Newspaper Page Text
October 23, 1991 FLAGPOLE MAGAZINE Page 13
Let Heather Murphy take you...
Through Atlanta Darkly ...
Nursing a cold over the weekend was not at the
top of my “To Do" list, but I did it anyway, no matter
how many cool shows I missed. This, of course,
includes the Right as Rain/Uncle Green show which
I had planned on attending, but sold my soul to
antihistamines instead. Uncle Green, by the way, is
celebrating their newrecord deal
with Atlantic Records. Up until
now, the band has been with
DB, but they’re ready to move
on, which includes moving to
Los Angeles for a while to record
the new album.
Remember I told you about
Michelle Rhea and her sepera-
tion from Marching Two Step 9 Well, the fur’s still flyin’
over that one. Rhea is quoted as saying Ed Roland
and the rest of the band couldn’t handle the amount
of attention paid to her. Roland, meanwhile, says that
had nothing to do with it, that Marching Two Step was
looking to harden their sound and Michelle just didn’t
fit the formula. Somehow, I remember a scap opera
plot line just like this . ..
I always bitch and moan about how sleazy the
music industry is, so I thought I'd spread a little
sunshine with this: Radio station WRAS has a benefit
with Trip Shakespere and Vigilantes of Love sched
uled for November 7th at the Variety Playhouse in
Little Five Points. This is all fine and good, except
for the fact that on the same night, Urban Dance
Squad is scheduled to play at the Roxy, Blur is at
the Cotton Club and Voice of the Beehive was also
gc'ng to play a show in town. WRASkateers were
worried that the show would be a guaranteed flop,
but in swoops Voice of the
Beehive to say, "No, have your
benefit, we’ll play another
time." And there was much re
joicing at the radio station.
One of the two men I wish
was my uncle is coming to At
lanta on Friday, October 25.
Leon Redbone brings his
easygoing style of New Orleans blues to the Vari
ety PLayhouse for one show. This replaces the one
cancelled for unknown reasons in July.
Acoustic Alchemy and Leo Kottke are sched
uled to play the Center Stage, Saturday November
2nd.
Also, for your cultural release, reggae rapper
Shabba Ranks will be skankin’ at the Masquerade
on October 23rd.
Just for the record, even though I’m happy the
Braves have had their best season in years, I have
never done, and refuse to do, the tomahawk chop
simply because it makes you look kinda dopey.
I always bitch and
moan about how
sleazy the music
industry is...
Devlin's Comic Culture
Mini-comics Galore
Most mini-comics are solo operations, from the
original conception through printing and distribu
tion, but this week we’re going to have a look at some
of the more notable small presses doing minis.
Perhaps the best-known and longest-lived such
outfit is Michael Dowers’ Starhead Comics. Dowers
has been around for about ten years,
and he puts out really professional
looking work, often with offset print
ing and color covers. He’s also
known on occasion to dabble in
“real" full-size comics, with the most
recent being Artistic Licentiousness
by Roberta Gregory. A L. is her
reaction to the recent glut of horren
dous sex comics on the market,
and is an attempt at doing a genu
inely adult comic. It’s by no means
a bouncy romp — in fact, the sex in
it only serves to make things worse
for everyone involved — but it’s
really a promising beginning, and I
hope it makes it in the market. You
can do your part for three bucks
postpaid Also cool is Testosterone
City, by Peter Bagge ($1 and a
stamp), in which he makes a thor
ough study of ugly white boys and what they like
One of the giants of the mini-comics world is Steve
Willis, and Starhead has lots of his stuff available;
including Storm Warnings ($2 and a stamp), which
features the greatest maze in the world, among other
things, and Morty 1 the Dog Who Walks Like a Man
($1 and a stamp), which features his best-known
character. Morty the Dog. In an attempt to avoid
comics superstardom, Steve recently killed him off,
but you can still see what the big deal was. To get any
of these, write to Starhead Comics, P O Box 30044.
Seattle. WA 98103 They’ve also got a swell catalog
available for a self-addressed stamped envelope.
