Songs Illuminated: 6 “Embiggens e Smallest“
Back in issue 3 I wrote in this section about pushing through “false starts and failures.” It’s two years later, and things could be better, but have certainly been worse. Calling anything post-COVID a win is easier said than done when you're months in on an injury with no end in sight. Mental health suffers, and takes the rest of life down with it. is time around, I finally convinced myself I really am the only one that can turn this around, and to stay grateful for all I have left. If skateboarding teaches us anything, it's to get back up on that hair of the dog that bit you, so that's exactly what I did. I “went back to the spot” regardless of how many times things went sideways.
I've never wanted to quit more, so instead I went all in. And in return you get your Business Up Front, and even some Party In e Back. More photos, more contributors, and double the pages. Even double the covers, just to be like that.
Right now I’m stoked on everything Spanky’s been up to, Magenta and French street skating, A Visual Sound-era Stereo, e iPath Promo-era Bobby Puleo, Barker’s afterdark in the ank Fools edit, how chill knee surgery in 2022 was (versus ’99), switching jobs, doing actual design again, and cutting more and more bullshit out of my life on a daily basis.
Miss all y'all a ton. Can’t wait to get out there again as soon as humanly possible.
Out ere
Ganja in his brain? All aboard the crazy train? Matt Pailes cuts the crusts off this native edible on an anything-but-black Sabbath afternoon.
In Here
Can a Sadplant be “properly decked” like a front rock? Will Male runs an experiment in his undies and still passes e Grosso Test. Photo: Moose
IG: @songs.zine Bigside Deep In e Shallows . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Four-by-Four: Matt Beaton . . . . . . . . 10 Ca$h for Tricks ................................... 14 Vert Button ...................................... 20 SPS .............................................. 24 Hammers. Bros. .................................. 28
Photo: Jake Levon
Intro
&
is
Next spreads: John Worthington. Back 360º.
[o]* Mike Rafter
First Part
9 First Part
Sean Blueitt. Gap back tail, coming and going. [o]* Mike Rafter
with
Matt Beaton
Four Wheels. Four Pages. Four Questions. Four Times.
First Time Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 and Transworld’s Feedback/ e Reason double feature DVD!
Last Time We showed the homie from Missouri San Francisco for his first time, got some clips, night skated, and drove home listening to Sabbath!!
Next Time We’re all skating a lot right now, every session is a gift!
Every Time Dawgpound Fan Club, yelling before I do a trick, seeing my friends skate!!
[o]*
Julian Aguilar
[o]*
Julian Aguilar
Your Hosts PLA Skate Miles Silvas CASH FOR TRICKS Malik, A. J., Je ff . Revs . July 2, 2022
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Reagan Boetius. Long distance.
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Brian Fuentes. Nollie heel 180º.
Gary Lemmons. Back 180º overcrook..
David Failla. 1 80º Switch Front Smith. Malik Barnett. Double-tré
Anonymous. Suski Grind, I think.
Je ff
.
Noping back bluntslide ov er the hip.
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youstabrand.com
“It makes the search for weightlessness much less … heavy?” — Dutch
VERT BUTTON + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
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Liam Pace. Front Feebs, full speed. Beebs. [o]* Moose
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
Jake Yank. Indy Divebomb. Beeblebowl. [o]* Moose
Joey Vela, inverted. Weirdobowl. [o]* Moose
Scott Foss. Andrecht. Beebs. [o]* Jake
+ + + + + +
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+ + + + + + + +
Mondrian Mendez. Andrecht. Newark. [o]* Bill Cain
Josh Rodriguez. Front Blunt. Newark. [o]* Bill Cain
VERT BUTTON + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 23
JD Sanchez. Stalefish. Newark. [o]* Bill Cain
Juan Romero. Hardflip. Modesto. [o]* Julian Aguilar
Bobby Dalton. Nosegrind. Hollywood High. [o]* Julian Aguilar
Marcus Waldron
Skate Jawn #67 & #68
Multi-format O ff set / Bound / Half / 76 & 72p / Ads
Notable spots on Ty Hopkins (below) and Erick Winkowski.
Kara Yap
Close Your Eyes to See (Cierro tus ojos para ver) #4 Color / Staple / Half / 18p
Art, SF spots. Cool concept.
Tyler Hopkins
Cemental #16 & #17 and Single Use
B&W / Staple / Half / 32p ea. Treasure Island and SF trip, plus all the requisite pool shit from the original Poolshit-ters themselves.
Reece Leung
Vague #23
Matte Offset / Bound / Half / ick / Ads
UK standard drops with the artist French, and a feature on Amanda Perez @destroyedbrains
Graham Tait
North #29
Gloss Offset / Bound / Square / ick Ads
Film photography, vintage Livi skatepark. UK title.
Nik Freitas
Tule Fog
Gloss O ff set / Hardback / Full / ick A proper book collecting the work of musician and former rasher photog in and around Visalia and beyond, c. 1992-2004.
