You’re probably already familiar with The Epoch collective by now. If not then you should know they are a community of musicians, writers, visual artists, filmmakers and more, based largely in and around Brooklyn, NY. They count some really great artists in their ranks, including Small Wonder, Eskimeaux, Bellows, Sharpless, Told Slant and Florist, all of whom have been (and still are) making some of the most honest and relevant music around. Thanks to the internet, The Epoch has been able to spread its wings, meaning people who have never even set foot in Brooklyn (like me) are able to form an emotional attachment to what they’re doing. It’s clear that I’m certainly not the only person outside of Brooklyn who is on-board. For one, Small Wonder are currently touring Europe and the UK, which isn’t something you do without some support on the other side of the pond, but also because of what I wanted to bring to your attention today.
Fevered Press, Fevered Certainty is an independent press run by two non-binary radicals in Michigan. Their aim is to highlight voices on the margins, and they do so by publishing really cool zines and books. They have recently published the first volume of The Epoch Fanzine, which “includes photos, interviews with collective members, essays, dance, and song covers by the qt n friendly community surrounding the collective”. The blurb gives you good reason to grab a copy right away:
“read to feel posi, read to feel closer to yr fav bands n artists”
Perhaps the best bit about the zine are the covers of songs by Epoch faves Told Slant, Small Wonder and Eskimeaux by some really cool and talented people. They serve as 1) cool new takes on tracks I really like and 2) introductions to artists I’m not at all familiar with. What’s not to like?
First up is Leor Miller (of Cipinko), who transforms Told Slant’s ‘Lack’ with fuzzy lo-fi guitars and deadpan vocals, cultivating a sort of Bret Easton Ellis-style so-cool-he’s-numb kinda vibe. Then Detroit’s Chill Corea brings a lo-fi synth pop rendition of Eskimeaux’s ‘Alone At the Party’, think Casiotone for the Painfully Alone meets Free Cake For Every Creature.
The second Told Slant cover comes courtesy of Pitsburgh’s Unraveler, who chooses ‘Ohio Snow Falls’ and provides a version which manages to capture the awkward twitchy passion that makes Told Slant so good. Michigan-based Anywaves also cover Told Slant, with a guitar-less take on ‘Parking Lots’, complete with that slightly desperate warbling crack to the vocals, before alone@home wrap things up with ‘Pocket Full of Posies’, a track which the band describe as “characteristic Eskimeaux, with prettiness and sadness in every line”.
[bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=1246941244 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false artwork=small track=2188161332]
You can get the fanzine via the Fevered Press website, and download the songs on a name-your-price basis over at their Bandcamp page. Now excuse me while I go listen to all these artists’ back catalogues.