Another outfit that's putting out some really nice
stuff is the Penny Dreadful Press up in Rhode Island.
They seem to be some kind of artist’s collective, with
most of their work being by a core of three artists:
Jake Austen, Joseph Fullerton, and Jason Lutes.
Austen’s artwork is a lot cruder than the other two,
but he’s a funny guy and a good writer. Lutes tends
toward a more intellectual, detached approach, with
a clean, precise drawing style. His Wedgehead
(50 cents) features a post-modern, minimalist kind
of guy lecturing on the mechanics of the comics
medium. I especially liked it when he demon
strated the use of sound effects. Even the weakest
Penny Dreadful book I've seen, Houdini ($1) is
definitely a class act, with work
by all three of the aforemen
tioned, plus others. It’s just an
anthology of different pieces
about Houdim's life, with
Fullerton’s “Houdini and the
Law" being a particular stand
out. The prices listed include
postage (though I'm sure they’d
appreciate a stamp or two), and
you can acquire their catalog for
just a stamp. The address is
Penny Dreadful Press. 37 Char
les field St.. Providence. R.l.
02906 It’s also a possibility that
I may have some of these avail
able at Bizarro-Wuxtry soon, but
play it safe and order factory-
direct today
As long as you've got your
stamps and envelopes handy,
check out a newcomer on the comics scene.
Casey Burns’ Smileyguy is done in a Matt Feazell
stick-figure style, but the overall look owes more to
Larry (Tales of the Beanworld) Marder. It's just a
nice simple story about Smileyguy (our hero) going
for a walk one day, and his adventures along the
way .. and it’s even got a happy ending! I believe
that Casey should have a new one of these out by
now, as well as this one back out in a new printing.
Send a quarter & a stamp to X-Ray Comix, P O Box
100, Plat Rock, NC 28731 and see what you get.
So anyway, if you’ve got anything for me to
review, or if you just want to make trouble, my
address is No-Mo Comics, 248-A Barber St.,
Athens, GA 30601 (where you can send a stamp
for my mail-order catalog of comics and other
effluvia). And lest I forget, the illustration last time
should have had a copyright notice, so go back
and write in “<S> Bob Burden Turtles <3 Mirage
Studios," OK? Thanks. Dev||n Thompson
WEDNESDAY
F Dance
— DJ — f
Brian
“Love Daddy'
THURSDAY
Night Uve
Lotion
Coming soon:
Lava Love
FRIDAY
Dance Party
Ladies FREE
— DJ —
Mike
Church
SATURDAY
Beat the
Clock
Drink 'til
midnight
Dance 'til Three
— DJ —
Brain
“Love Daddy'
Bone
Call
369-7315
For Details
and Info on
Private Parties
Now Two Locations
DOWNTOWN • M'S /1 i'9pM
— And —
FIVE POINTS
Su-’Th/1 t'lOpM • F & S /1 PI IpM
$ 100.00 CASH $
LADIES’ Night
Anything Goes
"Between the Sheets"
Dance Contest
on Tuesdays
Drink Specials for Guys and Gals
MO Cover for Ladies
Mo Cover before 9 p.m.
CHAMELEON
CLUB *
Wednesday, Oct. 23
College Fral Fight Night vJ
Frat w/ most colors gets
free beer lor one hour
Mystic Boom Boom
Thursday. Oct. 24
Ladies Night
Free draft for ladies
w/ proper ID
Kick’ll'Edgar
Friday, Oct. 25
Jupiter Coyote
(formerly the Rockafellas)
Saturday, Oct. 26
Will Hi the Bushmen
Sunday, Oct. 27
Blues Bash w/ Sandra Hall
Monday, Oct. 28
Monday Night Football .
Raiders vs. Chiefs
Free draft w/ GA ID until Jhalftime
Tuesday, Oct. 29
Closed
*>
COMING SOON:
. A Halloween weekend with
OcT. 31 - Boss Tweed/ Tom Gross
Nov. 1 - Month of Sundays
Nov. 2 - Cool Joe
.3179 Peachtree Rd.
Atlanta/Parkins in Rear
404.261.8004