| Product: |
Mixmag |
| Date: |
23/08/01 (61 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Great to check out the months essential clubbing locations, Good guide to club culture, some great freebies
Disadvantages: Very expensive, many many adverts
Why is everything about clubbing, dance music and dj’s so damn expensive I ask myself as I am handing over £3.85 (yes you heard that right) for the latest edition of MixMag magazine. Ok, I hear you mutter back, “don’t buy it then”, however, for anyone with a keen interest in dance music, the club scene and where the hots nights are to be had, then it is a pretty essential guide.
MixMag has been going for years now, I started reading it back in 1995 and it was pretty well established then, although not half as expensive, it was less than £2 if I remember rightly, yes I am getting old! I guess the all important question is, what do you get for your £3.85 and that is exactly what I am planning on telling you in some attempt at justifying the price tag.
~~~Adverts~~~
Yes, I guess I can’t start any content analysis of mixmag without mentioning the fact that well over half of it is adverts. OK, this may not be selling it too well from the start, but many of these adverts are for special clubnights and so whereas with most ads in Cosmo I flick past onto the articles I actually read these with interest to see if there are any I want to go to. They are still adverts though and the magazine does feature listings of all the club nights in the country which tell you where to be and when, however
~~~Check out some clubbers~~~~
For all clubbers the possibility of making it into Mixmag is a real buzz. Ok, it does nothing for me personally, however, I know plenty of people who are just gagging to get their face and scantily clad body in print. MixMag offers many chances for this. They will often be at the big club nights checking out what is going on and if you happen to catch their eye then you could be in the next edition. Often it is the weirdest dressed, the most outrageous dancers or just the most outrageous in general that will make the grade! I know a fair few people who every month buy the magazine
just to see if they made it in…..oh deary dear! As well as the club shots there is always a section asking clubbers questions and these are usually a bit kinky or suggestive. This month for example they were asking “what would you do if you were invisible now?”. The replies ranged from going to the women’s toilets for a peak to snogging all the fit men in the club as the boyfriend couldn’t see to pooing on the decks….hmmmm, interesting choices there. You get the picture, asking any clubber anything too taxing would just be asking for trouble. So, the lighthearted the better.
~~~~~Essential tunes~~~~~~~~~~
Mixmag is also littered with reviews of music, from singles to albums and this is one of the main reasons I end up buying it. You get info on what music will be big on the dance and club scene over the next month and even year. Usually there is one of the big dj’s giving their essential tracks for the month. Usually they will pick their favourite single, album, compilation and event, as well as making some predictions for the future.
Also, there is a huge section which breaks the latest big tunes into house, hard house, garage, prog/trance, techno, r ‘n’ b/hiphop, drum & bass, compilations and albums. Although at times I struggle to make a distinction between the different genres of dance music, I think this is pretty good. I love the little ratings they give them as well, from essential to shite indictated by the amount of little cartoon style people dancing away.
~~~Profiles & interviews with important people in the club world~~~
Each edition will feature a couple of interviews and profiles of important people in the dance world. These can be anyone from popular dj’s, club owners, celebrity club goers, musicians and singers. This is quite insightful and it’s always good to get into other people’s heads.
~~~Club Reviews~~~~~
A
lot of the magazine will feature reviews of special club nights and events. Here the magazine team went along and took part, met the people, found out their views and came back with their conclusions in both words and pictures. A few times I have been at these events and then the buzz in reading the reviews is greater as it all seems to make sense when they are talking about the atmosphere etc. However, the rest of the time I just look on wishing I had been there and at times it can make me feel quite miserable, especially if I knew I was having a bad month and had spent most of it in my local Ritzy!
~~~Club Country Club Listings~~~~
One of the biggest features of the magazine and why a lot of people do pay out for this magazine is for the Club Country club listings. This is quite a large proportion of the magazine. It starts with Club reviews of the predicted places to be over the next month. Then it starts breaking the world down into places. For example in the summer months there are listings for Ibiza and Ayia Napa. The rest is split into sections for “ north”, “midlands”, “London”, “south and east”, “west and wales”, “Scotland” and “Ireland”. For eacg section there are sub sections for the different days of the week, which makes it all very easy to navigate around. An excellent way to plan your month for sure.
~~~~~Other bits~~~~~~~
*It’s your letters
Yes, as with most magazines readers get there say in the letters page. Here people are wittering on about everything from how good an event was to how much they love the magazine, as well as any random gossip they have about dj’s. Pretty uninspiring really it has to be said.
*The big question
Each edition the magazine debates a big question, whether this be on the topic of drugs, the state of clubs overseas or dance festivals in the uk. Quite inter
esting on the whole.
*Fashion
Even in Mixmag you can’t escape those fashion pages, although warranted most the fashions don’t comprise of too much in the way of material. This shows you the latest looks in the clubbing world anyway and the places to buy them from.
*The latest things to buy
Mixmag features reviews on the products that all clubbers should think about getting, this can range from clothes to mobile phones to jewellery to cool electrical goods.
*Free Gifts
MixMag are getting pretty good at giving away freebies and usually this is free cd’s. I mean for £3.85 at least you are getting something for your money. In the latest edition for example (August 2001) they gave away a 12 track cd mixed by Faithless, featuring some great tracks, including Bent – Swollen, M J Cole – Sincere and The morning after – fallout. Free gifts are always welcome whatever and I have gained some fantastic cd’s with mixmag, I couldn’t have wanted for better if I had paid £13.99 for them in the shops.
*Essential mix tunes
This is by far one of the most useful things a magazine has ever done. As most of you will know every Saturday night on Radio one they feature broadcasts from events and sets of dj’s. Indeed I have recorded these on many an occasion to listen to the next week whilst I am getting ready to go out. Here Mixmag have put all the listings on tape covers which you can just cut out. This is just sooooo useful I can’t explain and it gets all thumbs up from me.
~~~~Concluding thoughts~~~~~~
I started this opinion by expressing my horror at the price tag attached to it. However, whilst I would still rather not pay that much I do because I find it useful for organising my weekends. This is especially true if you don't just stay in the local area to go out and if you want to see what is happening elsewhere. If nothing else
Mixmag gives great insight into club culture and for anyone into the music I advise it strongly. I guess as with all other special interest magazines they charge the prce because they know people will pay it. This magazine may not be for all, however, for those with a real interest in clubs and the dance scene it is pretty essential.
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