some anecdotes about their tour, but it's pretty hazy now. Anyway, here goes (this took place late October '09)...

Girls Interview

Why did you (two guys) choose to call yourself Girls?
JR: For no real reason, we just thought it sounded nice. We just liked it right away. We kinda had an idea of how we could go with the aesthetic for that kind of name. That was the first idea we had; we just said it and it sounded cool.. there wasn't much thought to it.

What influenced you when you were younger?
C: Just other people that I saw playing music made me want to play music.

People you knew, or bands..?
C: Ariel Pink was a band that made me want to start making music again, when I was like 25/26.

Can you remember the first record you bought?
C: The first record I bought was Melancholy & The Infinite Sadness by the Smashing Pumpkins.
JR: I can't even remember. Not sure. I think I've said different things in interviews but I can't remember to be honest.

Was there a specific album that got through to you when you were younger?
JR: Got through to me? That was a Black Flag single, with 3 or 4 songs on it. With Jealous Again, White Minority.. I always forget the other songs, 'cause Jealous Again was the one I really liked. That was like my introduction to punk music, and the record that I really thought was strange and exciting.

Was it just the sound that you were interested in, or also the politics and everything that comes with it?
JR: No, I mean... I probably didn't... because of the song called 'White Minority', I didn't know if they were a racist band when I was younger. I was kinda torn about it when I first heard it, because I didn't know anything about it... and the cover. I think that's why I bought it. There's a cheerleader who's going to kill her boyfriend; she has a gun to her boyfriend's head. It's bright yellow. I still have it... I remember becoming really uncomfortable with it because of that song, but within a few weeks of asking people, and asking my older sister I found out. I think that was the first piece of vinyl I bought. My first single was probably Teddy Pendergrass or something; I was really into 80s R&B, not like Motown, just really pop stuff.

When it came to naming your album 'Album', was that similar to naming yourselves Girls; just something you came up with?
JR: Yeah, it made sense afterwards. We had a couple weeks where we were trying to figure out what to call it, and we both had ideas but I think neither of us liked them. It got really melodramatic; I felt like I was coming up with an emo album or something. A little too serious. I think Chris just had a mock-up of the album artwork and had put 'Album' where the title was going to go...
Christopher: ...and then we were just like, let's call it what it is. The Girls' album.
JR: We rationalised it. There are also pictures of our friends inside who are girls, and it just seemed like a photo album.

How do you feel about being lumped in with all of this “lo-fi” music?
JR: I don't like it, and I don't think Chris likes it either. The idea of lo-fi music is weird, 'cause I like Ariel Pink, but I think he's doing the same thing we did which was making do with what we had...

(ends at 6.17 mins in. I'm such a professional.)

Eagle Legs loves Dance Magic Dance!

2010-03-09T16:12:00.000-08:00

We had a fab night on Saturday with the Dance Magic Dance ladies at Girls Girls Girls, & loved watching Betty & The Werewolves, Peter Parker & The Racket tearing up the stage!

Betty & The Werewolves

For a full review of the night, visit DMD's blog. They put on great shows all the time, so those of you based in London should definitely join them for future events! We're hoping to make it up again soon, & have The Racket's Brighton gig on the 7th April (with Hunx & His Punx at the Albert) pencilled in our diaries! We're also hoping to include them in the next issue of Shebang, which is being worked on right now.

xo

London friends!

2010-02-22T11:09:00.000-08:00

.. we're coming to see ya!

On Sat 6th March, the Eagle Legs DJs (Liv & Ru from the Shebang team) will be playing records at The Old Blue Last in London as part of the Girls Girls Girls nite! The magnificent Peter Parker, Betty & The Werewolves and The Racket will also be playing live... expect riot grrrl classics, soul shakers & swoony indie love songs.

Free entry! Doors at 8pm x

2010-02-15T10:21:00.001-08:00

BRIGHTON ZINE FEST THIS WEEK!

Wow time flies! From Thursday (18th), the BZF will be in full effect, kicking things off with a trading night & pot roast on Thurs evening, and continuing all the way 'til Sunday with a range of zine-related events. The full timetable is up on the BRIGHTON ZINE FEST SITE, but here's a brief overview...

Thursday : Swapshop - zine trading & potluck dinner at Coachwerks
Friday : Gig - The Arteries / Social Club / Rooftops / This Business Is Closed / Sauna Youth at Cowley Club
Saturday : Zine Fayre at Hanover Community Centre (we're sharing a table with FEVER!)& evening soiree at West Hill Hall with vegan dinner & alt. cabaret
Sunday : Sunday roast & possible film showing at the Cowley.

Last year's 'fest was our first & favourite so far, so this week is bound to be a blast! For full details of the zine's taking part, click HERE.

See you Saturday!

New year, new plans

2010-01-03T03:24:00.000-08:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

Time for a Shebang update. 2009 wasn't the best for productivity for the zine, as Lynsey & I were moving house, changing jobs & doing internships (me), running an art cafe (Lynsey) and generally not really having time to sit down and write, let alone get the third issue finished. So here's the news on Issue #3 as I know a lot of people have been asking about it recently. So far, the majority of the content is finished; we just need a few final bits and pieces and then we can do the illustration call out. The main problem is raising the printing money, as we're still only two thirds of the way there (and it ain't cheap!). Our offer of BOTH issues for £7 is still on, so please take advantage of it if you haven't already, as until we've sold more of the first 2 issues we can't go ahead with the third. Offer is on our online shop HERE. Please help us out! Both issues are also available at our usual stockists.

