Magnet

#25 $3.50 (358 W. Trenton Ave., Morrisville, PA 19067)
by William Ham

I suppose that Magnet is closer to a “real” (love them ironical inverted commas) magazine than a ‘zine, closer even than our collective selves. That is to say, it’s slick, full-color, and the writing quality tends to be several steps above the usual I’m-feeling-supersonic-gimme-gin-and-tonic-so-I-can-finish-this-damn-‘zine-review-before-we-go-to-press style of certain other ‘zine writers I can name if I check my driver’s license. What makes Magnet stick is their chosen field of coverage, which honestly lives up to its tag line: “Real Music Alternatives.” This issue features interview/profiles with Sebadoh, the Loud Family, the Frogs, and Versus, all bands (even the first on the list) who deserve far more attention than they get from even the troglodytic hipsters with the most gel on their hairy floor-scraping knuckles, complete with full discographies of each. Other ‘n that, Magnet finally answers the question that’s nagged me like a gill-rotted fishwife all these years: Whatever happened to Fred Mills? (For those not versed in ’80s underground-press-gang culture, Mills was the rock critic who appeared in ‘zines almost as much as the words “yr,” “aggro,” or “pomo,” and who many of us not-so-secretly wished would stick to selling shoes.) Maybe I’m older, mellower, less discriminating or some combination of the three, but his writing seems much better now than it did in ’87. (Look in the dictionary under “faint praise” and see if the photographer got my good side.) Succumb to Magnet‘s pull.