Ben Is Dead #19 (Hollywood CA)

Back during the mid-90s, Ben Is Dead was among a handful of zines that rose out of the late-80s punk scene to creep into the mainstream consciousness. Launched in 1988, over its ten-year run, as the zine brought in more advertising and contributors, it grew in size and importance on the zine scene.

Back in 1992, tho', Ben Is Dead was LA-centric punk and alt-rock zine with intelligent coverage of community and political issues. Published by the infamous Deborah "Darby" Romeo, the magazine was named after a dream Darby had about her then-husband Ben.

This issue includes a lot of comment on the recent L.A. riots, interviews with edgy bands like Cop Shoot Cop and Torture Chorus, and Darby's humorous and sometimes uncomfortable interview with her dad. The writing is intelligent, to the point of borderlining on intellectual, an unusual direction for what began as a garden-variety punkzine.

(Click on cover thumbnail to see larger picture)

VITAL STATISTICS:
• Issue #19
• June/July 1992
• B&W, 80-pages w/color covers, newsprint
• Style: pop culture zine

ARTICLES/INTERVIEWS
Corey Dubin interview
Cop Shoot Cop interview
Bigdamncrazyweight interview
Torture Chorus interview
"Defend The Los Angeles Rebellion" article
"The KROQ Conspiracy" article
"UFOs Over Los Angeles" article
--> also live show reviews, album & zine reviews, and lots of photos