Fanzines and Webpages: Yet Another Football Analogy

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People often say to me "MJ Hibbett, what is it like to co-run an Independent Label?" and i say "Enough chit- chat Helena Bonham-Carter, let's shag." But if people in the real world asked this question (instead of FLEEING at its very mention for fear of being forced into a conversation about DISTRIBUTION) i would say "It is very much like being a 3rd Division Football Team."

And I would be correct - we're stocked with youngsters and old stars on the way out; we lose some of our best players to the majors; you hardly ever hear about us in the papers (especially those who very loudly claim to be interested only in The Beautiful Game/Great New Music); occasionally one of us has a Cup Run/One Hit; our away kits are horrible; and, of course, the people who pay us any attention are mostly men, usually insanely dedicated to the very idea of our existence, and often just plain insane.

Most importantly, we do it because we care. We can't afford to be drug-addled tossers, so we make do with beer and a belief in what we do. We can't make big signings, so we look locally and help young players make their start. We understand when people leave us for bigger things, but we all secretly want to meet them again on the way up. We could find plenty of other ways to spend our money, but then what would we do with all the free time? And we love it more than we'd really want to admit.

(originally appeared in the programme for Scalarama)

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