''Bananafish'' was a
magazine
A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...
begun in 1987 in
San Francisco,
California, published under the name ''Seymour Glass'', focusing on various aspects of
underground culture, particularly musical genres such as
noise music
Noise music is a genre of music that is characterised by the expressive use of noise within a musical context. This type of music tends to challenge the distinction that is made in conventional musical practices between musical and non-musical ...
. The magazine ceased publication in 2004.
Style
The style of the magazine was a mix of
interviews, articles,
fiction
Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...
, and music reviews, often written in Glass's
absurdist,
stream-of-consciousness writing style, which at times bordered on
nonsense. The text was complemented by bizarre artwork and photographs, frequently unrelated to the articles they accompanied. One trademark of the magazine was its use of appropriated text and images from uncredited or unknown sources, taken from
found objects picked up by Glass, other contributors, or readers. Another regular feature was the inclusion of a compilation
7" record or
CD of music by artists profiled in the corresponding issue. Bananafish is often credited with giving many Americans their first exposure to
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese noise musicians such as
Merzbow and
Solmania, as well as domestic noisemakers like
Emil Beaulieau. It was not accepting submissions as of 2013, and had no web presence.
Discography
*''
Shut Up, Little Man!''
See also
*"
A Perfect Day for Bananafish
"A Perfect Day for Bananafish" is a short story by J. D. Salinger, originally published in the January 31, 1948, issue of ''The New Yorker''. It was anthologized in 1949's ''55 Short Stories from the New Yorker'', as well as in Salinger's 1953 coll ...
", the short story the magazine was named after
References
1987 establishments in California
2004 disestablishments in California
Music magazines published in the United States
Defunct magazines published in the United States
Magazines established in 1987
Magazines disestablished in 2004
Magazines published in San Francisco
Noise music
Underground culture
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