I guess if we're still behind on the costs in a few months, we might have to start looking into including advertising, which is a little bit heartbreaking.

Anyway.. money worries aside, 2010 is already looking like a fun year as we've got a table at the Brighton Zine Fest in February, and hope to take part in the Alternative Press Fair in London which takes place the week before, making Feb a bit of a zineorama! Lynsey has also just made a new blog for you to follow HERE, and Eagle Legs - our monthly Brighton club night at the Penthouse - will be changing to the 2nd Saturday of every month (with MEN playing on the January 16th night!).

Love to all & thanks for the support!

Liv x

SPECIAL XMAS OFFER!

2009-12-14T15:07:00.000-08:00

For the zine lover in yr life (or for something to read on Xmas day when you're stuffed full of mince pies and there's nothing good on tv) - BOTH issues of Shebang for £7 including postage! But be quick, the offer won't last long!

For full content details and our online shop, please visit the SHEBANG HOMEPAGE

(Note: Unfortunately the offer only applies for UK orders, but we're happy to reduce the shipping for overseas readers - drop us a line at mail@shebang-mag.co.uk to sort it out) x

Brighton Zine Fest: Update!

2009-12-14T14:36:00.001-08:00

The goings-on for each day have been decided, and this year it's a massive FOUR days long (including film showings, talks, music and the traditional zine fayre). We can't wait! For more info visit the homepage: BRIGHTON ZINE FEST

WETDOG INTERVIEW

2009-12-01T15:23:00.001-08:00

So yesterday Wetdog released their second album, Frauhaus!, which is pretty damn magnificent. This also means that the interview we did with them back in February is now dating so fast that it's no longer 'old news', but just a conversation that no one will care about by the time the third issue of Shebang comes out. So - as originally promised when we set up this blog - here it is, in all its technological glory. Unfortunately dear reader, there is no pretty illustration or light-blue papery texture to enjoy, but hopefully you'll forgive us (we promise not to make a habit of doing this - we're old-school printed zine lovers through and through!).

(Big thanks to Wetdog for helping us work out who said what on the dictaphone! Hopefully everyone is quoted correctly).

INTERVIEW:: WETDOG

after their gig w/ Kasms & Crystal Stilts
Brighton
12-02-09

So how did Wetdog come about?
Rivka: Wetdog started with my friends Sophie and Chiara...
Sarah: And a girl called Rivka, who's this one...
Billy: Two left, then I joined because I was friends with Sarah and Rivka and they asked me to join, and the new line-up will have been going for 2 years this May.
B: We need to make up a fake story for all this! We met at a casting for a Craig David video! I got the job.
S: At the time I was sporting a Craig David style beard. I've stopped taking the testosterone now.

You've played gigs with the Long Blondes, The Gossip and tons of other great bands. What's been your favourite gig so far?

All: Oooh!
B: I've probably got one if I thought about it actually. Didn't we have a really good one recently? The Vivian Girls one was good actually.
S: Yeah, we played with the Vivian Girls at White Heat, they were really good.
R: I really enjoyed our album launch, with Electricity in Our Homes and Captain Blood and the Sea Dogs. I also liked The Gossip in Frankfurt... was it Frankfurt? I think Frankfurt was the first one...and Beth was singing Careless Whisper to the girls in the front row.

Why did you choose to call yourselves Wetdog?

R: It was a reaction to all the glamorous names that bands were choosing at the time. My ex-boyfriend came up with the name as a joke really, and we ended up sticking with it. The other contender was El Blag, but no one was really up for that.
B: The other day someone actually told me that they thought it was the best name they'd ever heard, which was not the usual reaction!
S: Maybe it's because it's just unpretentious? That's why I like it.

Is it just one word or two?

All: One word.
S: It has been two.
R: And no caps ideally, though we do discuss this!
S: You're a caps girl, aren't you?

You've played a couple of Ladyfests, are events like that important to you?

S: We're into the ladies!
B & R: Yeah!
R: For a couple of years we seemed to play loads of Ladyfests, but they didn't ask us at the recent London Ladyfests.
S: I think it's because I started to shave my armpits about six months ago, so we're off the agenda (laughs).
B: We've done Ladyfests in Europe and stuff.
R: Yeah, the Ladyfest Madrid was brilliant. Organised by the very fantastic tassle-dressed Maria.

Was it different to the Ladyfests in the UK?

B: They're all different everywhere, even the ones in the UK. We did Brighton Ladyfest actually.
S: Yeah, that was good. Hint hint, if you're out there!

Would you consider yourselves to be feminists?

S: Yeah, I'm a feminist. Definitely.
R: I think when we first started, I was in another band with Sophie and it was quite nice to do a band without any men, just for a bit.
B: Fuck 'em!
R: Yeah, take charge of everything yourselves!
B: A woman once wrote in an interview that Wetdog had sold out because they had a boy now in their band. That being me! (Laughs). I am not a boy, and we would never have a boy!
R: No, that isn't true, we would.
B: Would we?
S: Yeah definitely.
B: We'd sound awful with a boy!
R: I think it's about the vocals more than anything.
Sarah: I quite like boy-girl vocals, like The Vaselines.

