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''Ablaze!'' is a British
indie music Independent music (also commonly known as indie music or simply indie) is music that is produced independently from commercial record labels or their subsidiaries, a process that may include an autonomous, do-it-yourself approach to recording a ...
fanzine A fanzine (blend of '' fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) for the pleasure of others who share t ...
, produced in
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
and
Leeds Leeds () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the thi ...
. ''Ablaze!'' ran for ten issues between 1987 and 1993, and returned for an eleventh issue in 2015. Ten issues of the zine were compiled into a book, ''The City Is Ablaze!,'' published in 2012.


History

''Ablaze!'' ran for ten issues between 1987 and 1993, and returned for an eleventh issue in 2015. In the 1980s ''Ablaze!'' was an early champion of UK "noisenik" bands, such as
Dog Faced Hermans Dog Faced Hermans were a post-punk band that formed in Scotland in the mid 1980s and remained active through the mid 1990s. They emerged from the UK anarcho-punk scene with a guitar/bass/drums line-up, but also incorporated trumpet and othe ...
,
The Wedding Present The Wedding Present are an English indie rock group originally formed in 1985 in Leeds, England, from the ashes of The Lost Pandas. The band's music has evolved from fast-paced indie rock in the vein of their most obvious influences The Fall, ...
and the
Walkingseeds Walkingseeds were an English alternative rock band, formed in 1986 in Liverpool. History Frank Martin (vocals), Bob Parker (guitar), and John Neesam (drums) had previously worked together as the Mel-o-Tones, releasing a mini-LP and an EP on L ...
, and US
noise rock Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, artists indulge in extrem ...
and grunge bands such as
Sonic Youth Sonic Youth was an American rock band based in New York City, formed in 1981. Founding members Thurston Moore (guitar, vocals), Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar) and Lee Ranaldo (guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of th ...
,
Dinosaur Jr Dinosaur Jr. is an American rock band formed in Amherst, Massachusetts, in 1984, originally simply called Dinosaur until legal issues forced a change in name. The band was founded by J Mascis (guitar, vocals, primary songwriter), Lou Barl ...
,
Throwing Muses Throwing Muses are an American alternative rock band formed in 1981 in Newport, Rhode Island, United States, that toured and recorded extensively until 1997, when its members began concentrating more on other projects. The group was originall ...
,
Pixies A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas ar ...
,
Mudhoney Mudhoney is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1988, following the demise of Green River. Its members are singer and rhythm guitarist Mark Arm, lead guitarist Steve Turner, bassist Guy Maddison and drummer Dan Peters. ...
and
Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lamp Richard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo. ...
. In the 1990s ''Ablaze!'' continued to champion many of the indie,
shoegaze Shoegaze (originally called shoegazing and sometimes conflated with "dream pop") is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion and effects, feedback, and overwhelming volu ...
and
punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
bands of the era, such as
The Pastels The Pastels are an indie rock group from Glasgow formed in 1981. They were a key act of the Scottish and British independent music scenes of the 1980s, and are specifically credited for the development of an independent and confident music scen ...
, My Bloody Valentine and
Lush Lush may refer to: People Music * Lush (band), a British rock band * ''Lush'' (Mitski album), a 2012 album by Mitski * ''Lush'' (Snail Mail album), a 2018 album by Snail Mail * "Lush", a single by Skepta featuring Jay Sean * ''Lush 3'', a si ...
from the UK, Sugar and
Nation of Ulysses The Nation of Ulysses was an American punk rock band from Washington, D.C., formed in spring 1988 with four members. Originally known as simply "Ulysses," the first mark of the group consisted of Ian Svenonius on vocals and trumpet, Steve Krone ...
from the USA. ''Ablaze!'' was influential in propagating the
Riot Grrrl Riot grrrl is an underground feminist punk movement that began during the early 1990s within the United States in Olympia, Washington and the greater Pacific Northwest and has expanded to at least 26 other countries. Riot grrrl is a sub ...
movement in the UK.But What of Us? UK Riot Grrrl - Part 2
Cazz Blase, The F Word, 4 November 2004, Retrieved 5 July 2011
From issue 5 a free
flexi disc The flexi disc (also known as a phonosheet, Sonosheet or Soundsheet, a trademark) is a phonograph record made of a thin, flexible vinyl sheet with a molded-in spiral stylus groove, and is designed to be playable on a normal phonograph turntabl ...
was given away with each issue, and with issue 10 a free 7" single. These featured exclusive tracks from acts such as The Wedding Present, Pavement, and
Cornershop Cornershop are a British indie rock band best known for their single "Brimful of Asha", originally released in 1997 and, in a remixed version, topping the UK chart in 1998. The band was formed in 1991 by Wolverhampton-born Tjinder Singh (singe ...
. From its eighth issue onwards the fanzine was distributed across the UK, Europe and North America.


