Sluggo!
Encyclopedia
Sluggo! was a pioneering Austin, Texas
fanzine
covering the late 1970s Punk rock
/New Wave music
scene. Founded in 1978 by Nick West and E.A. Srere, Sluggo! began as a tabloid-sized photocopied
publication, and evolved into a quintessential DIY publication. With the donation of a Multilith 1250 offset press
and an array of colored inks, Sluggo! acquired its distinctive multi-colored, multi-faceted appearance. Sluggo! look was also defined by its unique covers – hand-crafted on some issues, individually silk-screened on black velvet on the finale.
The early issues centered primarily on music with reviews of shows of both local and touring bands, and record reviews of both national and international acts such as Pere Ubu
, PIL
, Throbbing Gristle
. In addition to music, Sluggo! columnists also held forth on subjects ranging from religion to science, international politics to local gossip.
In 1979, Sluggo! departed from the typical music fanzine with the introduction of its thematic issues. Topics were Violence, Unco, and culminated with its "Industrial Collapse" issue. Sluggo! also created the Instant Review, publishing critiques of local performances overnight with free distribution on the streets the very next day.
The Sluggo! press was used not only for printing the fanzine but was also made available to local bands for printing band posters and record covers, and to other raconteurs for printing various handbills and broadsides. Sluggo! House became one of the epicenters of the exploding Austin scene and drew considerable local and national attention as a hotbed of musical and artistic action.
Sluggo! provided inspiration to other writers and entrepreneurs to found and publish their own fanzines including Xiphoid Process and Contempo Culture from Austin, and a myriad of others throughout Texas. Sluggo!'s topical format also served as a model to the staff at Search & Destroy Magazine from San Francisco to expand their horizons and begin the RE/Search
magazine with issues devoted to a single topic.
Sluggo! was a primary ambassador of the 1970s Austin Punk/New Wave scene throughout Texas, the nation and overseas. Its evolution from a modest home grown fanzine to a distinctively quirky journal with ambitions of a wider cultural window mirrors the peculiar growth of the Austin punk music and artistic scene, and its future development into the behemoth it is today
.
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
fanzine
Punk zine
A punk zine is a zine devoted to punk culture, most often punk rock music, bands, or the DIY punk ethic. Punk zines are the most likely place to find punk literature....
covering the late 1970s Punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
/New Wave music
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
scene. Founded in 1978 by Nick West and E.A. Srere, Sluggo! began as a tabloid-sized photocopied
Photocopier
A photocopier is a machine that makes paper copies of documents and other visual images quickly and cheaply. Most current photocopiers use a technology called xerography, a dry process using heat...
publication, and evolved into a quintessential DIY publication. With the donation of a Multilith 1250 offset press
Offset printing
Offset printing is a commonly used printing technique in which the inked image is transferred from a plate to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface...
and an array of colored inks, Sluggo! acquired its distinctive multi-colored, multi-faceted appearance. Sluggo! look was also defined by its unique covers – hand-crafted on some issues, individually silk-screened on black velvet on the finale.
The early issues centered primarily on music with reviews of shows of both local and touring bands, and record reviews of both national and international acts such as Pere Ubu
Pere Ubu (band)
Pere Ubu is an experimental rock music group formed in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975. Despite many long-term band members, singer David Thomas is the only constant...
, PIL
Public Image Ltd.
Public Image Ltd are an English post-punk band formed by vocalist John Lydon , guitarist Keith Levene and bassist Jah Wobble, with frequent subsequent personnel changes. Lydon is the sole constant member of the band....
, Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle were an English industrial, avant-garde music and visual arts group that evolved from the performance art group COUM Transmissions...
. In addition to music, Sluggo! columnists also held forth on subjects ranging from religion to science, international politics to local gossip.
In 1979, Sluggo! departed from the typical music fanzine with the introduction of its thematic issues. Topics were Violence, Unco, and culminated with its "Industrial Collapse" issue. Sluggo! also created the Instant Review, publishing critiques of local performances overnight with free distribution on the streets the very next day.
The Sluggo! press was used not only for printing the fanzine but was also made available to local bands for printing band posters and record covers, and to other raconteurs for printing various handbills and broadsides. Sluggo! House became one of the epicenters of the exploding Austin scene and drew considerable local and national attention as a hotbed of musical and artistic action.
Sluggo! provided inspiration to other writers and entrepreneurs to found and publish their own fanzines including Xiphoid Process and Contempo Culture from Austin, and a myriad of others throughout Texas. Sluggo!'s topical format also served as a model to the staff at Search & Destroy Magazine from San Francisco to expand their horizons and begin the RE/Search
RE/Search
RE/Search Publications is an American magazine and book publisher, based in San Francisco, founded and edited by Andrea Juno and V. Vale in 1980. It was the successor to Vale's earlier punk rock fanzine Search & Destroy , and was started with $100 from Allen Ginsberg and Lawrence Ferlinghetti...
magazine with issues devoted to a single topic.
Sluggo! was a primary ambassador of the 1970s Austin Punk/New Wave scene throughout Texas, the nation and overseas. Its evolution from a modest home grown fanzine to a distinctively quirky journal with ambitions of a wider cultural window mirrors the peculiar growth of the Austin punk music and artistic scene, and its future development into the behemoth it is today
Music of Austin
The music of Austin, Texas, USA has gone beyond 6th Street and now includes other areas such as Red River, the University of Texas, the Warehouse District and Downtown, South Lamar, South Austin, East Austin and the Market District where bars and clubs of every kind can be found. Every night over...
.