Music: The Fashion - Solo Impala
Xuehai (“SeaofLearning”) is Tianjin’s best independent bookstore, hands down. I make bold claims because unfortunately, Tianjin is A. known for being a conservative city. There simply aren’t a lot of venues for independent anything. B. the staff at New Younger, a short-lived but spirited Tianjin independent culture magazine came up with a similar conclusion, and I trust they did their scouting homework and C. Its prime location of being near three of the biggest universities in the city.
In reality, Xuehai’s store front is literally a hole in the wall, a first-floor apartment knocked up. The books and magazines are basically all shelved in the “living room” space, and one enters the store either from the makeshift-step-stool or through its actual apartment building. The humble store front doesn’t draw much attention. Most of the magazines advertised on the window front are mainstream ones, not unlike the facade of the dozen other magazine vendors in the city featuring big-eyed Chinese Vogue beauties.
Xuehai lives pretty much on word of mouth. Good thing in China, there’s always many mouths. I was led to Xuehai by a classmate a year ago while studying at Nankai. Having always been keen on magazines and particularly interested in China’s publishing/magazine industry, I’d turned the bookstores upside down, read bestsellers until I was screaming and ready to give up when Xuanzi led me after class one day to this hovel. We’d parked our bikes right in the apartment residential area and I followed her into the building thinking we were going into somebody’s home. By then I’d gone to a couple clandestine DVD stores to know the game, so I wasn’t at all nonplussed when the apartment revealed a room of books, good books.
One of my wildest dreams is to go to a mall where everything fits me. Styles and colors may vary, but saves me from trying things on. Well, walking into Xuehai is like walking into such a dream. A bookstore tailored to the literary needs of the young hipster artist types, styles and colors may vary, but mostly everything fits. I loved it. I spent loads of money there without feeling guilty because it felt like I was helping to keep the hovel alive. It was also at Xuehai that Xuanzi introduced me to some of the best magazines in China. After another year in the States, I’d picked up a stack last to catch up. The owner of Xuehai keeps his favorite ones (which also happens to be my favorite ones which is why we all worship the adorable owner guy) on a shelf right next to him, a bunch of hard to find / imported mags. Here’s some of last week’s loot, pictured from left to right.
1. FHM China – I love how I start all this talk of alternative publications with an established, kind of trashy foreign brand, and I’m gonna be honest, I like this mag for two reasons: their cover and their fashion story. In other words, I love their women. FHM is revolutionary for me on an aesthetic level. The pale, petite, fragile beauty embraced by standard Chinese opinion and ad-copy is overwhelmed here, by long-legged, occasionally tan (rough n’ dirty), sexy tall beauties that index straight into my wildest, maybe slightly narcissistic fantasies. Also, their fashion stories are actual fashion stories (like, with the occasional caption and plot!), are plainly ridiculous, and absolutely delicious. ;)
2. Milk – Milk is a popular trends/culture magazine based in Hong Kong. A lot of mainland kids abide by this mag so they’ve got a mainland edition now. I only got this because of the sweet holographic Batman cover. WOO. Contents are pretty thin to be honest. Maybe America’s de-trended me.
3. 360 design – Last year I sworn by IDN. 360 is also a design mag based in HK. They’ve got some sweet Olympic-themed designs in this issue.
4. City Pictorial – The most badass arts/culture magazine for the 18-35 age demographic. I literally bought every back issue they had. Emptied it out. Every time they come out with a new issue I think: they’ve done it this time, this is it, the last time they’re gonna come up with such a creative topic, but then there’s always the next issue. I especially dig their big sweeping essays, the latest of which features a look at the growing number of NGOs in China. City Pictorial should also be applauded because they’re one of the few magazines that play up content and editorial more than design. There’s been a slew of graphic/design/trend magazines out of late. So it’s good to bask in some good, simple writing.
5. New Weekly – is just sweet. Again, good writing, good topics. Somewhere between Time and The Atlantic I’d say.
Additional unmentioned magazines: I didn’t grab any of the independent music magazines this time around because I’m kind of jaded by music in general. Still keeping tabs on a couple online magazines. Notably, Coldtea.cn, Herecomes18, and Rice.