Zine/Comp Review: Lost Tapes from the Federal Sessions
Lost Tapes from the Federal Sessions, a new zine-slash-cassette-comp out of London, UK, has been put together as a tribute to the more organic and personalised ways of finding out about new music. Firstly, forget about whether the zine comes with a tape, or the tape comes with a zine, because that may well send you into a frenzy of confusion, and enjoy 21 tracks of exciting current bands that sonically cover pretty much the entire spectrum of DIY punk rock and hardcore.
Each band gets a comprehensive interview that covers their formation, band achievements, related projects of members and personal/political standpoints (with questions written especially for them, not some kind of standard questionnaire, which is cool) as well as a piece of artwork, seemingly inspired by their name. While James has concentrated on his home scene of the UK, there are some North American bands included (notably the excellent Street Eaters, who I hadn’t heard before opening up this lovely punk parcel).
This beautifully-packaged, large size, 54-page zine (sealed in a hand-stamped, stencilled envelope with a waxy kiss) is an awesome reminder of why, parallel to the endless treasure hunt for rare gems from days gone by, it’s as important as ever to document what’s happening in your back yard/basement — especially when what’s happening sounds this good!
Bands include: Saturday’s Kids, Woolf, Jesus of Spazzareth, Damages, Bird Calls, The Sceptres, Small Bones, Battle of Wolf 359, Human Hands, Guilty Parents, Dead in the Woods, Facel Vega.
£5 ppd in the UK . Email cyslabe@gmail.com for US/distro.
