Scanner Web Zine - The place for Punk Rock, Hardcore, Anarcho and scuzzy Garage Rock 'n' Roll

Another State Of Zine...

Scanner was born in a hail of phlegm, defiance and attitude as an A5 print zine back in the Summer of 1998, in the English hamlet of Ipswich, Suffolk. It ran for near-on five years, culminating with a 92-page whopper in January 2003, which featured the likes of AVAIL, Exene Cervenka and Winston Smith.
From small beginnings - the first issue was a comparatively small 40-page minnow - the zine grew steadily in stature with a final print run of over 1,000 and distribution throughout the UK and in various parts of Europe and America plus Australia and New Zealand with further readers in Japan and South Africa.
The zine stopped not due to my personal lack of interest in the world of Punk Rock, or any kinda burgeoning disillusionment in an overtly commercialised and tame Punk Rock scene. Admittedly, I was getting tired of generic releases from say-nothing bands and ‘Punx’ who cared more for the shade of their hair dye and brand of sneaker than they did for the ideals behind MDC or SUBHUMANS. Thankfully, this was constantly countered by bands like FOUR LETTER WORD, DILLINGER FOUR and many bands like them that released vital, energetic, intelligent and out-spoken releases. Of course, the old faithfuls - surely I don’t need to name names - always revitalised the soul and scorched the ears.
Nope, Scanner in print form stopped due to a life-changing move. In March 2004, I packed my bags and headed to New Zealand. At the time I had no idea whether it would be a long-term move. I sure wanted it to be, but due to seemingly limitless bureaucratic red tape bullshit from the Immigration Services, I had to wait a year to see if my future here in NZ could be even semi-permanent. During that year I set up this website in an attempt to continue where the zine left off.
Move forward to August 2005... My application for Residency in NZ was approved and here I remain with no plans of leaving. From here, Scanner on-line continues and will continue until I either go back to a print form zine or get so disillusioned by the whole bloody world of Punk Rock and its seemingly increasing links to the safe, corporate and sponsored world of mainstream society that I would rather vomit all over my crotch than face another tiresome safe, major label band desperately wanting to be ‘dangerous’ and/ or ‘cool’. Fuck ‘em!
Where is this website gonna go from here? Well, I hope it’s just gonna get bigger and better, just as the print version did. I did have a ‘News’ section, but due to lack of release news etc being forwarded, I ditched it. Except for a few notable labels - Fat Wreck, Revelation, Household Name, Recess and Alternative Tentacles in particular - I had no release news sent despite requests and adding myself to mailing lists.
You can forward all review material to the address above that’s shadowed by Crass. For electronic contact, hit this LINK and send me an email. If you work for EMI or Columbia, yeah, please forward me your releases. They sell well on ebay but do NOT expect a review of your corporate crapola. My review policy remains the same - all releases sent WILL be reviewed, but anything on a major label does not run parallel to my ideals of Punk Rock. Period. Get over it and concentrate on your lucre-lusting contracts.
Also hit the LINK if you wanna join the mailing list to receive emails of each and every update as it happens. OK - get on with it - self-explanation over. Enter and enjoy....

Latest Updates

     

February 4th - HOME PAGE - Latest Hey Suburbia Podcast
January 14th - BLOG - Obituary for Jay Reatard
January 14th - TOP SOUNDS - Review of BORN/DEAD
January 13th - TOP SOUNDS - Review of FALSE ALARM/ YOUTH GONE MAD
January 12th - TOP SOUNDS - Review of GRANT HART
January 10th - TOP SOUNDS - Review of The Fest 8 comp
January 10th - TOP SOUNDS - Review of MIKE PUKE
January 8th - TOP SOUNDS - Review of GEOFFREY OI!COTT and GERIATRIC UNIT
January 5th - TOP SOUNDS - Review of EASTER MONKEYS
January 4th - READING MATTER - Review of Joe Strummer And The Legend Of The Clash