What music did you listen to when you were growing up?

S: Michael Jackson, Madonna, Rick Astley!
B: My first album was Michael Jackson's Bad.
S: Yeah, me too.
R: Ummmm....lawd knows...The Kinks, Kate Bush, The Country Teasers?
B: I was kind of brought up with a load of music like Pink Floyd and Dire Straights, who I have a nostalgic love for still. And David Bowie, and all that kind of thing.

Current influences?

B: I really, really like Electricity In Our Homes at the moment, they're probably my fave.
S: Crystal Stilts. I do genuinely love them, I was a stalker of them from back in the day.
B: Yeah, we listened to Crystal Stilts aaggeess ago on tour.
R: Captain Blood Blood, Euros Childs, Vic Goddard - and I'm really into Talking Heads at the moment - David Byrne is a god.
B: And I like New Bloods.

What's next in store for Wetdog?

B: Lots, lots of things.
S: Doom. Death. Suicide.
R: We've started recording our new album which should be our this summer, and also have a US release.
B: We're going to have a few US releases. This album (Enterprise Reversal) that's out at the moment will be out in the US soon, and we're having a split seven-inch...
S: ... with this band from San Diego called Blessure Grave who are really good.

How did that come about? Do you know them already?

S: Yeah, we just sort of messaged each other. They're a bit of a goth band, but yeah, I really like them. I think we've been indulging our goth side, cause we've been recording with this guy called Dave Allen who did loads of The Cure albums. It's been going pretty well.
B: So yeah, recording our new album which should be out here in the summer.

WETDOG MYSPACE

EAGLE LEGS (SHEBANG CLUBNIGHT) UPDATE

2009-11-25T13:43:00.000-08:00

This month we were really, really lazy about Eagle Legs, and we'd like to apologise by announcing that the next event (on the 19th December) will be an EAGLE LEGS XMAS EXTRAVAGANZA! Even though we're still planning all the details, we're hoping to include mulled wine, zines, cake, an xmas-themed playlist, decking the walls and general xmas cheer! As soon as plans are finalised, we'll do an official post on here, so keep checking back.

We also have some extra special news that was announced yesterday - on the night of the January Eagle Legs (on the 16th) MEN will be playing downstairs in the Freebutt! If MEN are new to you, in short they comprise of JD Samson (LE TIGRE), Michael O'Neill (Ladybug Transistor, Princess) and Ginger Brooks Takahashi (LTTR, The Ballet), with input from Johanna Fateman (LE TIGRE) and artist Emily Roysdon. The band describe themselves as a "a band & art/performance collective that focuses on the energy of live performance and the radical potential of dance music. MEN speaks to issues such as wartime economies, sexual compromise, and demanding liberties through lyrical content and an exciting stage show". If anyone is familiar with Le Tigre or any of their previous bands, then you'll have a good idea of what these artists are capable of creating. We're a bit too excited about this, and may have to leave you now for a little lie-down to compose our fangirl-selves.

MORE MEN

x

Southampton Craft & Zine Fair

2009-11-02T12:11:00.000-08:00

Southampton is welcoming their first ever zine fest, in the shape of the Southampton Craft and Zine Fair, taking place over the weekend of the 21st & 22nd November at The Arthouse Gallery Cafe (178 Above Bar Street, SO14 7DW).

We really wanted to make it but have to be in Brighton for the next Eagle Legs clubnight (on the Saturday night), but would urge anyone living in or near Southampton to go along and join in the fun! Being a Salisbury girl I know it's rare to have these kinds of events around the mid South, so this is one not to miss.

Here's what they say about the event:

"Hip crafts meets subversive (and not so subversive) literature at Southampton's first (feel free to correct me on this one) zine and craft fair. 12-5pm both Saturday and Sunday. Stalls and workshops will be upstairs to browse and shop, whether for you or for Christmas presents for your nearest and dearest. Plus, as always, the Art House will be serving their super scrumptious cakes and lunch."

Sounds delicious!

The organisers still have stalls available to any zinesters wanting to take part, so drop them a line at craft@thearthousesouthampton.co.uk for forms etc. And help to spread the word! Facebook event is HERE

OFFICIAL PAGE

Brighton Zine Fest 2010:::

2009-10-12T03:47:00.000-07:00

OFFICIAL PAGE

Are You Zine Friendly?

2009-10-06T13:31:00.000-07:00

The marvelous Jimi Gherkin is continuing to fly to flag for zinesters everywhere with his newest venture, Alternative Press's Zine Friendly event. The second ZF takes place at the Foundry in London on Thursday 12th November, and hopes to spread the word about the ZINE FRIENDLY BLOG; a new, incredibly valuable resource for self-publishers everywhere full of venues, promoters, stockists and events that are all "zine friendly".

Over to Jimi...

"We are inviting small pressers everywhere to come down and promote their own work. For free! All we are asking is that people donate what they can, even a zine or two, to help Alternative Press to keep promoting the scene.

