Launched 2009, Bristol
The sell ‘A place where people can be entertained without having their retinas damaged or feeling they need a PhD to understand what’s going on,’ says Thomas Frost, its editor.
Best cover Flying Lotus exclusive. Crack was given the first independent music mag interview.
They say ‘It’s been amazing to see the growth of the Crack empire over the last few years.’ – Portishead’s Geoff Barrow Photograph: Crack magazine
Launched (in print form) 2011, London
The sell A big, colourful and brash look at new and established music.
Best cover Paramore, because of how enthusiastic their fanbase were. ‘Paramore is TOO MUCH,' a fan commented under the cover that the band posted on their website. They say ‘We’ve never been ones for being lo-fi for the sake of it – we’re a bedroom blog started in skipped uni lectures.’ – Stephen Ackroyd, editor Photograph: DIY magazine
Launched 2011, Cardiff
The sell A platform for young writers, artists and photographers to practise their trade.
Best cover Chvrches, the zine’s first illustrated cover, which was the work of artist Will Exley.
They say ‘A magazine that incorporates all the things we love about music and inspires people to do things for themselves.’ – Jen Long, editor and Radio 1 DJ Photograph: Zero Core
Launched 2013
The sell A pocket-sized guide to the best in London gigs, with listings and interviews.
Best cover Wolf Alice surrounded by brightly coloured confetti.
They say ‘It’s hugely useful in finding out what’s on and where when it comes to gigs. Some other magazines seem to pull back on listings, but London in Stereo has them at its heart, which is great.’ – Huw Stephens, Radio 1 DJ
Photograph: London in Stereo
Launched 2010, London
The sell It’s a music quarterly disguised as a style magazine.
Best cover Warpaint, on the launch issue, just ahead of the band’s first UK gigs in early 2011.
They say ‘It harks back to a time when music journalists took serious and justified pride in their ability to set our imaginations on fire with their writing.’ – Shirley Manson, lead singer of Garbage Photograph: Beat magazine
Launched 2005, London
The sell It brings diversity, freshness and attitude to all the acts it features.
Best cover Natasha Khan, aka Bat for Lashes, because, according to editor Stuart Stubbs, she spoke with an unparalleled passion about what she does.
They say ‘It’s all resolutely indie but done with a visual literacy you’d expect of a designer who might be found by day at Wallpaper* magazine.’ – Esquire Photograph: Loud and Quiet
Launched 1997, Camden, London
The sell Celebrating the true originals of new music.
Best cover Parquet Courts at SXSW, because they refused to have their photo taken. As the band were leaving, the photographer, who was walking backwards holding a reflector in one hand and a camera in the other with a T-shirt over his head, got a last-minute snap. They had to black out their eyes.
They say ‘It feels like we’ve wormed our way into the subconscious of the music industry.’ – JJ Dunning, editor Photograph: The Fly
Launched 2005 (closed in 2013), London
The sell Fiercely independent, sarcastic, satirical.
Best cover It recreated the famous National Lampoon magazine cover of a dog with a gun to its head above the caption: ‘If you don’t buy this magazine, we’ll kill this dog’ – except instead of a dog they had Lemmy from Motörhead, photographed in Stringfellows.
They say ‘YouTube launched a month after we did. It was a different world.’ – Phil Hebblethwaite, editor Photograph: The Stool Pigeon
