I appreciate things that are done out of love, regardless of how much money is lost in the doing. There’s a reason that 90% of the movies and music I own aren’t put out by a major motion picture studio or record label. True creativity comes when the creator is compelled to birth his art and not at the promise of the next paycheck, and this is why I love Lunchmeat.
Yes, my loyal BZs, (what I call the loyal BthroughZ readers, it’s pronounced BeeZees, by the way) in my blood soaked and slightly shaky hands I hold a copy of Lunchmeat #4, your essential VHS only movie review zine. Now, some of you might be wondering, “What the fuck is the point of a VHS zine?” Yes, I’m fully aware that video tapes have been replaced by this new technology called Digital Video Disk or DVD, as all the kids are calling it. However, not every great and not so great movie has had the good fortune of being released on DVD, and there’s a good chance that not all of them ever will. Luckily, thanks to Josh Schafer and Ted Gilbert, the Kurt Cobains to Lunchmeat’s Nirvana, these sadly overlooked movies won’t be forgotten. Once every three months or so, these fine gents and their staff of writers scarf down and vomit up a tasty selection of VHS only deliciousness.
I have no idea how these guys can afford to keep putting this gem out, because even at the slightly steep, yet completely worthwhile price of $6 an issue, this baby must cost a fortune to make. Honestly, this is one of best looking and highest quality completely indie zines I’ve had the fortune of reading. I love everything about this thing. From the super high gloss covers to the reviews of overly obscure movies, this magazine is made for the slightly obsessed and overly compulsive cinephile in all of us. From the reviews alone, all 22 of them, to the articles and interviews with such notables as Carl Crew, this is required reading.
Hardcore horror fans, by nature, are pseudo historians. We completely immerse ourselves in our chosen field of study, and spend our time and money searching out the obscure roots of our field. We scour video stores, thrift shops, garage sales and bargain bins in an exhaustive search for the stories that have eluded us up to now. Then in the best folklore tradition, we spread through word of mouth (or in the modern sense, word of virtual/digital mouth) the history we’ve uncovered. This being said, if horror can be looked at as a historical study than Lunchmeat should be viewed as one of the required readings on the subject.
So, go to either their Ebay page or their Myspace page and get yourself a copy. Of all the zines out there, these guys deserve your support.
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jamie