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Esopus 10 by Tod Lippy

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
Dutch and I discovered ESOPUS while browsing Green Apple's tiny zine section. We picked up three magazines there, but Esopus is the only one we subscribed too and ordered as many back issues as we could. (We picked up Geez, an earnest Canadian evangelical mag and Mental Floss)



Why this sudden devotion?



1) High production value. Yup, it sounds dry, but the quality of the paper and the printing is fantastic. Not only that, they fill each issue with lots of cool things. Issue #10, the one I am ostensibly reviewing, has a series of fake botanical drawings that are suitable for framing, printed on velum, no less. Soon, I will take an exacto knife to it and frame those puppies.



2) No advertisements. I don't want to look at advertisements in something I pay for. That means each page is cool. The reader doesn't have to skip any parts.



3) Big format. What is not to love about diving into 9 x 12 inches of CMYK goodness?



4) The CD. Although #9's music was better, #10's music is still very listenable and interesting. PLUS, each track has a story behind it.



5) It is cheap. $14 at the newstand or $24/year.



6) Intentional Ephemera and glorious foldouts. Better than Miss April. Often pages and pages of glossy fullcolor, feet of printed mayhem.



7) Emphasis on drawing. I am a sucker for drawings and it is always a treat to see pages and pages of finely reproduced drawings.


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