Eby Ghafarian
Stoops #11
Matte Offset / Bound / Half / 7p / Ads
e J. Worth pic taken at the old MacWarehouse bump to bar on Arden that blew up IG for a minute earlier in 2022 graces the TOC, so you know it's on from the jump.. is is the Mental Health issue, with a each skater speaking to the disorder they experience.
Wolfgang Brardt
86'd #8
Gloss O ff set / Bound / Half / ick / Ads Return favorite. is time gets you Zach Allen, T Funk, and Leo Valls. Check Magenta’s LA Tapes edit for more from this crew.
Oliver Tielsch & Stefan Schwinghammer
Solo #34 & 46
Matte o ff set / Bound / Full / ≥96pp
Apparently any and all Leo Valls-coverage will bring my milkshake to the yard lately, but instead I found the successor to the late-great Canadian COLOR. I’m hard to impress when it comes to this sort of thing, but this mag simply kills it. Rarely do I find the same stoke as I did in the early-’00s, when trips to Tower Books ruled my dreams. Photos, design, writing; all very much on point. If you’re curious about checking into the Euro skate scene, but not sure where to start, vióla.
From Top Left: Cemental, Vague, Curb Culture, Anomaly, Lifers, 86'd, ank You Skateboarding, Willow, So You’re Having A Mid-Life Crisis, Stoops.
Henry Kingsford
Grey #13
Gloss O ff set / Bound / Full / ick / Ads
Solid commercial mag out of Europe. If you find yourself missing Transworld in your post-Transworld world, this should set things right again.
Will Harmon, Arthur Derrien
Free #41–43
Gloss O ff set / Bound / Full / ick / Ads
You likely know their YouTube channel as the Euro-counterpart to the rasher firehose. e mag holds up their rep. Look for the big ass red dot on every cover.
Daniel Fedkenheuer
Next Wave
O ff set matte / Bound / Half / 228p Get those bar bucks flowing on trivia night. ese bite-sized landmarks from skateboarding’s more recent history (’99 to ’20), are a great way to reconnect what happened with when.
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Gary Scott Davis
Skate Fate #77
Matte O ff set / Bound / Full / 16 p
A mid-80s timecapsule by a guy so smack dab in the middle of it all that he invented e Boneless One along the way. Letters, contest/jam flyers, art, photos, masthead designs.
Russell Ramirez
Curb Butter # 9–10
B&W / Folded / Tiny / 8pp ea. Yummy, bite-sized travel stories.
Jaime Owens
Closer #1 & #2
Gloss O ff set / Bound / Full / ick / Ads
When you start with an issue featuring Clyde, Hawk, Lotties’ Mike, Louie, Adams, and Lucero, there's only one way to follow it up: drop a second issue that bookends Owens’ deep archive with pages on Lance, Spanky, and more. Very welcome contender to e Bible’s throne.
Andrew Mecum
Graphite #1–6
Letterpress / Staple / Half / 36p
Pencil sketches by a loads of skate-art luminaries: Millard, Jenkins, Jacobs, Pope, Herndon, Sieben, Fish, Fos, Porous, Jai, Cody, Lotti (Brian, not Mike).
ese are beautifully and lovingly crafted, old-world style. Super sick. Deluxe was packing them in orders so you might come up on one sooner than you think.
Dan Parks
Unearthed #14
B&W / Staple / Half / 24p / Ads
Valley Tour by some Central Coast locals, laid out collage style.
José Vadi
Vadi Party
Color inkjet / Staple / Half / 8p Short ’n’ sweet street photography by the recent valley transplant better known for his words. José has written on skate culture for a handful of little publications like the LA Times and Wall Street Journal. Check out his book Inter State. (review next issue)
Zach Hudson
How Dare You #27
B&W / Staple / Half / 4 p Raw dog, handwritten interview issue by veteran/survivor of the Fucktards/Tent City lane of skateboarding. Sargent, Barrow, Figgy, Burnside. Recent interview with Zach on Talkin‘ Schmitt is in my top 3 episodes.
John Freeborn w/ Jai Tanju
Tails of… #3
O ff set matte / Bound / Half / ≥96p Great addition to a new favorite. eme this time makes it a book of a magazine by skaters about magazines and books by skaters.
Meghan “Migzy” McGuire
Bigfoot #3
Gloss O ff set / Staple / Half / 56p
Sweet '90s girls mag parody this issue. e move south to HelLA hasn’t slowed their stride.
Richard Hart
Push Periodical #19
Gloss O ff set / Bound / Full / ick Photo heavy, artsy.
Public Service Announcement: More skate mags than ever, but never harder to find. Dying to get your hands on more than rasher but don't know where to start (or choke on international postage)? Check out Josh Stewart’s TOA distro. ey keep the free mags nearly that, ship cheap from NY. theoriesofatlantis.com
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Micah Roth. Flip-to-catch-to-fake-to-make. [o*] Jake Levon