Nobody Takes Me Seriously, Anyway: Split Enz

By Less Lee Moore

[This piece was originally published in Smack Dab Fanzine #5, April 1996. With the exception of typos I may have corrected, all of the original text and formatting remain the same. I have also scanned the original artwork.—Ed.]

The first pop star I had a crush on was Barry Manilow. Looks aside, I was dazzled by his rhinestone-studded costumes and silly medleys. I cherished my monthly fan club letters for years until I turned on MTV in 1981. Then I discovered New Wave and the weirdest, most endearing brothers next to Jeff and Steve McDonald. Neil and Tim Finn from Split Enz.
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Teach Yourself Stevie Riks: Q & A

By Hanna

Wikipedia calls Stevie Riks a “British comedian and musical impressionist,” but that hardly does him justice. Since he seems to believe that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, I’ve put together a short guide to Stevie Riks fandom.
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The Staff Of Popshifter‘s Halloween Issue 2008

Metallica, . . . And Justice For All

By Christian Lipski

Fall 1988, I’m in my room in the Le Chateau co-op after class, having stopped off at Tower Records to get the new Metallica album. I had been into Kill ‘Em All and was excited about the first record from the great metal band that I would buy new. Little did I know that eventually all three things would disappear: the Co-op association would close down Chateau, Tower Records would go out of business, and Metallica would stop being great. The third of these happened in the Fall of 1988.
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Poison, Open Up And Say. . . Ahh!

By Christian Lipski

This was the first new Poison album to come out since their 1986 debut, Look What The Cat Dragged In, and I got the album (yes, vinyl!) for Christmas that year. I think this was the real and true beginning of my hair metal journey. I already had Poison’s first album, along with some Def Leppard and even Stryper, but this was the first real, commercial glam metal I had, and from there it never stopped.
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Guns N’ Roses, GN’R Lies: Then and Later

Then: Christian Lipski
Later: Michael Small
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Top Five Slang Expressions From My Youth

By Christian Lipski

Rad © Tiffany Ross (aka Syke)

1. Rad: OK, right off the bat you can pinpoint the general area and time I grew up. I went to high school in California during the early-to-mid-80s. Yes, we all said “rad,” but in Northern California no one had a Valley accent, despite the word deriving from surfer lingo. For you youngsters, “rad” is short for “radical” and connotes excellence or a positive reaction. Example: “Dude, Back To The Future was a rad movie!”

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Winger, Winger

By Christian Lipski

I could listen to “Seventeen” a million times, and each time it will take me back to my junior year in college, hanging out at my friends’ houses and watching MTV or The Box. Like all good glam metal, Winger is carefree and lightweight, and makes me believe (if only for three minutes) that the only important things are partying and girls. And at the time, those things were relatively important to me.
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Big Bang Day: The Legendary Pink Dots’ Plutonium Blonde

By Hanna

The Paard, The Hague, Netherlands
September 13, 2008
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Rue Morgue’s Festival of Fear: Toronto FanExpo 2008

By Less Lee Moore

Being a tremendous fan of things Halloween- and horror-related, I look forward to the Rue Morgue Festival of Fear each year at the Toronto FanExpo. It’s a genuine thrill for me to look at original artwork, drool over horror movie posters, create my ongoing DVD wish list at the Anchor Bay store, and watch people wander around in costume.
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