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COVER FEATURE is a three-parter on MOONDOG. Our editor’s phone interview with him from 1998, some amazing never-before-seen-images, and crucially this series of archival interviews from 1953. SHANA CLEVELAND The singer-songwriter / La Luz leader’s hand-written illustrated tour diary chronicles a European tour with her own newborn baby, and it’s really unlike anything you’ve seen or read before GAINESVILLE RIOT ’88 On tour supporting ‘Bug,’ the immense DINOSAUR JR’S laconic wall of sound helped to start a riot at their show in a Florida university hall. Thankfully our old pal Kevin Arrow was there with slide film in his camera to capture the event. These images have never been seen before.
Our take: I thought the first issue of Maggot Brain was exciting, but I’m enjoying this second issue even more. In case you haven’t heard about Maggot Brain, it’s a full-size, full-color magazine put out by Third Man Records, and while music is a big part of the magazine, it’s not all of it by any stretch of the imagination. There are articles about film, visual art, books, sports, lots of comics, fine art photography, and other interesting stuff. The magazine doesn’t have a traditional format or clear sections, so every time you turn the page it’s a surprise, but what you find is always good. Both the writing and the graphic design are of the highest quality, sort of like The Atlantic or The New Yorker for people into cool music. Reading Maggot Brain makes me realize how the handful of music magazines still left (Rolling Stone and British monthlies like Mojo) write about boring music and/or insult their readers’ intelligence. Maggot Brain does neither. While there isn’t much about punk in this latest issue, Sorry State’s more adventurous readers will love it. And while it’s expensive, it’s worth it and Sorry State is selling it for 25% off the cover price.