''Bananafish'' was a magazine begun in 1987 in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, published under the name ''Seymour Glass'', focusing on various aspects of

underground culture Underground culture, or simply underground, is a term to describe various alternative cultures which either consider themselves different from the mainstream of society and culture, or are considered so by others. The word "underground" is used ...

, particularly musical genres such as noise music. The magazine ceased publication in 2004.

Style

The style of the magazine was a mix of

interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" ...

s, articles, fiction, and music reviews, often written in Glass's absurdist,

stream-of-consciousness In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a narrative mode or method that attempts "to depict the multitudinous thoughts and feelings which pass through the mind" of a narrator. The term was coined by Daniel Oliver in 1840 in ''First Li ...

writing style, which at times bordered on

nonsense Nonsense is a communication, via speech, writing, or any other symbolic system, that lacks any coherent meaning. Sometimes in ordinary usage, nonsense is synonymous with absurdity or the ridiculous. Many poets, novelists and songwriters have u ...

. The text was complemented by bizarre artwork and photographs, frequently unrelated to the articles they accompanied. One trademark of the magazine was its use of appropriated text and images from uncredited or unknown sources, taken from found objects picked up by Glass, other contributors, or readers. Another regular feature was the inclusion of a compilation 7" record or CD of music by artists profiled in the corresponding issue. Bananafish is often credited with giving many Americans their first exposure to Japanese noise musicians such as

Merzbow is a Japanese noise project started in 1979 by , best known for a style of harsh, confrontational noise. Since 1980, Akita has released over 400 recordings and has collaborated with various artists. The name Merzbow comes from the German dada ...

and

Solmania is a Japanese noise music project, founded in 1984 by . He was later joined by (ex Outo), who first appears on ''Trembling Tongues'' (1995). Ohno is known for making his own experimental electric guitars out of spare parts and using them in ...

, as well as domestic noisemakers like

Emil Beaulieau Emil Beaulieau, or more fully, “Emil Beaulieau: America’s Greatest Living Noise Artist” (born July 5, 1957) is the stage name of Ron Lessard, a prominent noise musician who primarily records for his own label: RRRecords. He has collaborated ...

. It was not accepting submissions as of 2013, and had no web presence.

Discography

*''

Shut Up, Little Man! ''Shut Up, Little Man!'' is the title of audio vérité recordings of two argumentative and violent alcoholics, Peter J. Haskett and Raymond Huffman in San Francisco. '' Bananafish'' magazine arranged for a commercial release of the tapes in 1992 ...

References

1987 establishments in California 2004 disestablishments in California Music magazines published in the United States Defunct magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1987 Magazines disestablished in 2004 Magazines published in San Francisco Noise music Underground culture {{music-mag-stub

Style

Discography

See also

References