Before I tell you about the ultimate underground horror fanzine reference book, Xerox Ferox, here's a back story on why this book should be considered important to ardent horror fans like myself who love to read about the films they adore watching. We all have our stories, so here's mine...
For a little girl growing up in Western Kentucky it's no surprise that I thought Fangoria was the only horror magazine in existence. Hell, before I even knew of Fangoria I dreamed of a magazine dedicated to horror movies, so imagine me choking back the tears of excitement when I begged for my first issue at age 11 circa 1994 in a little place in the Madisonville mall called Readmore Bookstore. Oh memories of buying R.L. Stine books and Fangoria magazines.
Jump forward to 1998 when I was 14 and 15 and I found my first issue of Deep Red issue 7 buried in a box full of Fangoria issues that I already had. Location? Fantasy Comic Shop in Madisonville, Kentucky and this was the ideal hangout for anyone who was into comics and horror movies. The place was small, jam packed with all kinds of memorabilia, and even though it was somewhat dingy, it was home. So back to this said box in which I was pilfering through. Something told me to keep digging in that box and I'm glad I did. Everything grabbed me about Deep Red - the image of the needles under the eyes from Dario Argento's Opera on the cover, the title Deep Red, the familiar name Chas. Balun, and the meaty size of the packaged deal itself was enough for me to space out for a minute with adrenaline pumping and shaky hands trying to flip through the pages but was clearly too excited. All I was thinking was, "Oh, this is too good to be true." True it was, is, and always will be. I also scored some older issues of Fangoria that day from the '80s, and an issue of Famous Monsters of Filmland, so I can't ignore that awesome factor of my visit but my discovery of Deep Red came that day and my mind was both blown and expanded; this mag was my entree into the underground horror magazine world and I was seeing for the first time horror movies presented in a way that wasn't commerce. No slick pages, no Hollywood swells, just stripped down and dirty horror and exploitation movies talked about by people who understood them for what they were and presented in a true light. Needless to say after that comic shop visit, I didn't leave my room for days!
My very copy
From then on, my mission was to find more issues of Deep Red and find out more about Chas. Balun because up until then I only knew him from a couple of interviews I had seen with him and read his name in issues of Fangoria. By the mid/late '90s, I was kind of done with Fangoria because I was essentially done with the majority of movies coming out at that time, especially the late '90s into the '00s. Darkness Falls? Scream? Valentine? What the FUCK?! The more horror became slick and pretty, the more I wanted sleazy and ugly. I wanted filthy fright flicks with an unapologetic approach. I wanted Nekromantik NOT I Know What You Did Last Summer. Those two films shouldn't even be in the same sentence really.
So in order to read about the movies I was looking for, I would have needed the underground fanzines that I now know about. Sadly, I had no way of discovering these 'zines at the time but over the past decade, I have been able to hunt some down, discover a few along the way, and later create one of my own. I had countless amounts of books and documentaries, but magazines were a way of seeing more images and getting a concise synopsis on the movie. I love my books, but I also love my magazines and for the longest time I had to settle for magazines where I was generally only enjoying 20-30% of the content. By this time Rue Morgue was out and I always looked forward to the Classic Cuts in the back of the issue, but if it sucked then that just meant that I had to wait two months to get the next issue in hopes that it didn't fail me again. Again, I'm not knocking these magazines because there was always something for me to read in them, but as I previously stated, I wanted Cannibal Holocaust NOT Idle Hands.
Little did I know though, one day there would exist a collective bible, if you will, of fanzines and magazines that have existed and still exist in the underground. Of course, that said bible would be Xerox Ferox presented to us by John Szpunar.
As the name states, Xerox Ferox takes us through the history of the glory days of cut and paste 'zines. When fans had the attitude of "I want something done so I'll just do it my Goddamned self!". I'm thankful they did because from one 'zine to the next there has been an evolution of how horror opinions, facts, and images have been presented. So many 'zines covering so many different sub-genres, the possibilities are endless really. At a meaty 800 pages, you can imagine Xerox Ferox is bursting at the seams with the goods featuring interviews, scans of 'zines, tributes, retrospects, and so many recognizable faces and names to anyone who has devoured the underground horror scene above and beyond. John has compiled and collected so many important parts of the history of horror in this book; thus why some may refer to it as the bible, or at least the ultimate resource book for horror 'zines.
The book is easy to quick reference something because each chapter is dedicated to a specific person or 'zine. Chapter One kicks off with Steve Bissette who has an extensive horror resume and if you don't know who he is then there would be no need for you to go further into the book. But if you do know who he is then you are in luck because you purchased the book for a good reason; that reason being you recognize people such as Steve Bissette.
Moving on. More names further into the book that you should recognize include Donald Farmer, Chas. Balun, Tom Skulan, Greg Goodsell, Jim VanBebber, Roy Frumkes, and so many more. Magazines and fanzines (either featured or just merely mentioned) that are just as recognizable include Psychotronic, Gore Gazette, Fangoria, Famous Monsters of Filmland, Deep Red, Taboo, Castle of Frankenstein, Gore Creature, Liquid Cheese, Ultra Violent, Sleazoid Express, Slimetime, Video Watchdog, Stink, Slaughterhouse, Subhuman, Shock Xpress, Exploitation Journal, Shock Cinema, Shocking Images, Temple of Schlock, Blackest Heart, and MORE!
This colossal collection of carnage and sleaze from the underground provides endless reading sessions and endless sources of inspiration. The interviews are informative and will make you want to seek out every copy of every issue of every 'zine that ever existed! It seems impossible to properly review this book and cover all grounds because there is so much here in the pages; it would be ridiculous to try. I assure you it's a necessity and an important book to own for those of you horror bibliophiles who love books and magazines. But don't take my word for it...
BUY THE DAMN THING! I did...
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