Ben Is Dead #22 (Hollywood CA)

I probably have other issues of Ben Is Dead boxed up somewhere, but here I'm jumping from #19 to #22, Summer 1993. What a difference a year makes – over the course of three issues, Ben Is Dead grew from an impressive 80-pages to a whopping 148-pages, including the color covers.

Sure, there's a lot more advertising, and on the surface it may seem that the zine is doing quite well, financially, but a lot of the indie label ads might have been trades, low-cost (or free, as was the style at the time). Regardless, this is one of the thicker zines in the TMQ collection and there's a lot of content between these covers.

Maybe they did it from the beginning, but by the time of #22, Ben Is Dead had begun publishing around a theme for each issue, with articles exploring the various aspects of said theme. This issue's theme was "Modern Transmissions & Sensory Overload," which sounds like something you might have found in '90s-era cyberzines like Mondo 2000. Thus, there's a lot of mind-blowing, futuristic content in #22, articles like "Communicable Diseases: Infecting the Established Media," an interview with writer Douglas Rushkoff; "Alternative Communication & Social Oppression;" "General Magic" Corporate Polygamy Spawning Illusory Technology Designed to Change Our Lives;"

There's lot of other stuff in #22 as well, such as Reverend Al's hilarious "T-Shirt Lexicology of the Extreme Right," an interview with my old buddy and Bad Newz zine publisher Bob Z about his postering problems, an interview with poster artist Frank Kozik, an interview with Factsheet Five's Seth Friedman, a Skatenigs band interview, and an insightful piece on music conventions like CMJ or South by Southwest, among much more.

Probably one of the biggest coups for Ben Is Dead was this issue's cool interview with beat writer William S. Burroughs, while coverage of the Offworld BBS bust and articles on computer bulletin boards were right in line with the times. A fascinating issue, full of intelligent content.

(Click on cover thumbnail to see larger picture)

VITAL STATISTICS:
• Issue #22
• Summer 1993
• B&W, 148-pages w/color covers, newsprint
• Style: pop culture zine

ARTICLES/INTERVIEWS
William S. Burroughs interview
Douglas Rushkoff interview
Bob Z interview
Frank Kozik interview
R. Seth Friedman/Factsheet 5 interview
Skatenigs interview
Fastbacks interview
Ian Reed interview
--> also live show reviews, album, zine & comics reviews, and lots of photos

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