Joel & Ethan Coen have made a career out of scaring us and making us laugh simultaneously.
Another music and film magazine?
Go to any bookstore or newsstand, and you’ll see dozens on the shelves every month, waiting to be purchased by music fans and pop culture sponges alike. Some sell, others don’t, so what’s the point of introducing yet another one into the mix? Surely there are more than enough reviews and articles to go around without us budding into the business.
Perhaps not. I have had many discussions with music and films fans at university campuses in particular, and they agree that there are few magazines aimed towards a reader that prides his or herself on discovering stimulating music and film, new and old, regardless of genre.
Being There is a music and film culture magazine for the literary minded. What does this mean? It means we like music and film that makes us think; culture that allows us to read something into it -- because lets face it, a lot of what is published about film and music is very commercially driven.
So why Being There? It is a name which has symbolized music and film culture since the early 1970s, when Jerzy Kosinski published his novel, Being There. The novel, simple yet intelligently satisfying, was later made into a film in 1979, which starred Peter Sellers and Shirley MacLaine, retaining much of the brilliant simplicity of the book. Seventeen years later came a Wilco album, having nothing to do with the book or film, also entitled Being There. It came and went in 1996 with little attention from the mainstream music audience despite the quality of the songwriting (“When you perform/It's so intense/When the critics pan/I write in your defense”) and brilliance of the music. Now, in 2004, we introduce Being There as a magazine, to continue in this trend of music and film for a more literate audience. Being There also implies a sense of experience. We are reporting things first-hand, having seen many great films and concerts, and having absorbed many recordings. We believe our writers to be experts in the field of film and music, and hope that our passion and knowledge will shine through in our features, columns, editorials, and reviews.
Thank you for being among the first people to discover Being There, and we truly hope you enjoy your stay. I look forward to any questions or comments that you may have. Some of these will be posted in our September issue, under ‘Letters’
Warm Regards,
Adam D. Miller
Editor-In-Chief
| The Indie's Turn This month we take a look at Nonesuch Records, home of Buena Vista Social Club, Wilco, and others. |
| Battle of the "Experts" Our contributors go head-to-head, tackling the long running debate of whether the better Beatles album is Rubber Soul or Revolver. |
| Globetrotting We take a look at New Orleans and it's contributions to the music world. |
| How to Festival How to Experience the Toronto International Film Festival (with & without $) |
| Been There This month's concert moment takes us back to 2002 with Elvis Costello's When I Was Cruel tour. |
| Watching the Music Tori Amos and Adrien Brody star in Tori Amos's video for "A Sorta Fairytale" |
| 8 x 5 Our contibutors pick five things they're digging this month. |
In Need Of Radio's AttentionJoel Plaskett talks to Being There about Thrush Hermit, the Emergency, his upcoming album and more.
The Two Headed DirectorJoel & Ethan Coen have made a career out of scaring us and making us laugh simultaneously.
