Magnet is a music magazine that generally focuses on alternative , independent , or out-of-the-mainstream bands.
21-582: The Homeland is an album by Chicago-based rocker Bobby Conn and his backing band, the Glass Gypsies released on January 20, 2004 on Thrill Jockey records. It is noteworthy for taking a more openly political approach than any of Conn's previous albums, being particularly critical of George Bush and the Iraq War. Musically the album focuses mostly on a number of 70s styles, from early-decade prog pseudo-symphonies to late decade disco-rock fusion and funk. The album
42-472: A contemporary culture kind of way[...] Two of the songs are about Tom Cruise , and I don't know if there's a more political statement than Tom Cruise. He kind of symbolizes a lot of what's going on in this country right now and how people are responding to it." He lives in the Chicago area with his wife, violinist and session musician Julie Pomerleau , and their two children. In 2001, Conn and Pomerleau became
63-503: A faux-retrospective look on that year, predicting various absurdist musical occurrences; this is always penned by Phil Sheridan. More recently, Andrew Earles has written a parodic feature entitled "Where's The Street Team?" which tends to address overhyped bands and their fans. The magazine stopped being offered in print form after the 80th edition in 2008, but continued to use the Magnet brand name on their website. In October 2011 it returned as
84-581: A federal facility in Maryland, serving out a sentence for mail fraud. In his solitude he was struck by two things: firstly, that his illegal difficulties were due to his focus on earning rather than spending as much money as possible, and more importantly, that he was likely to be the Anti-Christ. Bobby now knew that time was short, the coming Armageddon would destroy humanity at century's end, so he had to reach people quickly. A natural performer and gifted musician in
105-452: A live album Live Classics (2005) and an E.P. called Llovessonngs (1999). In 2003, Conn produced a session for UK punk band the Cribs , whom he met when they were a support band on his UK tour. A part of that session was used on The Cribs' self-titled debut release in 2004. From Bobby Conn's Southern Records biography: He developed the "Continuous Ca$ h Flow System" while incarcerated in
126-440: A section devoted to free jazz and obscure electronic-based music in each issue. It has also done long articles on jazz icons Albert Ayler , Ken Vandermark , and Ornette Coleman . The photographic style of subjects has also evolved from inventive avant-garde settings to stark, no-frills closeups of band members. Magnet has paid much less attention over the years to the metal and rap genres. The first issue of each year features
147-407: A tale with aplomb". Mojo also awarded the album 4/5 stars, and Q Magazine awarded the album 3/5 stars, saying "[I]t's reassuring to run into the real McCoy. Chicago's Bobby Conn is just that." On the negative side, Dave Queen of Stylus Magazine , stated that the album "fails" in comparison to its predecessor, criticising John McEntire's production and Conn's subject matter, stating "I [...] miss
168-410: A thrilling high-paced life-style. And when the collective Debt of our generation grows large enough, the entire Pig System of Oppression will be snuffed out like a candle in a hurricane. In more recent years, Conn has been more candid in interviews, and has admitted that all of these early fabrications for the press were merely a charade. Conn told Magnet magazine that "I always thought it was part of
189-723: The Denton, TX psychedelic rock scene (1997), the New York City " Illbient " scene (1997), the history of power pop (2002), the Cleveland avant-punk scene of the 1970s, the Minneapolis college-rock scene of the 1980s (2005), the California " Paisley Underground " bands of the 1980s (2001), and the resurgence of the Shoegaze movement (2002). Also common is the "artists within a construct" theme—e.g.,
210-480: The "Eccentrics And Dreamers" issue (2003) featuring various "outsider" artists . Beginning in early 1997, subscribers to each issue receive a sampler CD. Record labels pay the magazine to have songs put on the CDs, meaning that inclusion signified no endorsement from the staff of Magnet , although bands would claim otherwise, leading to moderate controversy over the years . The songs on the CDs sometimes have little to do with
231-739: The Chicago avant garde rock quartet Conducent (Conn/guitar, Rex Jenny/bass and vocals, DeShawn/drums and vocals, Le Deuce/loops, beats, and atmosphere). The eclectic Conducent sound was born from improv and raised on the "open mic" circuit, eventually growing into full maturity as a performance troupe. Conn went solo in 1994 after Conducent broke up. His first lineup consisted of ex-Conducent member DJ Le Deuce on turntables, as well as his future wife Julie Pomerleau (a.k.a. Monica BouBou) on electric violin. Conn went on to release seven studio albums to date: Bobby Conn (1997), Rise Up! (1998), The Golden Age (2001), The Homeland (2004), King For A Day (2007), Macaroni (2012), and Recovery (2020), along with
