Back in the early ’80s there was a local ‘zine out of Chicago called Matter. These days, it’s mostly known as the rag that featured Steve Albini as a contributor. Seeing as how I was a wee, wee lad (as in, less than a year old) during this era, it would have been hard for me to know anything about the ‘zine. Alas, leave it to fellow blogger (and great friend to Swan Fungus) Old Man Neill to help us all out in our quest to uncover what exactly was printed. A few weeks ago I received an e-mail from Mr. Neill asking me if I wanted a couple of old issues of Matter, and lo-and-behold they showed up at my doorstep just a couple days later! Both issues were in good condition — not bad considering their age. While I was home last month, I scanned the majority of the issues, and I’ll be hosting them forever (or until I’m asked to remove them) so that you can read the articles and interviews and columns and record reviews for yourself. I already posted Volume 1 Number 5 from September 1983.
In this issue, the First Year Anniversary Issue, there is a Ruthless Records feature with segments related to Big Black, Effigies, Naked Raygun and Circle Seven (check out the they goofy inset photo of Albini), an awesome piece called “1983’s Favorites Predict the Best Of 1984”, a story about Jonathan Richman, and an Albini-penned profile of Glenn Branca. There are also regular columns like “New Matter”, “Matters Of Fact”, and Albini’s “Tired Of Ugly Fat”. This issue is awesome.
If anybody else has any old issues of Matter that you’d like to share with the world, shoot me an e-mail and let’s keep alive this process of unearthing great underground music journalism.