There will be communal tables where self publishers can sell their work. Printmakers or those with large work are encouraged to use the walls as a spontaneous temporary free arts space where you can stick up your work DIY style! BYOB (Bring Your Own Blu-tak!) Also, we are inviting some zine distributors to represent as much of what is going on in the scene as we can.

We'll be having a cake sale with free tea, Knitting Circle, CD compilation lucky dip (just bring a cd of your own favourite music and take your pick!), free blank zines for you to use and a poetry workshop followed by some performances and a short open mic..."

Things will kick off at 7pm until around 11pm.

SHEBANG CLUB NIGHT!

2009-10-04T03:45:00.000-07:00

EAGLE LEGS!

If you happen to be in Brighton on Saturday 17th October, please come and join Rushka and Liv for the first ever Eagle Legs club night! The monthly night is happening on every 3rd Saturday (17 Oct, 21 Nov, 19 Dec) at The Penthouse, above The Freebutt at Phoenix Place in Brighton. (MAP )

Prepare to break our your best bedroom dance moves for a night of sonic fun, as we'll be spinning a lovely mixture of (good) indie, riot grrrl, punk, soul and more good stuff to boot. We'll be decking out your number one dinky dive with soft furnishings and chintzy decor - your new favourite party will feel just like home!

FREE ENTRY!! And there will be cheep drinks & promos to help you save pennies.

Making guest vocal appearances will be: Bikini Kill, Aretha Franklin, Bratmobile, The Runaways, Gossip, Etta James, Quasi, Lunachicks, Le Tigre, Mary Wells, Vivian Girls, Stevie Nicks, Sleater-Kinney, Elastica, MEN, The Go Go's, Irma Thomas, X Ray Spex, Long Blondes, Peaches, Marnie Stern, L7, Martha Reeves... & many, many more!

Have a listen to our sample playlist (still need to add some more soul!) : EAGLE LEGS SPOTIFY

Join our FACEBOOK GROUP for news, and our EVENT PAGE for the details.

Really hope you can make it - please tell yr friends!

x

Publish & Be Damned on today!

2009-09-27T04:16:00.000-07:00

It totally slipped my mind to write an update this earlier in the week, but self-publishing fair Publish & Be Damned is on TODAY, starting at 3pm (til 8pm) at Oxford House in Bethnal Green, London. Here's the lowdown:

"Surveying a wide range of independent local, national and international publishers of magazines, fanzines, journals, diaries and periodicals, Publish and Be Damned celebrates publishing as a creative and critical space for presenting artists' work. As with previous years, the fair celebrates experimental approaches to making and distributing the work of artists, writers and musicians outside of the commercial mainstream. In addition we will have room dedicated to performances and talks throughout the afternoon."

For the full list of who's taking part, visit the Facebook event HERE

Handmade Brighton

2009-09-13T07:07:00.000-07:00

Calling all Brighton-based creatives and craft-lovers! If you need a space to sell your wares, or want a peek at what other crafty folk get up to behind closed doors (without having to trawl for hours through Etsy), Handmade Brighton is here to help. The new monthly event aims to gather together local hand-made craft and fashion sellers, showcasing new talents and providing a space for everyone to meet and greet and buy original, handmade goods without the hassle of Internet fees or commission.

The event will be taking place on the 4th October downstairs at the Komedia, North Laines, and in addition to the craft stalls, there'll be live music, have-a-go workshops, bar, cakes and refreshments available from the Komedia cafe.

If you'd like to be considered for a stall or would like further info, email handmadebrighton@googlemail.com (the organisers advise booking stalls early to avoid disappointment). More info can also be found on their blog:
HANDMADE BRIGHTON

Off to sunnier shores...

2009-09-02T14:41:00.000-07:00

Just a quickie to let you all know that we're away on hols from now 'til the 13th, so any orders made between now and then won't be posted out until the 14th. We're not ignoring/forgetting you! Both issues are still available and as always we NEED to get rid of them, mainly so I can have a corner of floorspace back in my room (I think the carpet's changed colour), and also because printing costs quite a bit & we're still far from the target for Issue #3. To complete (or start) your mini collection of Shebang zines, pay a visit to our online shop: MMM RETAIL THERAPY

Bon Voyage!

"Get up out of your seats... that goes for you too Grandma!"

Zineswap on Platform

2009-08-20T07:09:00.000-07:00

Rob and Gordo from Zineswap have just been interviewed for Platform - check it out, it's a good read and there's some interesting blurb about the humble beginnings of zine culture. And some stuff about young children drawing knives and genitals on walls, if that's more likely to persuade you. READ HERE

If you're not familiar with Zineswap, we'd recommend paying their page a visit. Not only have they compiled a huge list of all the zines they've been receiving (pleasing my inner geek), but you can also send in your own zine(s) and get sent more zines in return. Their name basically speaks for itself.

ZINESWAP ONLINE

White Air Festival

2009-08-08T06:38:00.000-07:00

The idea of us doing anything vaguely active and sporty is a hilarious vision, but thanks to Brighton's WhiteAir festival (taking place on 18th-20th September on Brighton beach) we've found a way to be wowed by extreme sports without having to break into a sweat.

