Okay, first things first: I am afraid to Google “Eaves Of Ass,” so can someone just tell me what the title of this zine means? (ed. impressively, if you Google “Eaves Of Ass” you get two pages of references to, and reviews of, this zine.) If it’s not a reference to something I’ve never heard of then I think it’s one of the more ridiculous things I’ve ever heard. Really, though, what’s in a name? Let’s talk about content. This zine is all about music, but more specifically it’s about Craven, a guy who likes music and who has felt its influence in almost every corner of his life. The stories in here are well-crafted and flow nicely (except for the extra one haphazardly stapled onto page 10 in the middle of something entirely different). Craven’s got a real talent for relating lyrics to ideas, and ideas to songs, and songs to the parts of his life where they fit best. There’s some reflection on stuff like the meaning of rock and roll, who’s got it right and who’s got it wrong, etc., but I didn’t like that stuff half as much as the stories about, say, Craven’s encounter with the band The Last Poets, or how listening to Creedence Clearwater Revival turned him away from his Pentecostal Christian upbringing. The band reviews are okay (maybe better than okay, even–I read the whole article about going to his first Rancid concert without rolling my eyes once), but the best part of this zine by far is the longest: a winding, profanity-laden story about Lynyrd Skynyrd and Kansas and Ireland and racism and Amsterdam and Craven’s southern upbringing that switches from past to present to retelling to reflection almost seamlessly. All in all, Eaves Of Ass (I can’t even type that without giggling!) is kind of like a real rock song–a little cheesy, maybe, and a little rough around the edges, but good enough to have you nodding your head right up until the end. (Emma Healey)
zine, Craven Rock, issue 6, $3 or trade, 1627 16th St, Oakland, CA, 94607, USA, [email protected]