“My art is too punk for the fine arts and too fine art for some of the punks.” –Ana Armengod
Cover by Douglas Burns
Cover photo by Katie Krulock
Ana Armengod interview by Daniel Makagon
Creative Obsessions and Transformational Bonds
Ana Armengod’s life and work reflect a deep commitment to a DIY punk rock ethos. Ana started living a punk rock life as a pre-teen. That identity extends beyond some of the traditional activities we associate with doing punk. Yeah, Ana plays in bands, is involved with fests, has formed communities with other punks. But Ana is also a multi-disciplinary artist, who makes films and photographs, while also garnering attention for creative illustration (both the content and the artifacts adopted and adapted to display her drawings). Moreover, Ana has a gift for storytelling, narrating experiences that reflect a mix of anger, joy, love, and pain. This range of emotions is represented in Ana’s everyday interactions with other punks and artists as well as the work itself. The stories Ana tells reveal interesting observations of the quirks that exist in everyday life and larger social justice issues, especially surrounding immigration. – Daniel Makagon
R. Ring interview by Daryl
Sometimes you just gotta say “yes.” The R. Ring story is one of openness to new ideas, while also being committed to very personal aspects of your own life. There’s no shortage of experience here! And with that comes the good and bad. The painful lessons, the unfathomed heartbreak, and the shimmering, undeniable, life-affirming moments of joy. Catharsis. Reincarnation within one’s own life. It’s a long ride and all we can do is hold on and tell our tales.
Whether they’re collaborating with pro skaters or celebrity vegan chefs, R. Ring create a cohesive end-product because it’s just what happens when you’re operating under total honesty. Of course it’s heartfelt. Of course it’s compassionate. There’s nothing to prove here. Just a compulsion to write and a promise to yourself to make something you’re proud of.
This is Jason Molina’s American indie rock. Conjuring visions of Midwestern streets lined with the most beautiful and affordable housing you’ll ever see in your life. Long summer days and long winter months. Warmth coming from that guitar that’s never too far away.
They’ve been a band for over a decade, but I just learned about ’em. It took about two songs off their new full-length—War Poems, We Rested—before I fell in love. I had to know more, and I’m glad I hit them up, because the conversation was everything you hope a conversation will be. I think the isolation we all feel may be here to stay, but we have to recognize that which grants respite. Hold it close, celebrate it, learn the story. –Daryl
Slaughterhouse interview by Martin Wong
The South Bay of Los Angeles has brought the world bands like Alley Cats, Black Flag, Minutemen, and F.Y.P. A proud addition to that mixtape, Slaughterhouse is in the sweet spot of their trajectory where they can headline a show at a distinguished DIY club like The Sardine (to celebrate the release of the awesome Spike San Pedro punk compilation) as well as get invited to hit the road with heavyweights in the scene (Adolescents, Bad Religion, and Pennywise). If you aren’t a fan yet, this is the time to discover the Emory-esque guitar riffs of Taylor Ramirez, punishing bass and drums by Eddie Cairns and Nick Aguilar, and otherworldly, unfiltered presence of singer Veronica Molidor, which add up to an irresistibly brutal and fun brand of pre-hardcore punk that would have fit right in at The Masque, Vex, or Hong Kong Café. Embraced by local legends and too talented and hard-working to be contained for long, it’s a matter of time before everyone else catches on. –Martin Wong
A couple years ago, Slaughterhouse blew the minds of little kids and L.A. punk lifers alike when they opened for Würm at one of the Save Music in Chinatown benefit shows that my wife and I used to organize, and I’ve kept in touch and tried to see them as much as possible ever since. For this article, I chatted with Taylor, Eddie, Veronica, and Nick over Zoom from their homes on the other end of the Harbor Freeway about their origin story, first album, first tours, and more. I can’t wait to see what happens next and get to hear the rad music that comes out of it.
One Punk’s Guide to Pollinator Conservation by Emma Alice Johnson
A current runs through poems and memoirs of people finding nature after experiencing trauma. That’s what happened to me a few years ago. Heck, that’s what happened to a lot of us at the start of the pandemic, if the boom in seed sales is any indication. But I also experienced a more acute trauma around the same time, and it hit me so hard it knocked me out of my self, out of my whole life, and left me rolling around screaming until out of desperation I grabbed onto the earth, stuck my hands in the dirt, and held on until I found a new me. That new me is inextricably linked with nature, with the plants and creatures who surround me every day that somehow, in the process of growing up, I had forgotten how to see.
As a kid, I saw them. I’d chase beetles and hold somber funerals for the grasshoppers who passed away in my care (’80s kids: remember that bone candy that came in tiny plastic coffins? Perfect for grasshopper interment). On early summer days, my grandpa and I would go to the Milkweed patch to look for Monarch butterfly caterpillars. The Milkweed patch was just a ditch along Clairemont Avenue, but to me it was a glimmering emerald forest of wonder with stalks of common Milkweed nearly as tall as me. We would catch caterpillars and bring them back to my grandpa’s house, where we built elaborate cages for them in his workshop. Together, we watched the caterpillars grow until they retreated into their chrysalises. When they emerged as butterflies, we released them, waving goodbye and wishing them well as they disappeared into the summer sky. –Emma Alice Johnson
“To put it plainly: I help as many people as I can, however I can, with the larger goal of getting everyone the best healthcare possible.” –Donna Ramone (instagram)
“With each whiff, Raymond Pettibon offered me encouragement, like a little league manager coaching up one of his charges.” –Jim Ruland (instagram)
“How can your psychic channels be open when you’re just trying not to die every day? Feel me?” –Lorde Destroyer
“I want you to know that, when it comes to the punk rock zine community, Jen Angel was one of the all-time greats.” –Sean Carswell (instagram)
“My advice to you is to make peace with The Suck… PMA, yo!” –Rev. Nørb (instagram)
Puro Pinche Poetry y Cuentos (Edited by Ever Velasquez (instagram) and RoQue Torres (instagram)
From: “Drinking Their Request”
A breakfast of longing,
a lunch of despair,
for dinner a bowl of rotting tears.
–Jennifer Soria
“One of Rock’n’roll High School’s titles suggested early on was Disco High.” –Designated Dale
Tweet fingers and MAGA farts for the Turd-Man of Alcatraz by Art Fuentes. (instagram)
“It’s the really bizarre punk rock moments that happen right under our noses that make all the sweat and bruises worth it.” –Rhythm Chicken (instagram)
“There’s always some beauty standard that someone somewhere can’t reach.” –Michelle Cruz Gonzales (instagram)
And photos from the lovely and talented:
Chris Boarts Larson
Mari Tamura
Albert Licano
This issue is dedicated to the memories of Jonas Fricke, Spot, Dix Denney, Andrew Laing, Ryan Wilmott, and Judy Heumann.
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