http://www.tabletmagazine.com/Tablet was the lesser known third semi-monthly/bi-weekly Seattle based paper -- focusing on music, the arts, and politics -- that operated under the shadow of The Stranger and Seattle Weekly for the past half decade. It was Seattle based, and in paper print.. but took a small break circa 2003 to revitalize itself as a Northwest color publication. But apparently, pushes have comes to shoves, and I guess this is it.
I'm quite sad about this, because
a) a few of the most memorable articles or covers I've seen while I've been living here have been in Tablet. The cover of the post 9/11 issue alone still resonates with me. (Sadly, the archive only goes as far back to the first revitalized issue, so I can't link the drawing in question.)
b) Despite that I think many of the articles and reviews were not the best I've read, I always sensed some sort of momentum that allowed for the possibility of a surprise improvement for Tablet at some random point.. something that would possibly take The Stranger and Seattle Weekly by surprise. Part of the reason I thought this was possible was because Tablet was barely as bile-filled and cynical as a typical issue of the two former alt-weeklies.. and I was hoping that there might be a growing audience who would appreciate a magazine that could attract readership because it avoided a style prone to titillating, angering articles that were, for lack of a better term, "shouty". Sure, Tablet had its cynical moments; and some of the cynical "shouty" articles in The Stranger and Seattle Weekly were great articles, regardless. I guess I was looking for a different type of regular publication on Seattle culture/arts that could rise and send a message to the two big alt-weeklies already in town saying "Hey, alt-publications don't have to act like THIS to get noticed."
c) The looming strong possibility of Seattle Weekly's paper changing coverage, possibly for the worst, thanks to New Times is just going to gentrify Seattle's alt-weekly quality to that of.. well.. "any other city.". Like Vancouver or SF, for instance. The Georgia Strait... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. I haven't been impressed with either SF Weekly or the Guardian, either, from what I've read.
Now, I don't think The Stranger will ever be as boring as those papers.. but it's quite true that papers that have no competition in local arts/culture (assuming the worst will result from a New Times/Village Voice Media merger overseeing Seattle Weekly) tend to, well, get lazy and gentrify (and I stress "tend to"), since there's no worries about "competing" coverage. That said, I think the approaches The Stranger and Seattle Weekly have taken recently on that front have been complementary, in a good way -- dare I say symbiotic?. One paper is strong in one sense, the other people stronger in the other.. in combination, a good net resource for music articles in Seattle, depending on what flavor you like, either that week, or permanently.
Well, I fear this equilibrium is just going to deteriorate. That's all.
I should be able to clarify what I just said in better words later. But work looms. So, please feel free to question any of the above, call me on bullshit, etc.
― donut gon' nut (donut), Wednesday, 31 August 2005 17:07 (twenty years ago)
I forgot to add to "c)" that I think
Tablet's lack of being able to hold out will seem VERY poorly timed in retrospect (granted, perhaps out of their control) such that they're missing a possibly springboard and opportunity to expand, improve, and "STAND THE FUCK UP".. especially given recent motions in alt-pub dynamics.
― donut gon' nut (donut), Wednesday, 31 August 2005 17:13 (twenty years ago)
i don't think i ever read a single interesting artical in The Tablet in the last 5 years. Some mildly amusing Vice style rip-off photo's with caption type pieces but other than that, the Tablet won't be missed.
Donut, i read your post but did you actually read anything worthwhile in the Tablet or are you sad about what could have been?
Plus, their music coverage was horrible. When will Seattle move on from indie-rock bullshit?
― biz, Wednesday, 31 August 2005 18:30 (twenty years ago)
I'll admit the front covers for the revitalized Tablet were kinda
Vice-esque.. although the music reviews, while not great, were at least legible and not written by 3 year olds, unlike
Vice. That's pretty much where the comparisons stop.
And I have read some interesting articles in Tablet. Some great music interviews. Also some insightful social/political essays pieces.. just as many as in the other two weeklies as far as hit/miss ratio goes.. which isn't a huge amount, overall. And Tablet was a much smaller magazine that came out less often, on a much smaller budget, granted. But, I'd be amazed if any publication has managed to suck me in with 100% interest every issue.
Plus, their music coverage was horrible. When will Seattle move on from indie-rock bullshit?
When will Portland move on from indie-rock bullshit?
When will Austin move on from indie-rock bullshit?
Even if you change the word "indie-rock" when you replace the city name, the "bullshit" remains.
But getting back to Seattle.. I mean, "indie-rock bullshit" is rather relative. Every mid to major city has shitty bands in any genre. This month alone, we have a psych/experimental/noise festival one weekend, and then an electronic music festival two weeks after. That's far less "indie-rock bullshit" than other towns, relatively speaking.
(And yeah, KEXP is a factor here too, and other cities(!)... but that's for an entirely different thread. In many ways, I love KEXP. In other ways, I loathe the KEXP hivemind that follows and supports them, and eventually influences their programming decisions... the "necessary evil" so to speak. But please, I don't want this to turn into a KEXP thread.. another thread. My digression, my fault.)
― donut gon' nut (donut), Wednesday, 31 August 2005 18:45 (twenty years ago)