By Marc Fischer / Public Collectors

A zine focused on paper advertising ephemera from underground zines and bands of the 1980s and early 1990s. 

From the essay booklet:

Little slips of printed paper, crammed with details about new demo tapes, records, zines, distribution and mail order services, or other offerings, found their way into countless letters throughout the 1980s and 1990s. It was common for an envelope to explode with these bits of this and that—all modest attempts to spread the word, drum up some orders or correspondence, and reach new audiences. Zines used them to solicit demo tapes for review and new writing to publish. Bands used them to sell their tapes and records. Given the vast number of people that were engaged in pen pal relationships and tape and zine trading, many thousands of these slips of paper moved back and forth all over the world.

In addition to a short booklet that includes quotes from some zine-makers, band members and record labels about this practice, the main feature here is the recreation of 66 facsimiles of these little ads... Essentially, this edition is a portable exhibit of designed and printed paper bits that many people made and used, but far fewer people thought to save.

Hardcore Architecture: Thrash Advertising is produced under the umbrella of Hardcore Architecture, a project by Chicago's Public Collectors. Hardcore Architecture explores the relationship between the architecture of living spaces and the history of underground hardcore bands in the 1980s. This publication focuses on the domestic homespun production aspects of underground music and publishing culture, and is one of a series of printed works addressing the broader themes of Hardcore Architecture through writings, interviews, photos, and printed ephemera. 

Published by Public Collectors, 2018
Printed in a limited edition of 275 copies

8-page booklet with printed envelope + 66 loose printed inserts and 2 stickers, 5-color RISO with offset and digital printing, 10.5 × 7.5 inches