Straight No Chaser (magazine)
Encyclopedia
Straight No Chaser was an influential British
music magazine, based in London, which covered various forms of black music and electronic music
.
The magazine was started by music lover, journalist, and general clubgoer Paul Bradshaw, to cover the emerging black music scene that he saw expanding in London
and the UK around the time house music
hit British shores in a big way around Summer 1988.
, and also metropolitan
areas of the US. It also had a slightly differing version that was published and distributed for sale separately in Japan
. Starting out life being published quarterly, it moved to 5 times a year on its second volume, however the actual amount of issues released would fluctuate year on year and it didn't have a regular release date, so regular purchasers of the magazine often had to keep an eye out for its release when it happened. Very occasionally a covermount
CD or tape
was also included with the magazine, sometimes either only for a limited amount of copies or for its initial print run for that issue, but other times only for sale on the Japanese edition.
music at the center, with other black music's from around the world—especially soulfull electronic music—forming the core of its focus. While most of the magazine contained charts from eminent DJ's on the scene (including a regular chart from Bradshaw's DJ friend Gilles Peterson
) or articles on underground music scenes around the world, it also had an eye on contemporary artwork, and underground fashionable trends in and outside various music communities usually not generally well-known about outside of the worlds' big urban centres (London, Paris, Tokyo, New York, San Francisco, et al).
The magazine was often compared with the US magazine publication Wax Poetics
which came along later, and could be argued copied Straight No Chaser's style in some design and content ways.
and CD collecting to more digital downloading, Bradshaw decided to shut the magazine down in 2007 with the last issue being number 46 from volume 2, the Summer edition released around August that year.
No digital versions (pdf, ePub
, or similar, format) of the magazine were ever released, and there have so far been no plans to reissue them as such.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
music magazine, based in London, which covered various forms of black music and electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
.
The magazine was started by music lover, journalist, and general clubgoer Paul Bradshaw, to cover the emerging black music scene that he saw expanding in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and the UK around the time house music
House music
House music is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, United States in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American, Latino American, and gay communities; first in Chicago circa 1984, then in other...
hit British shores in a big way around Summer 1988.
Publishing
It was published in the UK and distributed for sale across the whole country, much of EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, and also metropolitan
Metropolitan area
The term metropolitan area refers to a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories, sharing industry, infrastructure, and housing. A metropolitan area usually encompasses multiple jurisdictions and municipalities: neighborhoods, townships,...
areas of the US. It also had a slightly differing version that was published and distributed for sale separately in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Starting out life being published quarterly, it moved to 5 times a year on its second volume, however the actual amount of issues released would fluctuate year on year and it didn't have a regular release date, so regular purchasers of the magazine often had to keep an eye out for its release when it happened. Very occasionally a covermount
Covermount
Covermount is the name given to storage media or other products packaged as part of a magazine or newspaper...
CD or tape
Compact Cassette
The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette, cassette tape, cassette, or simply tape, is a magnetic tape sound recording format. It was designed originally for dictation, but improvements in fidelity led the Compact Cassette to supplant the Stereo 8-track cartridge and reel-to-reel...
was also included with the magazine, sometimes either only for a limited amount of copies or for its initial print run for that issue, but other times only for sale on the Japanese edition.
Content and themes
SNC magazines' slogan was Interplanetary Sounds: Ancient To Future, which basically meant it covered JazzJazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
music at the center, with other black music's from around the world—especially soulfull electronic music—forming the core of its focus. While most of the magazine contained charts from eminent DJ's on the scene (including a regular chart from Bradshaw's DJ friend Gilles Peterson
Gilles Peterson
Gilles Peterson , is a DJ, record collector and record label owner from London, UK. Through his labels Acid Jazz, Talkin' Loud, and latterly Brownswood Recordings, he has been associated with the careers of well-known artists of the 1990s such as Erykah Badu, Roni Size and Jamiroquai...
) or articles on underground music scenes around the world, it also had an eye on contemporary artwork, and underground fashionable trends in and outside various music communities usually not generally well-known about outside of the worlds' big urban centres (London, Paris, Tokyo, New York, San Francisco, et al).
The magazine was often compared with the US magazine publication Wax Poetics
Wax Poetics
Wax Poetics is a bimonthly American music magazine dedicated to vintage and contemporary jazz, funk, soul, Latin, hip-hop, reggae, blues, and R&B in the crate-digger tradition; the name of the magazine is itself an allusion to vinyl records....
which came along later, and could be argued copied Straight No Chaser's style in some design and content ways.
Ending
For various reasons, not least the spread of the internet and declining magazine sales, plus the changing effects in the general music culture from vinylGramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
and CD collecting to more digital downloading, Bradshaw decided to shut the magazine down in 2007 with the last issue being number 46 from volume 2, the Summer edition released around August that year.
No digital versions (pdf, ePub
EPUB
EPUB is a free and open e-book standard by the International Digital Publishing Forum...
, or similar, format) of the magazine were ever released, and there have so far been no plans to reissue them as such.
External links
- Straight No Chaser - the main British edition's website (Active, with new reviews, features and radio show).
- Straight No Chaser - the Japanese version's website (inactive).