The 3-day festival combines extreme sports and great music, including a headline set from our faves The Cribs, and British Sea Power, The Lemonheads and Sky Larkin, to name but a few. The festival is the biggest for extreme sports in Europe and features High Diving, Thundercats, Jetskis, Windsurfing Freestyle and Racing Championships, Surfing, Kitesurfing slider park, Wakeboards, Triathlon, Aquathlon, and a 56 miles off-road race starting in London and finishing at White Air, and many more. All of which we'll be watching from the sidelines, probably with an icecream in hand!

We'll be reviewing the festival in full in the next issue of Shebang.

For more info about WhiteAir, visit their official site:

Illustrator Interest...

2009-08-03T10:47:00.000-07:00

OK, so the third issue is taking a lifetime to complete, thanks to silly things like full-time jobs and STILL having no internet at home (thanks Sky! Although we are watching back to back episodes of Miami Ink and planning future tattoos, so it's not all bad).

Basically, because we have so many illustrators 'watching' this blog, I just thought I'd test the water and see if there's any interest in helping out with the illustrations for the third issue? There's still a long way to go before we start allocating features to be illustrated as only half the content is written up, but I thought I'd see who fancies joining the Shebang gang. Obviously, it's pretty useful if you've actually read the zine before, just to get an idea of the kinds of things we are into design-wise. You also won't need to pick up a pen until September at the earliest, so it'll help if you have a few hours to spare this Autumn. What else...? Oh yeah, although we print in black and white, we do accept colour images, just so long as you bear in mind that it'll be greyscale in the zine. And please reply to this blog post rather than sending an email, as my inbox is a giant mess of unreplied emails at the moment.

Yup, I think that's it for now. Any takers?

(If you haven't seen the zine and want to have a look at a copy, our online shop and list of stockists can be found here).

x

Alternative Press Fair II

2009-07-12T04:44:00.000-07:00

We're excited to share the news that we've been given a space at the Alternative Press Fair II, which takes place on the 2nd August '09 at St. Aloysius Social Centre in London.

The fair will be the final day in what's set to be a HUGE zine event, spanning 5 days, and including:

- The "Publish You" book launch, which includes submissions from tons of small press folks & zinesters, and also aims to act as a manifesto and discussion of the contemporary small press scene.

- Are You Zine Friendly? A chance for all those involved in small press to meet up and trade and sell their wares, along with music and general fun times. Even those who are zine-less are welcome to join in the celebrations and to hopefully go home with a goody bag of zine swag!

- Spoken Word Night Out! Taking a step away from the printed page, this night will see poetry, zine readings, story-telling and other performances from artists working in print media.

- Collaborama! A jam-packed BEAST of a zine event, Collaborama is a combination of zine, comix and small press stalls, a bbq, film screenings, workshops, performances and talks, and the chance for people to come together to create a collaborative zine for the day.

And to top it all off, Sunday will be the second Alternative Press Fair, a chilled-out day of perusing stalls selling comix, zines, poetry, radical literature and arts; a great ending to what's set to be a fantastic event! For more info on events, visit the Alternative Press Site and keep checking the Alt. Press Blog for the latest updates.

Hope to see you there!

24 Hour Zine Thing

2009-07-12T04:35:00.000-07:00

Get your typewriters, scissors, glue and colouring pens out folks... for July is International Zine Month, and the 24 Hour Zine Thing aims to get everyone involved in making their own zine... the only catch being the time-frame allowed for getting your project all stapled up and ready to go.

What they say...

"Thought up by Julie, and taking its cue from 24 Hour Comics Day and with much much much respect to Scott McCloud, the 24 Hour Zine Challenge asks zinesters to create a 24-page zine from conception to final product in 24 hours straight. Zines should be of suitable size and technical difficulty so that this truly is a challenge for individual zinesters.

Feeling adventurous? Make an oversized zine! With collage material, all typewritten, with a blockprinted cover! Coptic-stitch bound with silver thread!

It’s not called 24 Hour Zine Day because there is no set day on which you must complete the challenge. There’s only a deadline for when you need to get the zine finished and submitted: July 31, 2007."

For more info, visit: 24hourzines.com

Bradford Zine Fayre - 21st June

2009-06-10T11:40:00.001-07:00

Another Zine Fayre! And this time it's in Bradford, on Sunday June 21st at the Treehouse Cafe, which is opposite the uni on the left as you wander up Great Horton Road (hopefully this will make sense to people familiar with the geography of Bradford). The day promises to be a "celebration of all things DIY and papery", which we like the sound of very much. Unfortuntely we're not able to make it us Brighton Shebangers are moving house, so it's up to you to go on our behalf and give all the details! And speaking of details, here is what we have learnt about the event so far...

"The Bradford Centre for Non-Violence / Treehouse Cafe will be transformed into a den of DIY.

Three rooms will be full to the brim with lots of incredible zines from all over the UK. Feminism, queer issues, anarchism, music, personal experiences, crafts, art, photography, history, comics, illustration… zines can and do cover everything; you’ll have a chance to peruse through these lovely self-published tomes of joy and meet the creators too! Manifesta, Lola and the Cartwheels, BD7 Punx, Branches Distro, Subtext, Mobile Menstrual Zine Library, Claptrap, Beep! and ZNA Distro will all be there for your enjoyment, plus a load more.

Then there are the special workshops! For full listings, click here.

