zine review:
Trees 4: The Hopeless Romantic/Punk-as-Fuck
In the latest issue of Trees Samantha Trees says: “I want to be the kind of person who makes pretty things because I can’t help it not to.” The statement is rather surprising, because Trees 4 is not only pretty, but incredibly heartfelt as Samantha entrusts readers with her most vulnerable thoughts and stories. In this issue, Samantha tackles heartbreak, the struggles and rewards of answering phones at a crisis line, riot grrrl jams in her anarcho-utopia house, her simultaneous love/fear of diner waitresses, and the police force in Calgary. While her political rants are a little black-and-white, one gets the sense that Samantha is desperately trying to change the world around her for the better. Her praise of her roommates is sweet and refreshing, as are her attempts to teach a dozen girls how to play Bikini Kill’s “Rebel Grrrl” on instruments they don’t know how to play. I can only hope that Samantha won’t be able to help making Trees 5. (Clara Lavery)
Issue, Zine, Samantha Trees, Suite 166, 104-1240 Kensington Rd. NW, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 4X7, [email protected], $2everywhere