Copper Press
Issue #24: A Large Man in Tights...
$5.00 (includes CD)
For more information, visit CopperPress.com
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It's always great to see independent media making it; now in its 24th issue, Copper Press has only gotten better -- better writing, features, and ads. Well, not so much the ads -- there are still a lot of them, sometimes running for pages at a time. It's hard to begrudge the mag its ad revenue, as we all have to make money, but when you can turn three pages and not see original content, it seems like the editors might be pushing their luck.
(Editor's Note: This is a 120-page independently produced magazine that comes with two free CDs and costs only five bucks. Short of getting support from an eccentric billionaire industrialist, how the fuck else do you think they're going to pull that off?)
Following long-standing tradition, the cover is provided by the artist who's interviewed in the mag. This time it's Travis Chatham, a Californian illustrator and painter. His style involves huge splashes of color across a canvas or paper, with an illustration sketched over the top. The results are evocative, pulling between foreground and background, and vacillating between New Yorker-style caricatures and photo-realistic compositions. Unfortunately, the cover art is relatively bland by his standards -- all washed out colors, with just a hint of life in the lower corner. Even in black and white, the inner works are exponentially more vivid and arresting.
Copper Press's interview with Chatham comes across as more of a getting-to-know-you conversation than a pointed conversation, but the relaxed atmosphere seems to play to the strengths of both interviewer and interviewee -- for example, a question about previous jobs allows Chatham to talk at length about some of the projects that he's been involved in.
Of course, Chatham's interview is just one of many in this edition of Copper Press. There are more Q&A sessions here than the last seven issues of Spin and Rolling Stone combined. Moreover, unless you live within range of a fantastic college radio station (or, obviously, read Splendid), you probably haven't heard of any of these artists. Jedd Beaudoin profiles Akron/Family, easily handling the Michael Gira connection (the band records for his label, and he's a mentor figure for the group) before delving into territory not covered in their promotional material. It makes for an engrossing read on a fascinating band, and like many of the pieces, will immediately pique your interest.
Also profiled are Austin-natives Knife in the Water. Writer Michael McLeod is obviously interested in the band, filling out the quotes from Aaron Blount and Laura Krause with the observations of a studious fan. At one point, McLeod talks about the band's newest album by pointing out an oft-appearing lyrical metaphor and how each song uses and twists it to its own devices:
One of the dominant themes that arises on the album, acting as both a metaphor for these life necessities or as the purifying factor for the song's protagonists, is water. "Massacre" tells the tale of a widow calmly drowning herself underneath pine trees; "Decoration Day Flood" deals with wild flooding that washes away an entire town, and "Biltmora Children" finds Blount singing about a "sunfish in the belly of a cottonmouth". (81)
Instead of seeming pedantic, the list raises interest; a superficial review might have done the exact opposite.
Copper Press's layout has chilled out considerably. The magazine no longer looks like an ether-fueled collage; it allows each article its own identity within limits, resulting in text that pops off the page but is easy to read. On a smaller note, it was a subtle bit of joy to read the copyright notice: "2005. Copper Press. This table and all its rights are reserved for Me and Mrs. Jones -- we got a thing-goin' oonn (sic)." And so it goes.
This volume also includes a pair of CDs filled with an eclectic (read: hit or miss) mix of indie music. Don't look for the discs to tie into the magazine's articles: this is purely an extension of the advertising. As such, you shouldn't look for a lovingly assembled mix tape -- it's more a question of who could meet the price of admission.
Copper Press has once again assembled a solid collection of interviews, art, and ads. Each issue improves in quality, and many of the unknown artists they profile move on to greater acclaim. Issue #24 features 23 different interviews and articles. If you want to know next year's biggest success stories, look to Copper Press's staff -- they're on top of it.
-- Tyson Lynn
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