So please do get in touch if you want to exhibit anything. There will be tables for people to put individual zines on, but we want this to be collectively shaped and sculpted- so if you draw, write, paint, type, photograph, glue or sew then please get in touch!"

All info on their Facebook event page.

Ladyfest Oxford 2008

2009-05-20T10:37:00.000-07:00

Although the 'fest is now halfway through, there is still just enough time to share the news that another brilliant Ladyfest is currently in full swing, and this time Oxford is doing the honour of celebrating women and creativity.

What they say:

Ladyfest is a non-profit festival which presents and supports the creative talents of professional and amateur female acts in our community, including performances and workshops. Both men and women, students and locals, are very welcome to be involved in organising our events, but we feel that to demonstrate the underrepresentation of women’s acts in cultural activities the performances ought to be women-only, or majority-women if not possible.

This year's festival will take place in a variety of venues across Oxford in order to raise money for Oxford Rape Crisis

What's On?

There's a great programme of events organised, including gigs, films workshop, book groups, crafts and more! And we're very pleased to have been asked to send in some copies of Shebang to be sold on our behalf at the Crafternoon, alongside some ace zines! Here are a few events worth checking out...

Ladyfest Book Group (Thursday 21st May, 5.30pm, in Borders)
- We will be reading Joyce Carol Oates' short story 'Faithless.' All welcome for a friendly and informal discussion.
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=60349108491&ref=ts

Ladyfest Crafternoon (Saturday 23rd May, 2-6pm, St Peter's College)
- We will be showcasing women's creativity by holding workshops throughout the afternoon including knitting, zines and textiles. There will also be a chance to buy lots of handmade goodies!
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?sid=91a8ac395606e840032790057de4d1fc&eid=62141357644

Ladyfest MixTape Party (Saturday 23rd May, 7.30-11pm, University College)
- Come along to University College bar where we'll be playing YOUR Ladyfest MixTapes throughout the evening. Get involved by sending us a compilation CD of up to 20 minutes of your favourite female artists and bands!

For more info on the event, visit their MySpace or Facebook.

Permanent Ink

2009-05-10T05:12:00.001-07:00

OK, so while this may not have anything to do with our little blue zine, we still find it very exciting that someone has had our beautiful deer logo etched on his arm forever! Zoe Austin, the brilliant illustrator who came up with our deer logo, has posted this picture up on her blog of Falmouth student Ryan Bartby's new ink.

The guy's got taste!

London Zine Symposium 2009

2009-04-06T02:41:00.000-07:00

We're excited to announce that we've been given the thumbs up for a spot at this year's London Zine Symposium! The all-day extravaganza takes place on Sunday 3rd May '09, just off Brick Lane at The Rag Factory, London, from 12-6pm. The event (now in its fifth year) will play host to small-press, comics and zine makers, encouraging a large get together of zinesters, with the intention of building a stronger DIY network and community. After the success of the Brighton Zine Fest, we're already making up flyers and posters for the show, and might even attempt some baking (despite probably being the only people EVER to fuck up a kids' chocolate cornflake cake recipe)!

Workshops for the day have just been announced, and include:

- The politics of zines and comix since 1970 talk by Roger Sabin and Teal Triggs
- Examining the rise of the zine festival and how to organise one
- Running a zine library with speakers from Barcelona, New Orleans, and Poitiers (France)
- Zine readings with Alex Wrekk (Brainscan zine/must-have zine bible Stolen Sharpie Revolution) from Portland, Oregan and other zine readers from across the UK
- Facilities to make a zine from the day with collaborations from those attending with the help of Footprinters print co-op
- A radical history walk of the local area (“Housing, Class and gentrification in Spitalfields walk”)
- How to use popular website Etsy to sell zines

For updates on the day, visit London Zine Symposium Site

Issue 2 Artist Profile: Kate Morris

2009-04-03T13:15:00.000-07:00

I've only just noticed that after promises of Kate's work in glorious technicolour in the feature, her work is no where to be seen on the Flickr link! I've just tried to get on to upload the images, but have managed to get locked out of the Flickr account. I've got absolutely no clue what the password is, and the password resets aren't working. Oops.

So here - finally - is Kate's work in full colour, which as you can see, is a lot better than in black & white! If you want to find out more about her beautiful paintings, get yourself a copy of issue #2 and read up on her thrifty collections and secret adoration for Mills and Boon. Indulge your eyes!

Record Store Day

2009-04-02T04:01:00.000-07:00

"If you ever get lonely, just go to the record store and visit your friends"

Record shops are my favourite places ever. Where ever I may find myself, stumbling upon an independent record shop, full of unknown promise, is geekily joyful. But times are tough, and a lot of our beloved and trusted indie's are biting the dust hard, leaving only the corporate bigwigs to provide us with some physical musical indulgence. I've never really enjoyed MP3s, with their lack of album artwork, liner notes and speedy, throwaway deliverance. It's a really impersonal way of listening to music, just plugging in and watching files stream across the screen. The more creative aspects are lost amongst technical jargon and the clicking of buttons.

Which is why I'm pleased to announce that on April 18th, Record Store Day is celebrating the modest indie record shop, and all the joy it can bring. Started in the US in 2007, the day often involves special vinyl and CD releases made exclusively for the day, and hundreds of artists making special appearances and performances in shops across the world. Festivities include live performances, cook-outs, body painting, meet & greets with artists, parades and djs spinning records.