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#1732851299172252-405: The creative process. Creativity is lying. My own story doesn't seem very interesting to me [...] You don't want to be who you are onstage everyday. What's the point in that?" Conn also said in interview with freq.org.uk that the source of his onstage persona was "egomaniacal delusions that I've had since I was a kid – I tried to hyperbolize them to see how far it would go. To me when I came up with
273-470: The dysfunctional coke-sex ballads [i.e. of "The Golden Age"]". Playlouder gave the album 2.5/5 stars, mostly criticising the album's political lyrical content, and asserting that "the results are anticlimactic"- however reviewer Jeremy Allen does admit that Conn "is clearly talented.". PopMatters criticised the political lyrics as "crude and oversimplified" but admitted that "there are still plenty of killer hooks, and John McEntire's expert recording job makes
294-830: The first couple who were cast by Cynthia Plaster Caster . Magnet (magazine) The magazine is published four times a year, and is independently owned and edited by Eric T. Miller. Music magazines with a similar focus in the 1990s era included Option , Ray Gun , and Alternative Press . The first issue of Magnet came out in mid-1993. Examples of cover stars over the years include Yo La Tengo (1993, 2000), The Afghan Whigs (1994), Spacemen 3 (1997), Shudder To Think (1997), Tortoise / Swervedriver (1998), Sonic Youth (1998), Sunny Day Real Estate (1998), Ween (2000), Ride (2002), Interpol (2003), Hüsker Dü (2005), and Cat Power (2007). The magazine's content tends to focus on up-and-coming indie bands and expositions of various music scenes. Examples include long pieces on
315-438: The most of them, giving the mix a crisp clarity that assures that these intricate arrangements never sound decadently bloated." The Japanese import contains one bonus track, entitled "Got To Get It." Bobby Conn Jeffrey Stafford (born June 13, 1967), known professionally as Bobby Conn , is an American musician based in Chicago, Illinois. He often collaborates with other artists and film-maker Usama Alshaibi . Conn
336-443: The popular tradition, he structured his "Continuous Ca$ h Flow System" [...] Bobby knows that creating a financial vacuum inside oneself is the best way to fill a spiritual void, and he demonstrates this regularly by distributing thousands of dollars in the form of $ 20 bills to every audience member. But with his gift comes a desire. A desire to spend. And spend. And spend yet more, creating a glorious Debt that promises, if not salvation,
357-412: The type of music covered by the magazine. Though the magazine's focus for the first five years or so of its existence was experimental/underground music, its focus at the turn of the century broadened to include an emphasis on covering alt-country and indie acts such as Wilco, Steve Earle, The New Pornographers, The Shins, and even more established acts such as Tom Petty . Despite this, it still maintains
378-473: The whole idea of trying to promote myself as a potential Antichrist I figured that no-one is going to take this seriously or even acknowledge it because it's about the dumbest thing you could say." Conn has said of his art that "All the records that I've done are a critique of what's going on in contemporary America", and he was an outspoken critic of the George W. Bush administration. However, Conn has admitted he
399-451: Was born as Jeffrey Stafford in New York, but spent much of his young life in the Chicago suburb of St. Charles . He started a hardcore punk trio in high school called "The Broken Kockamamies" (The BK's, or BKS) who were noted for using eight-foot strobe lights on a darkened stage as their only prop. The strobes were affectionately called "the pillars of fear." In 1989, Conn played guitar in
420-445: Was not always at ease with the "protest singer" label for himself. He told Magnet magazine, "I've always done lots of social commentary that I believe in pretty strongly but I am very uncomfortable with the role of the artist as a meaningful social critic...my whole generation [is] a confused group of people with an ambivalent way of dealing with protest." Regarding his 2007 album King for a Day , Conn said "it's political, but just in
441-434: Was recorded at Soma Studios , Chicago , Illinois in 2003. The Homeland was met with mostly positive reviews. The Columbus FreePress gave it a glowing review, writing "It is rare when an album sets out to achieve such lofty goals as The Homeland. It’s even more rare when the artist actually hits the mark on all levels." Uncut magazine gave the album 4/5 stars, calling Conn "witty and sharp", and stating that he can "tell
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