This zine was a pleasing surprise. Though a self-proclaimed feminist, I often find feminist-identified zines a little long in the tooth (read: second wave)-although a second wave feminist would probably not embrace the term “whore” to advertise her work. Randie seems to successfully skate around this obstacle and provide my kind of feminist work. There is quite a bit of content about female-fronted music, including a Lady Fest East report, a piece debating the death of riot grrrls, and an inspiring article about Emily Brandt who created the Taking Back the News print project. It’s a project that takes up space in community print with “true life stories about surviving sexual violence.” It also includes a fun review of video games that has tough broads saving the day, and an interesting interview with Fafi, a girl from France who is a “painter of the streets.” And to finish it off, it has a full section of zine and book reviews. Yes, indeed, a pleasant read. (heze douglas)
Zine, issue 5, $2, Randie Farmelant, 12 B Wolcott St., Malden, MA, 02148, [email protected]