THE CONVIVIAL HERMIT Issue #9
120 pages B&W, 8 1/2 x 11 inch (21.59 x 27.94 cm) perfect bound flat spine, gloss color cover.
LA BREICHE (France) - DEHN SORA (France) - IESCHURE (Ukraine) - IGNI (New Zealand) - INFERNAL CURSE (Argentina) - KOSMOGYR (USA/China) - LISIEUX (France) - NELECC (Kenya) - OFFICIUM TRISTE (Netherlands) - OLD TOWER (Netherlands) - ORNAMENTOS DEL MIEDO (Spain) - PARAGON RECORDS (USA) - POLUVRAK (Bulgaria) - THE PRIMITIVE (USA) - PUTREFIED REMAINS (Malaysia) - SAINTE MARIE DES LOUPS (France) - SAÅAD (France) - SICKLE OF DUST (Russia) - SUNSHINE & LOLLIPOPS (Deutschland) - TYRANNY (China) - WIGRID (Deutschland) -YANN GOURDON (France)
The 9th issue was published in the Summer of Covid Love, 2020, with a raging pandemic worldwide that hit hardest in the United States where (let's face it) some of the dumbest people on earth live. Coming together slowly as all others, this issue, featuring what I think is the best cover in the 20 year existence of the magazine (thanks to Bertrand for capturing this remarkable, almost unreal image in central France), captured 22 conversations and a range of articles that could be considered controversial if anyone actually read the magazine, including an old Nationalism in Metal article I revived from 2001, an article on lovely North Korea and In Defense of Blasphemy which I feel particularly proud of. This magazine features an outstanding mixture of artists and personalities including La Breiche from France (side-project of Stille Volk), Dehn Sora, Sunshine & Lollipops, Ieschure, Wigrid (interviewed for the first time anywhere to my knowledge) and Paragon Records. It had some notable firsts like my first ever interview with a prisoner (Igni's Jacob Lowenstein), which I think came out really well, and an African band (Nelecc). I keenly remember securing an amazing deal for this issue with a new print company I found in Kensington, driving through the open drug markets to get it, and being highly impressed with their work, definitely the best-looking issue so far, if I may not-so-humbly opine. Everything just went really smooth for this one with a nice ad campaign consisting of postcards and a special 11x17 poster (which is still available, by the way). Only regret is that none of my art or comics made it into the issue, I was experiencing some art-block at the time, but that was rectified to a degree with #10.
6 Articles including...
*Most Extreme Albums
*Forest Trail Etiquette
*Thoughts on the Hermit Kingdom
*Nationalism In the Metal Scene
*In Defense of Blasphemy
*Reject The Mass
+ Deicide concert report
+ Film, Book and Music reviews