Ethos

The style of ''Ablaze!'' was informed by the
DIY ethic "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and se ...
that had grown out of
punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
, which eschewed involvement with the mainstream, especially non-independent corporate record labels. The tone of the content was more personal and more political than the mainstream UK music press, as can be seen by this quote from Karren Ablaze! in 1993:
Ablaze! is a fanzine because we are fanz, fanatics, zealots, extremists, we are wild for stuff we’re wild for and that fact can’t change, except these passions are so real they have sell-by dates, determined by my own chemistry.
Emblematic of this approach was the record review section of ''Ablaze!,'' which gave humorous and acerbic appraisals of the latest releases. ''Ablaze!'' also stood out for its feminist perspective, and later Riot Grrrl perspective, on the underground music scene, where most often both the musicians and the commentators were male. An extended editorial in Issue 7 (1990) titled "New voices, new guitars" argued for "music that celebrates a non phallic sexuality" against the "hackneyed and objectionable thrustings of male rock". Issue 10 included Girlspeak, the manifesto of Girl Power International, and "Five Strategies For The Unleashing of Girl Power", which readers were encouraged to photocopy and distribute. ''Ablaze!'' operated an international fanzine distribution service, 'Worldwide Contagion', and in its pages featured coverage of the UK fanzine scene, as well as coverage of fanzines and other alternative publications in Europe and North America.


Contributors

''Ablaze!'' was edited, and principally written, designed, and edited by Karren Ablaze!. Other contributors included writers Lucy Nation (Chris Trout), Gavin B., Justine Wolfenden (Hemiola Records),
Steve Albini Steve Albini (pronounced ; born July 22, 1962) is an American musician, record producer, audio engineer and music journalist. He was a member of Big Black, Rapeman and Flour, and is a member of Shellac. He is the founder, owner and principal en ...
, Andrew Truth, Mark Williams, Ian Michael Hodgson, Bela Emerson, John Robb, Terry Bloomfield, Richard Rouska, Simon Morris of the Ceramic Hobs, graphic designer William Potter, and photographers Ian T Tilton, Greg Neate, and Tony Woolgar.


Legacy

Karren Ablaze! went on to front the Riot Grrl groups Coping Saw and Wack Cat. There has been growing interest in the pre-Internet era of fanzines. Music critic
Simon Reynolds Simon Reynolds (born 19 June 1963) is an English music journalist and author who began his professional career on the staff of ''Melody Maker'' in the mid-1980s. He has since gone on to freelance and publish a number of full-length books on musi ...
wrote about the continuing legacy and appeal of the fanzine movement for ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...
'' in 2009, and in the same year Karren Ablaze! was invited by
The Cribs The Cribs are a British indie rock band originally from Wakefield, West Yorkshire, that formed in 2001. The band consists of twins Gary and Ryan Jarman and their younger brother Ross Jarman. They were subsequently joined by ex-The Smiths guit ...
to write about fanzines in general, and ''Ablaze!'' in particular during their guest editorship of ''The Guardian'' music section. ''Ablaze!'' is featured in Teal Triggs book ''Fanzines'' (
Thames and Hudson Thames & Hudson (sometimes T&H for brevity) is a publisher of illustrated books in all visually creative categories: art, architecture, design, photography, fashion, film, and the performing arts. It also publishes books on archaeology, history, ...
, 2010). ''Ablaze!'' has been cited in discussions about women in rock music, including the books ''Sexing the Groove: Popular Music and Gender'' (
Routledge Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, ...
, 1997), and ''Riot Grrrl. Revolution Girl Style Now!'' (
Black Dog Black dog or blackdog may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional entities * Black Dog, a bio-robot in the 1982 Bulgarian animated science fiction film ''The Treasure Planet'' * The Black Dog, an inn in 2015–2016 British drama TV series '' T ...
, 2009)."Riot Grrrl. Revolution Girl Style Now!"
Susan Corrigan, Julia Downes, Red Chidgey, Cazz Blase, Introduction by Beth Ditto. Black Dog Books,


Books

*''The City is Ablaze!: The Story of a Post-Punk Popzine, 1984-1994.'' Self-published / Mittens On, 2012. .


References


External links

*

* [http://lightfromadeadstar.org/press/Content/Undated%20and%20Misc/Ablaze!%20Fanzine%20-%20Miki%20Interview/Ablaze!%20Fanzine%20-%20Miki%20Interview%20-%20p1.jpg Interview with Lush in Ablaze! issue 9. Light from a dead star website.] * {{Discogs label, Ablaze! Magazine
The City is Ablaze! review

Karren Ablaze interview, 2015
Fanzines Magazines established in 1987 Magazines disestablished in 1993 Magazines established in 2015 Magazines published in Manchester Mass media in Leeds Music magazines published in the United Kingdom Underground punk scene in the United Kingdom