Big brown envelope... must be Stack

This months’ delivery from Stack arrived last week. The package seems to get heavier every month, with four different pieces this time.

First up is the latest issue of The Drawbridge, which sadly has followed the trend toward tabloid-size and is no longer a full-on broadsheet format. The usual great mix of content, though, and the design hasn’t been compromised. I guess it was a cost thing?

Mule started in the US but has become global as the people behind it have moved around. A bit too text heavy for me – not too much text, just heavily presented.

The other two pieces are zines. The first comes as part of an exchange between Stack and Zineswap.com. Different subscribers got different zines, and I’m very happy with the one I received. Playlist Magazine reflects the process of discovering music on LastFM. The contents list is generated from a playlist generated by the online resource, then the individual articles are sourced from various websites and publications. Very simple, very cute, very engaging, even if the music is quite obscure to me.

The second zine is the tiny – so tiny I keep losing it here in the office – Crayon, from Joe Sumner. Basically a nine-panel comic strip, it works better online as a series of images rather than a strip.

The beauty of Stack is the mix of things you receive. With the exception of The Drawbridge I wouldn’t have seen any of these publications, and while I didn’t immediately love everything in the package I’m glad I’ve seen them all. Together they make an intriguing combination.

(Note – don’t forget the Stack offer available to magCulture readers. See ad on right)