But why only make a day of it? Pop by your local store today, show support and let's hope the independent record shop will remain an exciting visit for years and years to come.

For more info and listings of the day's events, visit Record Store Day Official Site

2009-03-27T04:38:00.000-07:00

Update time!

All has been fairly quiet for Shebang recently; probably due to February being such a manic month, what with the printing deadlines/sorting copies/preordering/sending out orders/getting it in shops/Brighton Zine Fest and so on. But I'm in the process of getting a few ideas together for the third issue, and so far we've got interviews with Wetdog and Das Wanderlust (which was meant to be in the last issue, but we ran out of room!) as well as some other interesting bands in the pipeline. And hopefully we'll be including a feature on We Heart Arts, which also had to be axed from Issue 02 at the last minute due to space problems (to find out more, check out their website: http://www.weheartarts.com/)

I'll probably sort out an official call for submissions at some point in the next few weeks, but for now if anyone has any ideas or wants to contribute, let us know! E-mail: mail@shebang-mag.co.uk. Writers especially needed! And features on any topics relating more to arts and travel - I realise that the last issue was pretty music-heavy!

Shebang now has a few more stockists added to the gang, including Dave's Comics in Brighton and the Bonbi Forest Indie Emporium, a beautiful site full of independent designs and beautiful jewellery run by Cornwall-based Lee May (who we featured in the second issue).

This blog has also been a bit abandoned recently (a lot of that might have been to do with the sunny spring afternoons spent on the beach...), but fear not, we'll get it rolling soon.

And a massive thanks once again to everyone who came along to the Brighton Zine Fest last month, it was a great event and the organisers did a fantastic job! Some pics from the day...

Hello there Issue #2!

2009-02-27T03:12:00.000-08:00

Issue#2 has finally arrived! The first copies saw the light of day at the Brighton Zine Fest over the weekend (a MASSIVE thanks to everyone who came along, we had a great time!), and now pretty much all of our stockists are topped up with the new issue (as well as still selling Issue#1).

a5, 52 pages, light blue paper, limited run of 400

Contents includes interviews with The Cribs, Tegan & Sara, Dan Le Sac & Scroobius Pip, Vivian Girls, Wild Beasts, Pens, Swallows & our crafty fave Bonbi Forest; a travel guide to Portland, Oregon; Kate Morris artist profile; Mixtape recommendations from Jeffrey Lewis, Los Campesinos!, Girls, Camera Obscura, Emmy The Great & more; Features on Cafe Hero and We Heart Arts; live reviews of Das Wanderlust, Jeffrey Lewis & The Wave Pictures, Twee As Fuck & the Shred Yr Face tour; record reviews and lots more! We'll put up the whole content list on our website soon.

Buy it directly from us at our online shop. Will post worldwide, and can do a deal if you want both isues - e-mail us at mail@shebang-mag.co.uk.

Coming Up - Brighton Zine Fest!

2009-02-10T00:00:00.000-08:00

21st-22nd February 2009.

It's now less than 2 weeks until Brighton turns into a mecca of UK zine culture. For one whole weekend, zine-related events will be spread throughout the city; from zinesters selling their wares and live music, to a whole heap of workshops (inc. vegan cookery and papercraft) and a talk on sexism in activist spaces. It's all go, and all inclusive.

We'll be at the zine fair on the Sunday at West Hill Hall, selling the first ever copies of Shebang Issue #2 (fresh off the press!), along with Issue #1, badges, cakes and more! Please drop by and say hello!

Brighton Zine Fest Official Website

And thanks to some excellent timing, Jeffrey Lewis (one of our favourite musicians ever - featured in Issue#2) is also playing at the Komedia on the Sunday evening. So why not make a day of it & pick up a copy of his comic Fuff to add to yr zine collection? Tickets here

Day Out - Ladyfest Goldsmiths!

2009-02-06T07:22:00.000-08:00

So yesterday, Rushka and I grabbed some copies of Shebang and donned our coats and scarves, ready to brace the chill of London town (we only had snow in Brighton for one day before it all pretty much melted away and warmed up, so knew that the snow-covered Capital was going to be pretty icy!)

After a quick visit to M&S to stock up on some overpriced by very nice snacks and drinks, we left Brighton in search of Ladyfest Goldsmiths - the first Ladyfest event we've ever been able to make (living on a budget in Cornwall for the past three years meant that trips like this were out of the question!).

The journey took much longer than the usual 50 mins, thanks to the recent snowfall, but we got there eventually!

(Please excuse my rather toothy snow excitement!)

Arriving at Victoria, we got our tube passes and headed to the underground, only to find that our route was under construction, meaning over an hours worth of tube connections and a swoopy bus journey.

BUT WE MADE IT!

We followed the trail of the beautifully designed Ladyfest posters...

... and eventually found ourselves in the Student's Union, which was lined with stalls, a knitting area, and performance area. We got a bit carried away with it all and forgot to take many photos until the end of the day, but here's a rough idea of the layout:

Every stall was different; one sold slices of homemade cake (the chocolate cake was recommended, and was delicious!)...

