Against the Grain

Volume 27 | Issue 5 Article 47

2015 Decoder Ring--Unexpectedly Musical Updates Jerry Spiller Art Institute of Charleston, [email protected]

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Recommended Citation Spiller, Jerry (2015) "Decoder Ring--Unexpectedly Musical Updates," Against the Grain: Vol. 27: Iss. 5, Article 47. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7771/2380-176X.7213

This document has been made available through Purdue e-Pubs, a service of the Purdue University Libraries. Please contact [email protected] for additional information. Decoder Ring — Unexpectedly Musical Updates Column Editor: Jerry Spiller (Art Institute of Charleston)

reetings and salutations, True Believers. Cartozia Tales Is Still for hardcover run, temporary tattoos included For November, we’re checking back Readers of All Ages with each printed book, and a bonus pin-up in with updates on some topics from art section featuring contributions from Towle, G All-ages fantasy comic Cartozia Tales re- previous installments of Decoder Ring to see Chris Schweizer, Isabella Rotman, and many cently made a big push to secure more funding what’s new. more. She even reached the goal of getting a to keep the project alive. After a successful custom sea shanty theme song for the book Kickstarter campaign raised $44,151 to Returns to Tackleford from Portland nerd rockers PDX Broadsides.12 In April, Decoder Ring profiled British fund its first 10 issues in August of 2013, the creator John Allison and his multiple series set anthology series has continued with output The Comics Grid Special Issue in the fictional Northern town of Tackleford: from a variety of rising creators led by Isaac on Jazz and Comics Cates.7 Issue 7 is just out, with a beautiful cov- , Scary Go Round, and . Open Access journal of comics schol- The writer and illustrator handed off the art er and nine new stories, including those from guest contributors Meredith Gran, creator of arship The Comics Grid continues to offer duties to illustrator Lissa Treiman and colorist academic insight into the world of comics Whitney Cogar for another Tackleford spin- Octopus Pie, and Ben Towle, creator of the Eisner-nominated Oyster War.8 and sequential art. In addition to regular off, Giant Days, which unlike its predecessors posts on topics the peer-reviewed journal 1 was not born digital on scarygoround.com, but With the bills for Issue 8 coming due, how- encourages submissions on for each year, 2 in print from BOOM! Studios. Giant Days ever, Cartozia is finding that the Kickstarter they have announced an upcoming special details the relationships of Scary Go Round was not enough to fund the ambitious collab- issue on Jazz and comics. The call notes: secondary characters Esther, Susan, and Daisy orative venture. Readers will remember that “Over the last forty years, the fields as they go off to university. Other Tackleford Cartozia Tales is written and illustrated by ten of jazz studies and comic studies off-shoots, the Charlotte Grotte-centered Mur- “core collaborators” that work in seven teams, have gained currency within the der She Writes and Shelley Winters mystery trading characters and locations on the Carto- academy and have been THAT, are available in print from TopatoCo.3 zia map for each issue, plus two guest enriched by interdisci- creators from outside the group plinary approaches. The per issue. Paying those artists and New Jazz Studies has writers plus the costs of printing, invigorated the discipline Web hosting, and distribution is beyond its musicologi- no doubt a big challenge. Anyone cal roots, while Comics who’s tried to forecast a series of Studies has thrived in large print runs over time can at- the digital age. This test to the cost of printing, which I collection aims to find suspect is the biggest variable here. meeting points between Cates took to social media to get to get the disciplines. We are encouraged the word out and entice new readers with a big by the fact that distinguished jazz sale. Digital versions, in PDF, of the first issue musicians such as Wayne Shorter, were offered free and the next two for a com- Sonny Rollins, Herbie Hancock, bined $2.50. They also offered discounts on and Vince Guaraldi have each stated both digital and print subscriptions. “Imagine the influence of comic books on their this as a sort of kickstarter, if that helps get you musical development, while artists going: we have until the end of the summer and writers have frequently turned to to raise six or seven thousand dollars. That’s jazz for inspiration (e.g., strips about about a hundred new subscribers.”9 music appreciation by Harvey Pekar New subscribers are what the crew will or Blutch). Jazz musicians have been need to keep this gem of a project going. I was the subjects of comic strips (e.g., a backer of the original project, and I bought a Charlie Parker: Handyman, the BD new digital subscription immediately. Cates Jazz series) and jazz musicians have offers that this is a perfect world for young created comic strips (Wally Fawkes/ readers who thrive when they can connect to Trog).”13 fantasy characters and environments. Librarian Among the topics suggested under this @MalithInStacks responded to Cates’ news on wide umbrella is “Comics and jazz collections Figure 1: Giant Days #5 cover by Lissa Twitter with a call to action and link to the sales in libraries and archives, and what comics Treiman, Image: Allison/Treiman4 announcement on Cartozia’s Tumblr: “Oh, and jazz librarianship and curatorial practice #SaturdayLibrarian peeps, I know you like to might learn from each other.”14 Entries should read. Why not try this super-fun comic I’m a Allison continues to be so prolific that 10 include specific in-text references to comics his output is hard to follow at times. Despite librarian in (&pls RT?).” panels or pages. The deadline for submissions wrapping Bad Machinery earlier this year, he Core Cartozian Lucy Bellwood also recent- to the jazz issue is January 15, 2016, with ac- ended up giving in to fans’ desires with another ly ran a successful Kickstarter campaign of ceptance notices by mid-April and an aim for new story starring the younger generation of her own to launch the indie Baggiewrinkles: final publication in June. What an opportunity Tackleford detectives. “The Case of the Miss- A Lubber’s Guide to Life at Sea. Bellwood for interdisciplinary scholarship that ties back ing Piece” began at scarygoround.com in July.5 describes the series as “A fetching, 100-page, to the library! I’d get on that. Giant Days is also being collected into trades full-color collection of the educational-auto- How unexpectedly musical these updates by BOOM! Studios as the singles accrue, with biographical-nautical comic you never knew have been! a collection of issues 1-4 due in late November you needed.”11 Bellwood’s project surpassed and 5-8 in April 2016. A third volume should its funding goal by a wide enough margin to Until next time, break a leg. 6 appear later next year. add several stretch goals, including a small endnotes on page 89

88 Against the Grain / November 2015