Becky Laverty

I want to show you something! My dear friend @beckylaverty made this amazing zine. With art by @emmaruthrundle an interview with @yelloweyesband and contributions by @hell_simulation and Melissa Guion among others. It’s great to see this come to fruition. Go follow Becky and subscribe to her weekly Slowpoke newsletter! The zine is available in our store (also online!).

This is what my April looked like. Although Roadburn was a big chunk of it, some other things did also happen. I watched Sumac, and The Body, and Full of Hell, and Kowloon Walled City. Those things were great. I ventured out in the sunshine - including an impromptu trip to Mallorca, ON A WHIM. I swam in the sea. My hair is long and grey now. I am in the airport, going home now. See you soon.

For five days of the year I get to spend all of my waking hours with some of the best people on the planet. For those five days I feel like the luckiest person alive. Especially when I get sick and my friends bring me witchy potions to cure me, that bit made me feel especially lucky this year. More than ever I believe that the alchemical power of Roadburn - or any place where art happens, really - exists in the exchange of energy between the people participating. So, every person, on stage, off stage, behind the stage plays a vital role in making that magical feeling come to life. That, and knowing the best people to share a packet of crisps with at midnight. 🌝

Who would you like to see headline @roadburnfest next year? We asked @portrayalofguilt @your.crippling.alcoholism @yelloweyes @cultofluna @haveanicelifeband @habakband @beckylaverty @agriculture_music @truckviolence @bossedenage

The last couple of years I have made two post-roadburn posts; one focusing on the performances and one focusing on the people. More than ever these two things were entwined this year, but nonetheless here’s a few thoughts about the shows I saw this past weekend. I felt very aware this year just how much we ask of bands when they come to Roadburn to perform special sets. Mostly this awareness comes from TJ telling me how much hard work it was (!) but I promise we don’t take it for granted. It felt very precious to witness artists honour their past incarnations, and in some cases close a chapter of their story with their Roadburn performances. It must be so strange to spend months toiling away for it to all be over in a flash. I can only speak for myself I suppose, but I am so grateful for all those practices and long days of rehearsal because I have some very magical memories to cherish as a result. I wish I could show you the little tiny movies I can replay in my mind that capture slivers of joy - writing it down doesn’t do it justice. Getting a little wave from Nicky during Nothing’s set, or making eye contact with Mike during Inter Arma’s skate park show and him doing a little “heh heh” chuckle are two such memories. It’s entirely possible to get stuck in a loop of “thank you for having us” <-> “thank you for coming” but truly my gratitude for the artists that we had at Roadburn this year is boundless. 🤍🤍🤍🤍 Who knows why I persist with taking photos on my phone when we have such insane talents like Peter Troest and Paul Verhagen whose images I have borrowed here to illustrate my points. Krallice, DJ Haram, Teardrinker, Nothing by @ @paul_verhagen_photo Everything else by @petertroest

Becky Laverty is a key member of the Roadburn booking team and EG asked her how it’s like working for one for the most meaningful festivals dedicated to heavy music.

We have Becky Laverty’s new zine at the shoppe. Contributions from lots of homies. We went to Glossop, so you don’t have to—but also you have to. Comment with your favorite Glossop emoji or tag a friend who lives in Glossop like @beckylaverty

This is what I did in March… it’s April now though and the sun has come out!

Look mum, I made a zine! This is actually relevant to my mum because she ordered a copy 😅 Anyway, THEY ARRIVED! I have started to pack them all up and in the next couple of days I shall ship them all out! Direct orders will be on their way to you imminently. If you ordered from The Flenser, allow a bit more time as I will ship to them and then they’ll send on to you. Good news for European Slowpoke enthusiasts as you can now preorder a copy from Pelagic Records, who will also have it for sale at their stall at Roadburn! I am keen to get these out so that there is less cardboard in my office and I can once again sit on my sofa. If you wanna make an old lady happy then buy yourself or a loved one a copy. (I will ~probably~ stop talking about this soon. Thank you for your patience).

Oops! I have thus far neglected to share the full Roadburn line up on the ol’ grid. But here it is! In all its shimmering, beautiful glory. Are you coming? Who are you looking forward to seeing? Would you like to get an ice cream with me as we stroll to watch Unsane play Occupational Hazard? If you’re not coming, who are you sore to be missing? I am curious. Ok see you in a few weeks.

I did for real spend my Sunday morning trying to work out how to make a reel, but I can’t imagine that I’ll spend much more time on that going forward. We all spend too much time on our phones as it is. Until Slowpoke exists out in the world - on merch tables, in stores, in people’s hands - the only way to really show it off is here on the internet. There’s a certain irony to that of course because I think Slowpoke is better digested away from digital noise. Anyway, here’s a peep at a few of the things in the zine - there’s loads more inside. All this can be yours. Thank you to everyone who preordered already! I am working on options for Europe still and I am gonna figure out having some at roadburn. Look ma, I made a reel.

A physical iteration of Slowpoke is here - in zine form! This has been months (ok, years) in the making; from a tiny idea that I stewed on for a very long time, through an intense burst of work, into a page collection of words and pictures that you’ll soon be able to hold in your hands. This issue features contributions from/ about: Becky Laverty (that’s me!) Blake Armstrong (cover artist) Cody Davis Dylan Desmond Emily Bellino Emily McWilliams Emma Ruth Rundle Ethan Lee McCarthy Melissa Guion Mitch Wells Nina Saeidi Tori Beram Yellow Eyes It’s available to pre-order now and will be shipped from the UK (l!nk in the usual place). However, if you’re in the US the good lads at The Flenser will send you a copy from Flenz HQ. If you’re in mainland Europe, sweet Nico at Bones Brigade will soon have the option for you to buy from him at a cheaper postage rate than if you buy from me. If you’d like to stock it in your shop, merch table, webstore or market stall - wherever you are in the world - then drop me a line, I’d love that! (And if I will see you in the coming weeks and want to skip postage altogether, message me). I’ll tell you a bit more about it in the coming days but it’s 44 pages of love and appreciation for these great creative forces that I am lucky enough to have crossed paths with over the years. I am very grateful to them for their contributions, time, energy and encouragement. Make cool things with your friends whenever you get the chance. Thanks for reading!