In my quest to find a men’s style magazine that caters to me (and, I think, some readers of this blog) I occasionally try one of the high-end fashion magazines to see what it has to offer. This month, I tried Another Man
It certainly differentiates itself from the lad’s mags of this area, such as GQ, Arena, Esquire, by its intellectual aspirations. The main body of photo shoots is interspersed with extracts from several historical manifestos – the surrealists (“psychic automation in its pure state”) to Dadaists (“say yes, say no”), futurists (“rebel against the tyranny of words”) to Dogme 95 (“I am no longer an artist”). But there seems to be no attempt to link these manifestos, interesting as they are, to the shoots. Each is not a theme; it is instead, one is tempted to say, a pretension.
The commissioned writing has a similar bent. While some of this is superb – in particular Jon Savage on the Zazous and Philip K Dick on how to write science fiction – it is a handful of pages and the journalist copy is rather unoriginal and unconnected. You can’t help feeling the Nick Cave interview would be better written by someone at Mojo. And the short description of a band averaging 16 years in age that disparages anyone that can play an instrument is bizarre.
But Another Man inevitably falls down more on its fashion coverage more than anything else. While it doesn’t necessarily describe itself as a fashion magazine, it does dedicate well over half the magazine the fashion shoots and advertising – so it is here you would expect it to deliver.
Instead, there are spreads showing men with plastic rings, a glass sculpture and a Christmas decoration on their heads. Most have one piece of actual clothing on, though this may be a wool blazer worn as a skirt (not sure this is what Kenzo intended) or an oversized jumper (a rather kind description for a potato sack that goes over the head and reaches to the knees, with an alarming cartoon face painted on the front and a red grille to look through).
This is not to say that there is nothing worthwhile in here. One shoot takes students and artists in King’s Cross and Shoreditch and has some wonderful combinations of bohemian yet understated clothes. But it is 16 pages out of 320. And where’s the fashion/style editorial? A one page interview with Paul Smith. Two sparse spreads about how artists want to be in fashion and vice versa.
I presume there are many people out there for whom Another Man is the perfect magazine. But it is certainly not serious about fashion, let alone style.
1.
At a glance, Another Man did seem prententious and vacuous and I’m glad your review confirmed my suspicions. Fantastic man (which is now being sold in Borders) is probably the magazine for you. The oft-copied design is impeccable and the writing is lengthy, entertaining and informative. It’s like the magazine GQ wishes it was.
Comment by Jason — April 9, 2008 #
2.
Simon,
I agree with your review, and Jason’s related comments, on the magazines mentioned. I will add that GQ, at one time, was outstanding. I still take it in subscription, but frankly today, it just is not the same magazine it was at its height of American influence.
That stated, my all time favorite, which was very short lived, was “M” magazine. Does anyone remember that one from the early 1980s? I saved issue number one, and I still have it. It was an exceptional publication, in all ways.
Regards,
Nicola
Comment by Nicola Linza — April 10, 2008 #
3.
Jason, thank you very much for that. Do you happen to know if Fantastic Man is sold in Borders in the UK? I’ll try and find it if it is. And I’ll probably be back in the US in a couple of months, so I could always have a look then.
Thanks for the help!
Simon
Comment by Simon Crompton — April 10, 2008 #
4.
No worries. The Borders next to Oxford Circus stock Fantastic Man, it’s where I’ve got mine from. It’s £6.50, which is a little steep, but it’s well worth it.
Comment by Jason — April 10, 2008 #
5.
I too was a huge fan of M Magazine. I still have several of it’s articles in my files; haven’t found another publication that really matches it.
Fantastic Man is a real reader’s magazine. It’s probably one of the most intellectual menswear publications out there.
Comment by Chris — April 10, 2008 #
6.
Yes, Chris, M was incredible. It is nice to see that someone remembers it. It was short lived yet wasn’t that long ago.
As for Fantastic Man, I agree it is one of the best out there today. Intelligent and sophisticated in its approach. Especially as, FM, unlike most others, doesn’t pander to children, or men wasting too much of their time on trendy fashion. It’s a real magazine, geared toward the intelligent man, of style.
Nicola
Comment by Nicola Linza — April 11, 2008 #
7.
Wow, thanks everyone. £6.50 certainly is steep, but I assumed it would be when I looked at the site and it said a subscription was €20 – for two issues!
I’ll try to get to Oxford St and pick up a copy.
Comment by Simon Crompton — April 11, 2008 #
In the course of the past seven years I have witnessed many morphing transformations in publishing especially pertaining to men’s publications and regarding those magazines I mentioned here in 2008 – excluding the archives of the 1980s now out-of-print men’s M magazine – there is not one left today that holds any interest to me.