'Highly Contagious' / Interview with Adam Markmann
Highly Contagious is the newest zine to hit Melbourne’s publication circuit, born from its creators’ desire to curate a slick zine that focusses on artists whose work is equal parts interesting and irresistible.
Although the focus of the zine could be broadly described as ‘music-related’, its content extends beyond local soundscapes and is concerned with putting a spotlight on creators of all kinds. One of the zine’s creators, Adam Markmann, joined us to discuss the slick print’s inception and what you can expect to find between its covers.
First of all, I have to ask, was this name was inspired by the COVID-19 pandemic?
Not at all! The name came before the pandemic and is meant to reflect the idea that good music and art is highly contagious. When you find a good record, you’ll tell your friends about it and it will spread through your social circle and beyond very quickly.
Cool. So is the idea that your zine will reflect what is currently popular in your social circle so that it will spread to a broader audience, or do you want it to act as a kind of ground zero through which people from different places can spread what they’ve been enjoying?
I suppose the first edition is a reflection of the music that our social circle is enjoying. However, we really want people from beyond our immediate circle to contribute to later editions. So, to answer your question, probably a bit of both, but we would love for the publication to be a platform for anyone from anywhere to talk about the music that they find contagious.
Who’s currently involved with the publication and how did you all get together?
There’s myself, Fergus Sinclair and Rowena Lloyd. We were all very interested in doing some kind of music writing, and I just realised there is such a plethora of knowledge between us, so I just thought, ‘why not start our own thing?’
Fergus is such a talented music writer and has been doing the music reviews for the first couple of editions. We actually live together, so that’s made things easy! Rowena is a very close friend of mine and an exceptional artist. We wanted to champion her aesthetic, which has made the ‘look’ of the zine slicker than say, a DIY punk zine. The DIY zines are great, but we did want to produce something that looked like a more curated art piece. Plus, we are interested in all kinds of music and have quite an eclectic taste, so we didn’t want an aesthetic that would confine us to any one area.
Image: Rowena Lloyd @rowena.j.lloyd
In terms of the music that you feature, what kind of artists are you planning to spotlight? Perhaps you could give some examples of who features in the first issue?
I suppose it’s bias in that it’s based on our tastes, but everyone who is involved has very eclectic taste. The publication doesn’t really have a huge focus on Melbourne music. There are so many amazing publications dedicated to the local scene, which is so great, but we did want to keep an eye on what’s happening internationally. We basically want to share artists that aren’t super well-known, whether they be Melbourne-based or not.
For the first edition, the focus is more on ‘outsider’ kind of music. It includes musicians who have just released stuff, as well as older musicians who we think deserve to be talked to and whose work we find really interesting. For instance, we’ve interviewed The Space Lady, The Cool Greenhouse, and Tonetta 777. The second edition has more psychedelic music, but still focuses on outsiders, I won’t spoil the surprise of the second edition just yet though.
Did any interesting stories come out of those interviews?
Haha yes indeed! I talked to Tony (Tonetta 777) for about 2 hours. He was so open about all of his life and his formative years growing up and early musical life. There’s a very interesting story about the spirit of John Lennon entering his body and giving him artistic abilities that he hadn’t previously had. He also told me about how he makes jewellery out of his own cum and sells his toe-nails and teeth online, all very fascinating.
Will the aesthetic of the publication change in response to the kind of themes or interviews that are particular to an edition, or are you planning to keep it quite steady across each one?
The aesthetic choices are largely up to Rowena. I imagine that we will probably end up keeping the aesthetic quite steady across the editions and not exactly design it in accordance with the featured artists or interviews.
Pictured: Cindy Lee. Image credit: Natalie Portnoy.
How are you planning to release the first edition, given the current restrictions?
We really want to print it, as we have had a few graphic designers, Gabby Brown and Harry Greenhelp us out with the layout specifically for print. However, given the restrictions, printing has become a bit difficult in Melbourne, so we will have to print it in Sydney and get it shipped over. The website will be online soon though which will include our Highly Contagious Radio. We’re keen to get the website up and content out there, and I’m sure it will translate well online.
Are you going to have guest mixes going up online?
Yep. We’ve got five or so mixes that feature different genres ready to go already from our extended group of friends, but I’m keen to open submissions for guest mixes from people beyond that group too.
Obviously we can’t go out right now, but do you have any plans in the works so that people can celebrate the release?
Ideally, we would have had some kind of release party and gig from our home here in Brunswick, which is kind of the ‘headquarters’ for the publication. When restrictions ease we will ideally start filming live gigs here to celebrate releases and share them on our website. For now though it is a bit difficult to celebrate a release for something, in the future though!
Great! Is there anything else people should know if they want to get involved?
Our website will be up in a few weeks, and that will be the best way to access content. For now, people can follow us on Instagram (@highlycontagiouszine) for updates and that sort of thing. If anyone if interested in being involved, or has something they would like to be reviewed or anyone that would like to be interviewed, then they can also contact us at highlycontagiouszine@gmail.com.
Thanks!
Keep in the loop with Highly Contagious by following their Instagram.
Interview by Kelly Herbison
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