A Punk Magazine-Iggy Pop holiday 'Loser' extravaganza at Metropolis

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Iggy Pop recently announced that he has a new record, Every Loser, (his 19th studio album) coming out next month. 

As part of this release, there's also a new edition of Punk Magazine (No. 22 for those of you keeping track) — 47 years after the very first issue. This edition is available along with the record via Iggy's website. 

Ahead of this release, East Village resident John Holmstrom (above), the co-founder, editor and illustrator of Punk Magazine, provided a sneak preview of the edition on Saturday night at Metropolis Vintage on Broadway and 11th Street.

The party included some Punk fans and contributors, such as illustrator Bruce Carleton and East Village-based photographer Godlis...

In a recent newsletter, Holmstrom provided the back story on how this Every Loser issue of Punk came together. 

It started with a text this past July from the record's producer, Andrew Watt, who is a Punk fan (especially Mutant Monster Beach Party in issue No. 15). 

This guy, Andrew Watt, said he wanted me to devote an entirely new issue of Punk to Iggy's new album. He wanted it to be an authentic Punk magazine, with the whole scraggly, hand-lettered mess of photos and comic strips we usually came up with. 

"What was your last issue number?" he once asked.

"Twenty-one," I replied. (Our CBGB Tribute!) 

"Then this will be Punk magazine Number Twenty-two," Andrew said. (And to be honest? He stuck to this promise all the way through. This is an authentic Punk Magazine. I enjoyed complete creative control throughout.) An entire issue devoted to Iggy Pop… Great idea, right? How could I say "No!"? So I agreed to do it. What could go wrong? 

And... 

Andrew told me how he was sure I would like the new Iggy LP. I have to admit I was skeptical at first. You know: "That’s what they all say." A few weeks later, he sent me the tracks, and I was blown away. "Best Iggy Pop solo LP!" I gladly told him. By now, I would have killed an army of Nazi Disco Zombies to produce this new issue of Punk Magazine that details Iggy's amazing career and highlights his amazing new album! 

To me, Iggy was the first "Punk." He started it all, the most important person in the history of punk rock, best musician, most influential, etc. Once I heard this amazing new Iggy LP I started putting ideas together and researching everything about Iggy I could find on the Internet. I have to admit I hadn't kept up with all of the intimate details of Iggy's career since the 1970s, but he was always there. I always noticed that he was up to this or that. 

There's a lot about Iggy Pop on the internet, but most of it refers to The Stooges and Iggy's drug years before he cleaned up his act in the early 1980s. Well, yeah, these are all interesting stories, but mostly old and retold many times over. 

So rather than tell the same old dismal stories about "The Depths of Drug Addiction" or track down the many photos where he cut himself on stage, I decided to focus on Iggy's amazing creative career and his work: a bunch of great studios LPs, lots of quotable Iggy quotes, a massive number of film roles, (too many music videos to list), etc. So I got started on putting together the magazine.

This issue of Punk can only be purchased through the official Iggy Pop website. 

You can subscribe to Holmstrom's newsletter here. 

Previously on EV Grieve:

• Q-and-A with John Holmstrom, founding editor of Punk Magazine

• A visit to Metropolis Vintage on Broadway

• Go on a tour of Iggy Pop's East Village in 1993