... another was covered in the cutest knitted goods, from knitted bows to knitted fruit & veg...

... and others were raising awareness of women's charities and organisations, including a Breast Cancer stall with complimentary ginger biscuits, decorated with pink bows of icing, and the Fawcett Society. The Ladyfest stall gave out free badges and an official zine, made especially for the event:

Inside:

Throughout the day there were musical performances...

...and talks; my favourite being a talk/discussion given by Frances Morgan from our favourite big-name music mag, Plan B magazine, focusing on the role of women in music journalism, and how to go about getting things on a more even level for both genders, whether they are musicians, writers or readers.

Towards the end of the day, we took over duties at the zine stall, and had chats with fellow zinesters, including the wonderful ladies at one of our favourite zines (now a blog), Uplift!

We weren't able to make it to see any of the bands in the evening as we had to get back to Brighton, but all in all it was a great day, and the organisers did a wonderful job. A really inspiring event!

If anyone went along to the evening part & fancies writing up a little report that we can add on here, please get in touch.

Shebang for sale at Ladyfest Goldsmiths!

2009-01-31T04:40:00.001-08:00

We'll be bringing along copies of Issue #1 to sell at the Zine Fayre held at Ladyfest Goldsmiths on Thursday. Copies will be sold at £3 with a percentage going to the Poppy Project.

If you're near London that day, pop along! (See 2 posts below for full details of the day's activities).

www.myspace.com/ladyfestgoldsmiths

Hopefully see you there!

(Men welcome too!)

x

ISSUE #2 READY TO PREORDER!

2009-01-28T03:25:00.000-08:00

YAY!

Why I Love... Bikini Kill illustration by Matt Taylor

Finally, after many late nights, writer's block anger and more than a few stresses and obstacles thrown in our way, we're pleased to announce that Issue #2 of Shebang is now on it's merry way! We're sending it to print on Monday (2nd Feb), and are hoping to get it back in time to sell at the Brighton Zine Fest on Sunday 22nd February. But for those of you who aren't Brighton-based, you can preorder your copy now from our Online Shop.

Copies will be sent out on the 23rd Feb, first class, and are at a special pre-order price of £3.50 (international postage costs also reduced).

ISSUE #2 includes interviews with The Cribs, Tegan & Sara, Dan Le Sac & Scroobius Pip, Vivian Girls, Wild Beasts, Pens, Swallows & our crafty fave Bonbi Forest; a travel guide to Portland; Kate Morris artist profile; Mixtape recommendations from Jeffrey Lewis, Los Campesinos!, Girls, Camera Obscura, Emmy The Great & more; features on Cafe Hero and We Heart Arts; live reviews of Das Wanderlust, Jeffrey Lewis & The Wave Pictures, Twee As Fuck & the Shred Yr Face tour; record reviews and lots more! We'll put up the whole content list on our website soon.

www.shebang-mag.co.uk

We've also permanently reduced the price of the first issue, so get your copy quick as once it sells out, it'll be gone forever!

x

Event: Ladyfest Goldsmiths 2009

2009-01-27T10:32:00.000-08:00

An all-dayer set up to celebrate the creativity of womenkind, Ladyfest Goldsmiths takes place on Thursday 5th Feb, and looks set to be an interesting and fun-filled day of music, performances, comedy, art and talks from inspirational women (including Frances Morgan from Plan B mag discussing Women in Music Journalism - one not to be missed, fellow writers!)

We're especially excited about seeing Das Wanderlust again (reviewed in Shebang's second issue - out on the 23rd Feb) and checking out the cake sales, face painting, zine fayre, clothes swap and bring and buy.

Most of the info is beautifully presented on this fab poster:

...aaaaand even more bits and pieces will be added nearer to the time, so keep checking the official Ladyfest Goldsmiths' MySpace profile or Facebook event.

We'll be reporting back on the goings-on, so keep passing by this blog to look for updates.

TICKET INFO:

Tickets: all day pass £7/£6 concession. Night only passes £5/£4 NUS.

Tickets available from WeGotTickets.com here

SHEBANG ISSUE #1

2009-01-13T08:47:00.000-08:00

COPIES STILL AVAILABLE
Limited run of 500

Issue #1
Out June 2008

Inside:

Mixtape recommendations from Ladyhawke, The Teenagers, Black Lips, Yo Majesty, Jeremy Warmsley, Emmy The Great & more, interviews with Poppy & The Jezebels, The Subways & Peggy Sue, backstage at the Mighty Boosh, travel guides to Berlin & Ghent, Rushka Moore & Dickon Drury artist profiles, Free Spirit Spheres, Brighton Goes Gospel, a geisha makeover, online craft, cover songs, live reviews (Mr. Scruff and Angus & Julia Stone), record reviews (Au Revoir Simone, We Start Fires, Girl Nobody, Liars, Their Hearts Were Full of Spring, Swallows & more), Why I Love... Morrissey

GET IT HERE

2009-01-13T08:39:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the Shebang blog!

Because the zine only comes out twice a year & is limited to 52 pages, all extra content we get and anything we find along the way will be shared directly HERE!

As always, we rely on contributions so drop us a line if you'd like to get involved - all creative talents are welcomed! E-mail Liv at mail@shebang-mag.co.uk.

More coming soon... keep checking back

x