Basic Paper Airplane #12: The Interview Issue
Joshua James Amberson
14cm x 21.5 cm, 36 b&w pages , risographed cover.
$3 USD (plus $1 p&p w/in US, $3 international)
The theme for issue #12 of Basic Paper Airplane is simple - a collection of interviews - but what makes it unique is that they are all interviews Joshua made with a diverse array of artists, musicians, and writers, while working on a series of articles for The Portland Mercury. The original articles only included a few quotes, so this zine sets our to rectify that by collecting together longer interview transcripts for the first time.
Each section opens with a paragraph or two that sets up the interview, roots the process of interviewing in real time, real place, and a real mindset. What emerges is Joshua's sensitivity for the creations of the interviewee, and a genuine love of being excited by things other people find joy or inspiration in. As testament to Joshua's approach the interviews are full of pertinent observation and considered thought about the practice of creation - whether that discipline is music, writing, or film.
The zine follows a simple layout, with a photo of each interviewee heading every section. The cover though, designed and printed by C Stone and Anthony Michael, is a thing of risographed beauty.
The best way to look at Basic Paper Airplane #12 is as a primer on the work of creators you haven't yet discovered. It will have you scrabbling to track down albums & books, that you know from the interviews alone, will be rewarding. Its no easy feat in a cultural climate that constantly sells to us through every channel, to the point it's easiest to disengage, to succeed in creating active engagement. Basic Paper Airplane #12 does exactly this - through honesty, personality, and passion. I can't recommend it enough.
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