CD REVIEWS
BEAUTY SCHOOL DROPOUT - Palookaville, BEEZEWAX - A Dozen Summits, BIG DRILL CAR - A Never Ending Endeavor, BITTER PILLS - s/t, DOUBLECROSS - Things Will Never Change, FOUR LETTER WORD - Follow As The Crow Flies, NEW SET OF BRUISES - s/t, SLEEP - Back To Square One Again, TV SMITH - Live At The NVA, VANILLA POD - Poets On Payday, VARSITY DRAG - Night Owls {Boss Tuneage}; VARIOUS - Sugar Free Ear Candy Vol. 3 {Brown Bag Propaganda}; OUTSIDERS - s/t {Deep Red}; COCOCOMA - Things Are Not All Right {Goner}; IMPERIAL LEATHER - Unconditional Conditions {MCR}; HARLEY'S WAR - Hardcore All-Stars {MVD}; I GOT A VIOLET - Backwash {New Model Label}; THE BOMB - Speed Is Everything, NO FRIENDS - s/t, WORN IN RED - In The Offing {No Idea}; MURDER DISCO EXPERIENCE - Complete Discography 1997-2004, {Profane Existence}; DESTRUCTORS 666 - Quisnam Vigilo Vigilo, Pow! That's Kill Music 666 Vol. I {Rowdy Farrago}; PISTOL WHIP - Terminal, TIN HUEY - Before Obsurity: The Bushflow Tapes {Smog Veil}; ANTISECT - In Darkness The Is No Choice, SUBHUMANS - The Day The Country Died, EPLP, From The Cradle To The Grave, Worlds Apart, Rats/Time Flies, 29:29 Split Vision {Southern/ Bluurg}; CARRY ONS - Is Anyone Listening?, COURTESY MURDER - Population Control, FIST OF THE NORTH STAR - Here's To An Early Grave {Stik Man}; BEAT THE RED LIGHT - s/t, VARIOUS - 3-way split {TNS}; RUST - Sampler {DIY};

7"/12" VINYL REVIEWS
INFECTED - Awake In Our Own Graves {Add}; COLT SEAVERS - s/t {Boss Tuneage}; JFA - To All Our Friends {DC Jam}; VARIOUS - Welcome to 1984 {MRR}; REMISSION - Absolute Power {Profane Existence};

DVD REVIEWS
SPERMBIRDS - Me And My People {Boss Tuneage}; X-RAY SPEX - Live At The Roundhouse, London 2008 {Future Noise}; 

BOOK REVIEWS
Gimme Something Better: The Profound, Progressive and Occasionally Pointless History of Bay Area Punk from Dead Kennedys To Green Day

ZINES
Rum Lad #4, Maximum Rocknroll #322, Artcore #26, Pipebomb #36, Short Fast And Loud #22, TNS #7, Beat Motel #9

 

HEY SUBURBIA - Podcast #16 - February 2010

Here's the latest installment of Hey Suburbia - The House Of Scanner Podcast!  You can either stream the whole hour-long show by left-clicking the link below, or if you want to save it to your hard drive to play later or burn as a CD, then right click the link and save it as you wish.  You'll probably need a Broadband connection for a moderately quick download.
Let me know what you think - and if any of you have any requests - let me know!!

HEY SUBURBIA PODCAST, #16
BAD RELIGION – Ten In 2010
DEAD TO ME - A Day Without A War
FLIPSIDES - The Best Of Times
OUTSIDERS - Bonfires And Friendfires
- - - -
BIRTHDAY PARTY - Blast Off
X-RAY SPEX - Genetic Engineering
COCOCOMA - Water Into Wine
BEAUTY SCHOOL DROPOUT - One For Sorrow
- - - -
COCKNEY REJECTS - Flares N Slippers
LOWER CLASS BRATS - New Seditionaries
GBH – Impounded
RUST – You Ain’t Lived
- - - -
CARRY-ONS - Zero In
COURTESY MURDER – Georgia
BEAT THE RED LIGHT - Never A Dull Moment
SENSE OF URGENCY – Lowbrow
- - - -
REATARDS - Blew My Mind
SUICIDE BOMB - Track 6
AVSKUM - Massacre In Fallujah
ICONS OF FILTH – Evilspeak

Previous Podcasts can be found by clicking this link here

Gone but not forgotten...

This website will forever remember those who provided inspiration and continue to inspire.  Let us never forget those that paved the way for where Punk Rock is today and made some of the most refreshing, rebellious and raucous music ever.  R.I.P. guys...

STIV BATORS, JOHNNY THUNDERS, JOEY RAMONE, DEE DEE RAMONE, JOHNNY RAMONE, JOE STRUMMER, DARBY CRASH, BOB STINSON, RANDY 'BISCUIT' TURNER, PIG CHAMPION, RON ASHETON, DAVE ALEXANDER, MALCOLM OWEN, PAUL FOX, LANCE HAHN, DENNIS DANELL, JIM CARROLL, JEFFREY LEE PIERCE, LUX INTERIOR, JERRY NOLAN, ARTHUR KANE, BILLY MURCIA, NICHOLAS 'RAZZLE' DINGLEY, STIG, DIMWIT, WILL SHATTER, RAYBEEZ, KURT COBAIN, WIZ, STEVO, MIA ZAPATA, TOMATA DU PLENTY, MIKEY OFFENDER DONALDSON, PAUL RAVEN, NIDGE BLITZ MILLER, D. BOON, DAVE INSURGENT, FRED 'SONIC' SMITH, ROB TYNER, NIKKI SUDDEN, PETER LAUGHNER, IAN CURTIS, SID VICIOUS, TIM YOHANNON, GREG SHAW, JOHN PEEL

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Wanna see what's written about a specific band, person or subject on the Scanner Zine site?  Let us do the work for you...

Individual hits since July 2004:

Geographical hits since October 2009