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Great name for a magazine, don't you think?
Well, I must admit that I was rather surprised when I received the
forever-in-the-making eighth issue of Stop Smiling. The shiny, glossy
full-color cover and free picture-disc 7" that came with it were a marked improvement from the free incarnation of Stop Smiling, which had
once graced the free newsstand in the record store at which I work (Stop Smiling originates in Darien, literally a stone's throw from Splendid's HQ in Downers Grove...which is why the magazine came to us by way of Boulder, CO. -- Ed.). No
more lowbrow shit -- these boys are now playing for keeps.
Yes, issue #8 of Stop Smiling is quite impressive indeed, from its candid
interview with misunderstood genius Bobby Conn to its amazingly
thorough article "Big M in Black", which exposes Monica Lewinsky as the
extraterrestrial planet scourge that, deep down, we all knew she was. Two
articles by Fanatic Promotions guru Josh Bloom (Who's based in Boulder, CO, which might explain how we got the mag -- Ed.) prove to be equally
entertaining. First up, "Corey, Corey Hallelujah" is an amusing and curious
interview with former teen-idol and current Vegas Records recording artist
Mr. Corey Feldman (of such infamous Corey Haim/Corey Feldman films as License to
Drive). The other, "Balls on Parade", provides insight into Mr. Bloom's
fascination with Fleetwood Mac -- and perhaps more importantly, drummer Mick
Fleetwood's balls. You'd really need to read the article to understand where he's coming from here; suffice it to say that it's not the homoerotic overture it seems to be.
Also in this issue is a lovely interview
with Brit-poppers Saint Etienne, a Dukes of Hazzard trivia quiz (Though I don't know how qualified the Stop Smiling folks are to present a DoH trivia quiz, as they repeatedly misspell (a) Hazzard and (b) Enos -- Ed.) and
tons of reviews.
It's also hard to miss Stop Smiling's huge proliferation of advertisements; there are page after page of them, including a
grotesquely massive image of Kleenex Girl Wonder leader Graham
Smith. One can't help but notice that some of the advertisements
are extremely old -- many are for bands that have broken-up, changed
names, or have subsequently released new albums. The time-lapse
between issues (nearly 9 months) is undoubtedly the culprit in this matter.
As I mentioned earlier, the magazine comes packaged with
a beautiful 7" picture disc featuring the Music Tapes and Dennis Koster
(also known as Music Tapes leader Julian Kostner's dad). This alone
may compel E6 freaks (such as myself) to pick up the magazine -- and, when the
7" has been played a few dozein times, read it and find how charming it is. Issue #8
is a sort of second coming for Stop Smiling -- a magazine which (a) has a contact address
in my home town, (b) boasts an editorial staffer with whom I went to high school and (c) happens to have a very bright future indeed.
Reviewed by Jason Jackowiak
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